I have an old Windows 7 laptop which works great after replacing its battery pack. I wish the industry builds replaceable battery unit so user don't have to throw away whole battery pack. You did a great job as usual.
Yeah I wonder that too, "break out board? wth" but as Joe M says he's cutting into the board. Also I find the micro usbs wear down so to change that out and renew will be easy.
@@karl_f5084 I guess constellation of parts isn't a phrase used in english and it'd be better saying this cluster of parts, hence why it sounds funny :D
@@karl_f5084 "Constellation of parts" is technically correct, but it gives a starry image. Like as if the parts were floating in space in the sky. "Look at that constellation of parts! That's Alpha Centauri, and that's an LM7805 regulator!"
+Proyectos LED I thought the same. Ones I have shut down at ~3.6V. It looks like he have not tested his creation. Not a good way, to teach others... I tried to find something working lower wthout succes... If something works lower, then max current is like 600mA. Way to low to quickly charge...
GreatScott! Thats interesting. Mine doesn't work. But at 500mA charging my phone would take forever. So I keep searching... Does any device draw more than 500mA from your bank? Most phones need resistor or short between data pins in USB, to initiate fast charge.
This is very ironic that you put this video up because just yesterday I took apart an old laptop battery. Keep up the great work GreatScott!!! Love the videos!!
Awesome, simple project. Do you still use it? 4 years ago, I would love to see an update video or maybe how you would do it now, even if it ultimately ended in using the same or similar electrical equipment. Thanks!
IMPORTANT: after connecting the boost converter DO NOT CONNECT IT TO ANY USB DEVICE (CELL PHONE, CAMERA , TAB etc.) at first YOU TWIST THE POTENTIOMETER TO ACHIEVE 5 V THEN CONNECT IT to any USB device or else you will end up frying the protection chip of your USB DEVICE since usually the boost converter is ramped up to 20 V and that's how I ended up frying my phone's protection chip. Yet your videos are awesome GreatScott!!.
I've been looking for a good complete guide for such project for a long time now! I've got lots of salvaged 18650's laying around and I've been thinking to make a power bank. This is the perfect video to get started!
There are tools that are actually really useful for code within Kali, it's not just used for hacking but also for coding and tinkering if you have devkits through the eyeballs like most electrical engineers do!
+GreatScott! hi, i've these tp4056, and have different layout, they lack the OUT plates, so i can't use them while charging, i suppose... or do you think the 2 plates just behind the microusb connectors can be used for this? Thanks it.aliexpress.com/item/WHOLESALE-1PC-LOT-TP4056-1A-Lipo-Battery-Charging-Board-Charger-Module-lithium-battery-DIY-MICRO-Port/32433891059.html
+GreatScott! i'll buy the right ones, so... these seems exactly as the one you used in the video, while the one you linked on aliexpress seems to have a little bit different layout... are these linked ok? it.aliexpress.com/item/5-pcs-Micro-USB-1A-Lithium-Battery-Charging-Board-Charger-Module-With-Protection/32402397769.html
I had this exact idea as well! Old laptop batteries are a GREAT source of 18650 cells useful for practically anything if you wire them up with a BMS or protection circuit. Others even built e-bike batteries out of them!
Android Pal und stellt es kein Problem dar das der Ladestrom von einem Modul nur max 1A liefert? Das dauert doch ewig mit laden. Hast du Erfahrungen mit dem parallel schalten zweier TP4056 Module?
{MLP} Rainbow Dash Good question, I have around 18 cells, it'll output 5 volts (from a circuit board that outputs 5 volts) and I'm going to guess and say it'll have around 30,000 mAh's. These are all estimates of course. It may not even work :P
{MLP} Rainbow Dash XD it doesn't say. I have some plastic covered purple batteries that say ASO, some random numbers and letters, and a barcode. A quick googling came up with some info when I typed in ASO. The other ones are red, slightly clear plastic covered ones.They have alpha numerical info on them as well that didn't yield any info with a googling.
I just got 23kg laptop batteries from a pc shop nearby for free and there are pretty good cells in there especially the Samsung cells they hold their voltage for over 18 months with like 0.2 to 0.3v discharge
I don't know if you did it but you should short de the data pins on the USB output port, phones and tablets uses this method to know if they can pull more than the standard 500mA.
I would recommend puting a fuse before the circuit boards. It has happened to me that my shitty powerbank ( which has a similiar circuit than the blue charging module ) got a short circuit. The ic that controls the charging blew up for no reason and created a short on the battery. Luckily i was there to pull out the batteries in time before everything melted away xd :)
I have built several of these, however instead of using USB plugs, I put regular 2.1 mm power plugs on them, then drilled small holes above the adjusters on the step up or step down converters (I built both types) One of them I also put a regular power plug salvaged from a laptop power supply on so I could hook to that type of device. I also built one that goes from 24 to 36 volts using six cells to power 50 and 100 watt LEDs. I have another with six cells that I mounted a 20 watt LED on to use when working on my motor home. I also stuck an amp/volt meter on it with leads so it doubles as a test meter; very handy.
xEAXOS you can learn this stuff the best advice i would give is to find something you really want to make. for me it was having a extra thumb stick on my controller, then with that passion of really wanting it you will jump over hurdles you "think" you cant. i cant believe what i have learned and now what i can do! took no time at all!
You just need the internet, I do study electronics and know about electronics, electromagnetic physics and advanced calculus, and to actually make this you dont require any advanced knowledge. If you want to learn stuff like this you should search for begginer projects and try to replicate them, just search for the ones you like and also the ones that you can get all the materials. The internet is full of documentation, even from big Universities, if theres something you dont know there should be an article, video or even a power point presentation that can help you to understand different electric phenomenon. At the begining you may have to research a little bit more than usual to understand some basic stuff, but there are so many things to learn about electronics (or any science) that even for someone with an academic degree it is necesary to do research from books or the internet to make their projects a reality. I havent seen anything I have learned in my University thats not available on the internet. Just make up your mind and set a goal (in your case to learn or to make a project a reality), if you really want to learn and make this kind of stuff and you have acces to the internet then the only thing stopping you from doing so its yourself.
+GreatScott! Can you please make a Solar powered power bank because the power bank you did in the video does not have an emergency charger itself so, please make a video on it.
this just blow me away I have a good laptop battery but I do not have the know how to make on like that but that was amazing sharing to all my buddy's this video!
Wow thanks a million, I have been studying on how to use those little chargers to charge a large battery pack, this explains it! I had been wiring them in series to get 12 volts then using a step up to get 33 volts for my 100 watt LED's. Problem came with the recharging, I usually pull them all out and charge them in a regular Lipo charging device, but this should do the trick. Well not for my 33 volt projects but for 5 to 12 volts this should do nicely, and considering that I purchased a dozen of those little guys some time ago I can afford to play with them a bit.
A fun project to learn the basics but all of those parts cost more than buying an off-the-shelf powerbank that lets you insert your own 18650 batteries.
brand new to science behind the batteries thank god mine didn't blow up yet but I used to short circuit them(cheap ones)to see which ones would smoke or catch fire. will use protective circuits now thanks.
Charging this puppy would take more then 12 hours at maximum warp. Why didn't you explain the function of the tp4056. This $0,50 board is great and you've placed the power switch correctly, because this board has the under voltage switch. Great tutorial, but a bit lacking in details.
+GreatScott! I don't think you have to. There are plenty out there. I like you doing your complete builds. Your quick pace and everything covered from start to finish. Maybe it's just me, knowing these boards and finding it a bit scary for people not familiar with 18650 to work on them. You soldered the tabs quite fast and professionally. But a novice trying to replicate your soldering might take to long and the Lipo might start running it's deathloop. Also you should warn explicitly NOT to short the batteries. Something that even happened to me, while not paying attention to the wiring. Great tutorial, but not for the un-initiated in 18650 technology.
+UpsetGaming This design is limited by the charge controller connected to the batteries. I haven't looked up the datasheet on the one he is using, but it is likely that it won't charge a current greater than 1 Amp. So if you do the math, 1 Amp @ 5 Volts = 5 Watts required. How long it takes to charge is based on the total capacity of the batteries you will be using. If each battery cell is approximately 2000mAh (milli-Amp hour) it will take about 2 hours per cell to charge. All of these figures can change based on the charge controller and batteries you use.
Also don't forget that solar panel has to supply a voltage high enough for the charge controller, but not too high as to affect its operation or damage the circuitry. Another buck/boost converter would be required in the circuit between the solar panel and charge controller.
One cool modification that could make this better than basically every existing USB power bank is to eliminate the need for a dedicated switch to turn the device on. Of course we don't want quiescent (zombie) current draw constantly discharging the batteries, so I would add a microswitch _inside_ the USB port to physically connect/disconnect the batteries from all the circuitry when the USB is inserted.
A source of 'free' batteries are the power packs to cordless power tools. People usually throw them away when they won't hold a charge or don't charge. Usually its only one or two cells that are faulty. Check out DoctorBass's channel for more info :)
however، it worth saying that people with lack of awareness of lithium batteries could potentially have a fire if trying to charge them up and they are internally shorted👍
You'll output much more current if you solder the 2 USB data pins together. Since your phone will then detect it as a 'wall charger' not a 'pc data connection'
You can often find empty batteries-not-included power banks on eBay, although it's often hard to figure out which ones are quality since none of the major brands sell them empty.
A warning should be shown for opening the battery case with a sharp object like a screwdriver. There is a high risk of puncturing one of the lithium cells which are very close to the outer plastic wall and that could cause it to catch fire or leak dangerous chemicals.
+DMAN22yeah I didn't say anything about LiPo, those are Lithium Ion cells and everything I said in that comment stands true. They can catch fire and/or release dangerous chemicals if punctured. They are NOT "much like a large AA battery", it would be very wrong to think that.
VoltLog they are the design of a large aa battery, i was using that as a comparison. they have a higher voltage and have a higher energy density. any battery is dangerous, if you know what you are doing than you should have no problems. and to open them, that is perfectly fine. you are more at risk of shorting than puncture. the casing is very thick
VoltLog 18650 cells are pretty hard to get punctured, as they have a solid matal case. I opened my battery pack with an exacto, hitted one of the cells and nothing happened. (Luckily)
Juan Sambucetti that doesn't mean anything, because the top and bottom can be weak spots for these batteries and this way they can catch fire. Just because yours didn't or because it isn't highly probable doesn't mean there shouldn't be a warning because when it does happen it can be dangerous. But then again what are you doing opening old laptop batteries if you don't know what they are and how dangerous they can be lol
+BleedinglHeart some old Dell laptops were used to randomly explode! And lithium-ion batteries are really dangerous, be really cautious with them! (Just an iPhone battery has as much power as 39 gun shoots!) Sooo... Try at your own risk, I keep my 20100 mAh battery pack that I bought off of amazon...
+AL_O0 ᶜᴼᴹᴹᴬᴺᴰ ᴮᴸᴼᶜᴷ ᴬᴺᴰ ᴿᴱᴰˢᵀᴼᴺᴱ When the Laptop was hapily used for years with these cells, the won't explode. Also there was a recall. If you didn't send back your explosive battery and got back a goot one, it's your fault.
+BleedinglHeart To be more precise. When exposing the Lithium inside the cells to oxygen it will cause a endo-thermic reaction. In simple terms. Crack open a lithium cell and expose it to the air around you will cause it to violently go up in flames. The root cause of lithium batteries exploding in consumer electronics is due to manufacturing errors in the cell casing. When exposed to heat they will expand. If the case ruptures. (Due to manufacturing errors) Oxygen can get to the lithium and it basically turns into a chemically fueled firecracker of which its flames behaves like plasma. (Chemical fire) This is the very reason why its a bad idea to keep smartphones in bed. The heat isolating properties of your bed can overheat the battery pack. causing it to expand. Especially when charging the phone or playing games on it. (and most certainly while doing this at the same time) Its the number 1 cause of accidents involving smartphones in house fires.
I've pretty much done the same thing with some other components. Using a rechargeable 2.7v Lithium battery as well as a steady 2,7 to 5v boost converter and a lithium battery charging circuit as well with two solar panels and a custom designed 3D-printed case, I've made myself an USB and solar powered rechargeable phone charger with swappable batteries and indication LED's for charging. Even though I nearly haven't got so much knowledge in electronics as +GreatScott! has, I still managed to make one!
haha that's awesome that I am doing the same project made from the same eee laptop to turn it into a portable kali-pi3 laptop. love your videos brother and like always, keep up the curiosity.
2:06 You said such an arrangement is just possible because the batteries have been always used together. In fact, that's not true. You've put them all in parallel, eventual state of charge differences would have been automatically evened out in the moment of connection since lower cells would have been charged and higher cells discharged. The real problem with uneven balanced cells is a serial arrangement. There is no way for the cells to self balance because there is no low resistance connection respectively short between the poles of each cell and there fore no compensating current can flow. When you draw current from the pack, both low and high cells are loaded with the same current draw. Is the state of charge or state of health different in serial paired cells, at least one of them would reach the recommended cut off voltage before the other. But you don't get this information out of the pack voltage because you just see the total voltage which leads to a lot of problems. THAT requires additional information and balancing which is accomplished by using balance leads and a µC circuit. Parallel arrangement does not cause any problems by using cells of different SoC or SoH. You shouldn't use cells of different chemistry, though. Neither in parallel nor in series.
You should NEVER try to recharge Lithium-cells that has fallen below 2.5V per cell. It can be very dangerous, ans they are a ticking bomb waiting to go off. Also the capacity is very low after that stunt! Have you checked the UVLO-voltage on the boost-converter? If it's below 3V it isn't good for this use.
+zaprodk What are you talking about? Yes, care must be taken when reviving cells but after that- how are they different from other old cells? I'd only charge them under supervision and individually though.
+Sven Ollino If you know how secondary Lithium-cells work, you wouldn't be saying that. Have a look at this, it may teach you something new: www.mpoweruk.com/lithium_failures.htm
I understand that. The anode dissolves and may cause a short circuit in the long run. The short circuit may cause an explosion and possibly a fire with some chemistries and lower grade batteries. Old grade-A cells that have limited capacity and have been sitting above 1.5V pose little threat. With that said I still wouldn't hand them to any friends or family.
I wish I could have such an awesome mind that contains all this information about circuits and such, but oh well... Still love to see everything being build and modified.
hence I know you love the English language and are always learning new things about it, I thought I would state that "iron" is not pronounced "eye-Ron", but pronounced ""eye-ern" or "eye-urn" pretty similar but depends on where you are. great tutorial. I'm always salvaging lithium cells and losing them. :p
pretty cool. I took the circuit out of a powerbank (ebay) to make one of these. it does the charge control and boost. powerbank without a battery is about $2 on ebay. the project enclosure was the most expensive part, $8.
If I had only seen a few seconds of this video without any sound, I would be able to tell this is a Great Scott video from the rivers of hot glue holding stuff in place!
i did found out the same when i unboxed my old laptop battery, the integrated "protection" circuits are real crap (maybe its on purpose? for profit). Also i suggest to take the parrallel cells apart because in my case they had uneven capacity. I recharged every cell on its own so i could restore all 12 batteries to the full 2200mAh (6 had to low voltage (2.3-2.5V). I plan to attach a BMS-circuit for every cell so they are better protected than the carppy BMS from the Laptop battery.
I do some research about it some saying that should use resistor because the limit of TP4056 is 1amp and 5v. 1amp = 1 lithium battery therefore the total is 4amps in 4battery while the voltage will stay the same (3.7v). The question is why do some people(DIY) in UA-cam using only (1 tp4056) and USB when creating a powerbank?
You could modify the build to take up minimal space with a better boxing option, a different switch like a slider or a latching push switch and an easier build to follow for people with less technical knowledge or access to equipment.
The problem with using BOOST CONVERTER is it changes its value (volts) over time. Since the cheap variable used in it. So to avoid damage, do check the output volts every month!
Man, your videos are awesome! I so much like your cretativity and your geek mind:). I want to have all your projects at home but I don't have enough equipment to make most of them, but I hope that once I'll do it.
haa, i already have one, but waaaay samller, anyway, thx scott to make a better representation of my idea, no envy at all, really, im happy to see someone with simillar ideas.
Do not use that boost converter, it's output is electrically noisy, unstable (noise/oscillations depedning on load/load charateristics), and can easily overheat. Also, use a fuse on the batteries. Be very careful not to short them out, as they can dump a LOT of current!
interesting project. could the cells be made into a pack that could charge a laptop externally? The Voltage would be much higher though but is it possible?
I have an old Windows 7 laptop which works great after replacing its battery pack. I wish the industry builds replaceable battery unit so user don't have to throw away whole battery pack. You did a great job as usual.
This is a really awesome project. Great job.
+EposVox Omg, I love ur channel!!!
Beall619 Well thanks!
+. Beall619 v
How did you get verified with 40k? :D
please why you used Micro USB breakouts at 2:48. It cant be connected directly to charging module?
Thank you for good video and for answer.
The breakout board has mounting holes
Yeah I wonder that too, "break out board? wth" but as Joe M says he's cutting into the board. Also I find the micro usbs wear down so to change that out and renew will be easy.
"This constellation of parts"
Ha ha, love it ! Sometimes the German to English translation is better then the plain old English !
:D :P xD
Wonderful isn't it. :)
I don't get it, maybe because I'm German. What would be the correct sentences?
@@karl_f5084 I guess constellation of parts isn't a phrase used in english and it'd be better saying this cluster of parts, hence why it sounds funny :D
@@karl_f5084 "Constellation of parts" is technically correct, but it gives a starry image. Like as if the parts were floating in space in the sky. "Look at that constellation of parts! That's Alpha Centauri, and that's an LM7805 regulator!"
I do not like that boost converter xl6009 or lm2577 needs at least 3.5v to work. would be nice to use one that work until 2.8v. what do you think?
+Proyectos LED I thought the same. Ones I have shut down at ~3.6V.
It looks like he have not tested his creation. Not a good way, to teach others... I tried to find something working lower wthout succes... If something works lower, then max current is like 600mA. Way to low to quickly charge...
+Valtra103 I tested it with 3V and it worked. But I was only drawing 500mA.
grande gaston !!
GreatScott!
Thats interesting. Mine doesn't work. But at 500mA charging my phone would take forever. So I keep searching...
Does any device draw more than 500mA from your bank? Most phones need resistor or short between data pins in USB, to initiate fast charge.
+Valtra103 you can search on ebay for "usb boost 2A" not shure if they work.
This is very ironic that you put this video up because just yesterday I took apart an old laptop battery. Keep up the great work GreatScott!!! Love the videos!!
+Matthew Rosengrant Thanks mate ;-)
Awesome, simple project. Do you still use it? 4 years ago, I would love to see an update video or maybe how you would do it now, even if it ultimately ended in using the same or similar electrical equipment. Thanks!
IMPORTANT: after connecting the boost converter DO NOT CONNECT IT TO ANY USB DEVICE (CELL PHONE, CAMERA , TAB etc.) at first YOU TWIST THE POTENTIOMETER TO ACHIEVE 5 V THEN CONNECT IT to any USB device or else you will end up frying the protection chip of your USB DEVICE since usually the boost converter is ramped up to 20 V and that's how I ended up frying my phone's protection chip. Yet your videos are awesome GreatScott!!.
Kali Linux? What are you doing in your free time? :DD
+EK89 That's what she said :'D
Sorry dude, I just had to :P
surprised g scott used kali linux ;)
+Loo Kukorica i use kali as my main os. i quit windows since w10 was publicly released
+Loo Kukorica tbh kali as a live cd(usb) is super easy to boot and check pcs or even more ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
+Loo Kukorica Oh no, it's almost as if University Security courses use prebundled infosec tools.
My hat is off , kali linux just made me smile
You rock! keep up with the great vids
thats not a power bank thats a power brick lol
Mack Andreou I mean hey it works tho lol
you will not find in a store power brick with power like this
What do you call this? www.amazon.co.uk/20000mAh-Multi-Voltage-Portable-Notebooks-Compatible/dp/B00BUJCMUQ they go a lot higher than that.
that's called a scam
Those are using Lithium-Polymer batteries, which are more powerful than Lithium-Ion batteries
I've been looking for a good complete guide for such project for a long time now! I've got lots of salvaged 18650's laying around and I've been thinking to make a power bank. This is the perfect video to get started!
kali linux.... hmmm...suspicion///
There are tools that are actually really useful for code within Kali, it's not just used for hacking but also for coding and tinkering if you have devkits through the eyeballs like most electrical engineers do!
ThEcRaZ3dGaM3R i see, thx
+ThEcRaZ3dGaM3R tbhhh
Erdna Not your profile pic makes it look more Legit :3
Your videos are brilliant, so useful, but my wife tells me I should stop watching them because it always ends up with me spending money!
+Phil Waud Activate sneaky mode ;-)
+Phil Waud - Spend it before she can ;) lol
Dont tell before tell after
Woman hmmmm never understanding with man hobbies :-)
why add an additional microusb adapter to the tp4056, which already has it? More practical mount on the box, or else?
+squalazzo Correct, it was just easier to mount to the box.
+GreatScott! hi, i've these tp4056, and have different layout, they lack the OUT plates, so i can't use them while charging, i suppose... or do you think the 2 plates just behind the microusb connectors can be used for this? Thanks
it.aliexpress.com/item/WHOLESALE-1PC-LOT-TP4056-1A-Lipo-Battery-Charging-Board-Charger-Module-lithium-battery-DIY-MICRO-Port/32433891059.html
squalazzo
This one does not have a protection circuit. Just charging.
+GreatScott! i'll buy the right ones, so... these seems exactly as the one you used in the video, while the one you linked on aliexpress seems to have a little bit different layout... are these linked ok?
it.aliexpress.com/item/5-pcs-Micro-USB-1A-Lithium-Battery-Charging-Board-Charger-Module-With-Protection/32402397769.html
+squalazzo Those are perfectly good.
We need people like you to survive after the zombie apocalypse!!
I'm sitting here using the exact same laptop/netbook he showed on the intro
I had this exact idea as well! Old laptop batteries are a GREAT source of 18650 cells useful for practically anything if you wire them up with a BMS or protection circuit. Others even built e-bike batteries out of them!
If it’s old they the cells are extremely worn and have a very low capacity and will have a very high amount of charge cycles on them
Open a few and they came up to be only at 1200-1700 mah
I’ve had more luck with used vacuum cleaners that use them. They mostly have much higher discharge capabilities
Pro production, impeccable English. Klappt wunderbar!
Android Pal und stellt es kein Problem dar das der Ladestrom von einem Modul nur max 1A liefert? Das dauert doch ewig mit laden. Hast du Erfahrungen mit dem parallel schalten zweier TP4056 Module?
The 18650 is a truly versatile cell. I see them in everything from laptop batteries to e-cigarettes to hoverboards. Very nice project!
0:15 ironically most of my old laptops work just fine except for the battery since they no longer hold any charge
+Armando92 only a cell or two or the protection wiring goes bad
The way you say Boost Converter is just awesome.
Perfect timing, I have more than a dozen 18650's that I plan on making the most ridiculous power bank with.
+TheFlacker99 (Flak) What do you think the capacity of your powerbank will be?
{MLP} Rainbow Dash Good question, I have around 18 cells, it'll output 5 volts (from a circuit board that outputs 5 volts) and I'm going to guess and say it'll have around 30,000 mAh's. These are all estimates of course. It may not even work :P
TheFlacker99 (Flak) Well, what is the capacity of each individual cell?
{MLP} Rainbow Dash XD it doesn't say. I have some plastic covered purple batteries that say ASO, some random numbers and letters, and a barcode. A quick googling came up with some info when I typed in ASO.
The other ones are red, slightly clear plastic covered ones.They have alpha numerical info on them as well that didn't yield any info with a googling.
It may not be a great idea to use cells of unknown capacity, if one set of cells has a different capacity, then the pack may not work correctly.
I just got 23kg laptop batteries from a pc shop nearby for free and there are pretty good cells in there especially the Samsung cells they hold their voltage for over 18 months with like 0.2 to 0.3v discharge
I don't know if you did it but you should short de the data pins on the USB output port, phones and tablets uses this method to know if they can pull more than the standard 500mA.
Good to know. Will do. Thanks
Great video, awesome concept. More people should reuse electrical parts like you
I would recommend puting a fuse before the circuit boards. It has happened to me that my shitty powerbank ( which has a similiar circuit than the blue charging module ) got a short circuit. The ic that controls the charging blew up for no reason and created a short on the battery. Luckily i was there to pull out the batteries in time before everything melted away xd :)
"for no reason"
I have built several of these, however instead of using USB plugs, I put regular 2.1 mm power plugs on them, then drilled small holes above the adjusters on the step up or step down converters (I built both types) One of them I also put a regular power plug salvaged from a laptop power supply on so I could hook to that type of device. I also built one that goes from 24 to 36 volts using six cells to power 50 and 100 watt LEDs. I have another with six cells that I mounted a 20 watt LED on to use when working on my motor home. I also stuck an amp/volt meter on it with leads so it doubles as a test meter; very handy.
Kali Linux - "The quieter you are, the more you are able to hear"
I've had 2 old laptops laying around both with functional batteries, this will be awesome.
I really wish I could learn about this kind of stuff. Is there a type of college class or something you went to so that you learned this?
I believe you can take a physics class on electricity and magnetism. But you'd also have to take calculus before you can take that physics class.
do a vocational course in electrical and electronics or a bachelors degree
xEAXOS you can learn this stuff the best advice i would give is to find something you really want to make. for me it was having a extra thumb stick on my controller, then with that passion of really wanting it you will jump over hurdles you "think" you cant. i cant believe what i have learned and now what i can do! took no time at all!
You just need the internet, I do study electronics and know about electronics, electromagnetic physics and advanced calculus, and to actually make this you dont require any advanced knowledge. If you want to learn stuff like this you should search for begginer projects and try to replicate them, just search for the ones you like and also the ones that you can get all the materials. The internet is full of documentation, even from big Universities, if theres something you dont know there should be an article, video or even a power point presentation that can help you to understand different electric phenomenon. At the begining you may have to research a little bit more than usual to understand some basic stuff, but there are so many things to learn about electronics (or any science) that even for someone with an academic degree it is necesary to do research from books or the internet to make their projects a reality. I havent seen anything I have learned in my University thats not available on the internet. Just make up your mind and set a goal (in your case to learn or to make a project a reality), if you really want to learn and make this kind of stuff and you have acces to the internet then the only thing stopping you from doing so its yourself.
You tell em PantuFJAR so True
I love all your videos. You inspire me to build projects around the house. Thank you!
I could do this with more than 6 cells? I have a bunch lying around.
Sure, but use an good wire that can handle the current
I recommend only cells from the same batch
+GreatScott! Can you please make a Solar powered power bank because the power bank you did in the video does not have an emergency charger itself so, please make a video on it.
Just add the solar board to the Circuit.
Kyle Thomas thanks
this just blow me away I have a good laptop battery but I do not have the know how to make on like that but that was amazing sharing to all my buddy's this video!
How you solve charger identification? My phone only pick 500mAh when the USB charger D+ D- pins does not have pull up resistors or ID chip?
Wow thanks a million, I have been studying on how to use those little chargers to charge a large battery pack, this explains it! I had been wiring them in series to get 12 volts then using a step up to get 33 volts for my 100 watt LED's. Problem came with the recharging, I usually pull them all out and charge them in a regular Lipo charging device, but this should do the trick. Well not for my 33 volt projects but for 5 to 12 volts this should do nicely, and considering that I purchased a dozen of those little guys some time ago I can afford to play with them a bit.
dat kali though
we have a rapper called Kali in my country :D
I ripped up about 6 or 7 old laptop batteries and I got about 26 good 18650 batteries out of it. I needed this video to utilise some of them...thanks.
A fun project to learn the basics but all of those parts cost more than buying an off-the-shelf powerbank that lets you insert your own 18650 batteries.
can u link to it please?
but then you do not have that nice feeling when you build something and it works...
yeah but they are limited to around 4 cells
+Plankins df
True. That's what I ended up doing; buying an empty 6-cell power-bank box off eBay to house some spare 18650's from a dead laptop.
Thank you GreatScott for the video!!!
When we'll get hacking tutorials, Mr. Scott? :D
Stunning project. Much appreciated
who the hell gives you thumbs down man
+shahabaz boss The usual ones, I guess.
+Astuces de Trente Secondes - Must Kunst hahaha
brand new to science behind the batteries thank god mine didn't blow up yet but I used to short circuit them(cheap ones)to see which ones would smoke or catch fire. will use protective circuits now thanks.
installing kali linux to an old laptop "I know I'm not the only one"
Finally you found out how to create decent rectangle holes :-D. Cheers from Berlin.
Charging this puppy would take more then 12 hours at maximum warp.
Why didn't you explain the function of the tp4056. This $0,50 board is great and you've placed the power switch correctly, because this board has the under voltage switch.
Great tutorial, but a bit lacking in details.
+Kenneth Tan Maybe I will make an electronics basics video about charging such batteries in the future. There will be more detail ;-)
+GreatScott! I don't think you have to. There are plenty out there. I like you doing your complete builds. Your quick pace and everything covered from start to finish. Maybe it's just me, knowing these boards and finding it a bit scary for people not familiar with 18650 to work on them. You soldered the tabs quite fast and professionally. But a novice trying to replicate your soldering might take to long and the Lipo might start running it's deathloop.
Also you should warn explicitly NOT to short the batteries. Something that even happened to me, while not paying attention to the wiring. Great tutorial, but not for the un-initiated in 18650 technology.
I like this guy's videos... He looks to know what he is doing..
Does this build have some kind of a cell protection, so the voltage, when charging doesnt get to low on the cells.
YES THE TP4056 BOARD HAD PROTECTION
well now I know what's my next project is going to be about , no not making a power bank , but watching all of your videoa
Can I charge it with a big solar-panel in the Powerbank?
+UpsetGaming You'll need a big solar panel. If you want to charge in 2 hours, you'll need a 25 watt solar cell and those measure 21" x 15".
+octavio echeverria And when I want to charge it in 10 hours? :D
+UpsetGaming This design is limited by the charge controller connected to the batteries. I haven't looked up the datasheet on the one he is using, but it is likely that it won't charge a current greater than 1 Amp. So if you do the math, 1 Amp @ 5 Volts = 5 Watts required. How long it takes to charge is based on the total capacity of the batteries you will be using. If each battery cell is approximately 2000mAh (milli-Amp hour) it will take about 2 hours per cell to charge. All of these figures can change based on the charge controller and batteries you use.
Also don't forget that solar panel has to supply a voltage high enough for the charge controller, but not too high as to affect its operation or damage the circuitry. Another buck/boost converter would be required in the circuit between the solar panel and charge controller.
+Alexander Hiller Thanks.
One cool modification that could make this better than basically every existing USB power bank is to eliminate the need for a dedicated switch to turn the device on. Of course we don't want quiescent (zombie) current draw constantly discharging the batteries, so I would add a microswitch _inside_ the USB port to physically connect/disconnect the batteries from all the circuitry when the USB is inserted.
Haha at first I thought I heard "45 times" before listening back and listening harder, hearing "4 to 5 times" instead.
A source of 'free' batteries are the power packs to cordless power tools.
People usually throw them away when they won't hold a charge or don't charge.
Usually its only one or two cells that are faulty.
Check out DoctorBass's channel for more info :)
+mynewschannel they are usually high drain too, so perfect for vaping
"Muscle force" ( ͡º ͜ʖ ͡º)
Damn, I thought it was going to be a battery bank *for a laptop *, but it's an op USB battery, great video
however، it worth saying that people with lack of awareness of lithium batteries could potentially have a fire if trying to charge them up and they are internally shorted👍
GreatScott! Great channel. I enjoy all of your content.
Why did you use MicroUSB breakout board? TP already has a MicroUSB connection.
It was easier to mount.
+Manuauto Alright. Makes sense :) Cheers.
the second board has a circuit protection
+andrew kb Scott uses an updated TP4056 which already has a circuit protection, you can see additional BATTERY OUT connections.
You'll output much more current if you solder the 2 USB data pins together. Since your phone will then detect it as a 'wall charger' not a 'pc data connection'
why the microusb breakout? what does it do? in the tp4056 has a micro usb... thanks
Easier to mount
Do we have to use this mikro usb breakout?
no, is just to get easier to mount on the box.
Tarcísio Batista ok thanks I understood
finally find the answer of my question，thx a lot！
You can often find empty batteries-not-included power banks on eBay, although it's often hard to figure out which ones are quality since none of the major brands sell them empty.
A warning should be shown for opening the battery case with a sharp object like a screwdriver. There is a high risk of puncturing one of the lithium cells which are very close to the outer plastic wall and that could cause it to catch fire or leak dangerous chemicals.
+VoltLog no, it is much like a large AA battery, not a lipo
+DMAN22yeah I didn't say anything about LiPo, those are Lithium Ion cells and everything I said in that comment stands true. They can catch fire and/or release dangerous chemicals if punctured. They are NOT "much like a large AA battery", it would be very wrong to think that.
VoltLog they are the design of a large aa battery, i was using that as a comparison. they have a higher voltage and have a higher energy density. any battery is dangerous, if you know what you are doing than you should have no problems. and to open them, that is perfectly fine. you are more at risk of shorting than puncture. the casing is very thick
VoltLog 18650 cells are pretty hard to get punctured, as they have a solid matal case. I opened my battery pack with an exacto, hitted one of the cells and nothing happened. (Luckily)
Juan Sambucetti that doesn't mean anything, because the top and bottom can be weak spots for these batteries and this way they can catch fire. Just because yours didn't or because it isn't highly probable doesn't mean there shouldn't be a warning because when it does happen it can be dangerous. But then again what are you doing opening old laptop batteries if you don't know what they are and how dangerous they can be lol
great scott here is an absolute chad. using Kali open source warrior
what a unit
45 times?so your battery is 300mah?
+Dali Rusnacik 4 to 5 times.
Lol
I heard 45 too.
Seems doable.. I have two old laptop batteries, i might do this. Thanks for the video. You're awesome
Is it normal for the TP4056 to get hot while charging the batteries?
Yes
Hello can we put many 18650? I have 25 of them (I buy it, so I think they have same capacity)
Amazing equipment you have! and everything very well organized (german style I guess) keep that way, it's nice watching your videos.
I just hope no one uses a dell battery pack...
EXPLOSIONNNNNNN!!!!
+BleedinglHeart some old Dell laptops were used to randomly explode!
And lithium-ion batteries are really dangerous, be really cautious with them!
(Just an iPhone battery has as much power as 39 gun shoots!)
Sooo... Try at your own risk, I keep my 20100 mAh battery pack that I bought off of amazon...
+AL_O0 ᶜᴼᴹᴹᴬᴺᴰ ᴮᴸᴼᶜᴷ ᴬᴺᴰ ᴿᴱᴰˢᵀᴼᴺᴱ When the Laptop was hapily used for years with these cells, the won't explode. Also there was a recall. If you didn't send back your explosive battery and got back a goot one, it's your fault.
+BleedinglHeart You can play with them just do some research before you do and use common sense!
+BleedinglHeart To be more precise. When exposing the Lithium inside the cells to oxygen it will cause a endo-thermic reaction. In simple terms. Crack open a lithium cell and expose it to the air around you will cause it to violently go up in flames. The root cause of lithium batteries exploding in consumer electronics is due to manufacturing errors in the cell casing. When exposed to heat they will expand. If the case ruptures. (Due to manufacturing errors) Oxygen can get to the lithium and it basically turns into a chemically fueled firecracker of which its flames behaves like plasma. (Chemical fire) This is the very reason why its a bad idea to keep smartphones in bed. The heat isolating properties of your bed can overheat the battery pack. causing it to expand. Especially when charging the phone or playing games on it. (and most certainly while doing this at the same time) Its the number 1 cause of accidents involving smartphones in house fires.
And if you use a HP battery you get Heat Problems!
Could you please make a video using the controller board for battery management? I think many people would find it convenient :)
nah. in most laptops batteries die first. why bother
+Szymon Krasuski the circuit or a group of 2 cells die, the rest is fine
I've pretty much done the same thing with some other components. Using a rechargeable 2.7v Lithium battery as well as a steady 2,7 to 5v boost converter and a lithium battery charging circuit as well with two solar panels and a custom designed 3D-printed case, I've made myself an USB and solar powered rechargeable phone charger with swappable batteries and indication LED's for charging. Even though I nearly haven't got so much knowledge in electronics as +GreatScott! has, I still managed to make one!
+CookieCraftMedia you mean 3.7
+DMAN22yeah Yeah sorry, but you get what i mean
CookieCraftMedia yeah, i figured it was a typo
DMAN22yeah I think there are no 2.7v batteries anyway, right?
CookieCraftMedia there are not
charging 6x18650 with 1A.... don't be in a hurry ;-)
+hammershigh yeah, i plan to use the 1a board for a laptop/usb charger with some old lipo radio batteries, over 30 hours to charge, lol
Can I charge 25PC's of 18650? Hmm the module can handle?
haha that's awesome that I am doing the same project made from the same eee laptop to turn it into a portable kali-pi3 laptop. love your videos brother and like always, keep up the curiosity.
2:06 You said such an arrangement is just possible because the batteries have been always used together. In fact, that's not true. You've put them all in parallel, eventual state of charge differences would have been automatically evened out in the moment of connection since lower cells would have been charged and higher cells discharged. The real problem with uneven balanced cells is a serial arrangement. There is no way for the cells to self balance because there is no low resistance connection respectively short between the poles of each cell and there fore no compensating current can flow. When you draw current from the pack, both low and high cells are loaded with the same current draw. Is the state of charge or state of health different in serial paired cells, at least one of them would reach the recommended cut off voltage before the other. But you don't get this information out of the pack voltage because you just see the total voltage which leads to a lot of problems. THAT requires additional information and balancing which is accomplished by using balance leads and a µC circuit. Parallel arrangement does not cause any problems by using cells of different SoC or SoH. You shouldn't use cells of different chemistry, though. Neither in parallel nor in series.
Mr Mister what a loud of bullshit
The intro is great this is really cool too!
You should NEVER try to recharge Lithium-cells that has fallen below 2.5V per cell. It can be very dangerous, ans they are a ticking bomb waiting to go off. Also the capacity is very low after that stunt! Have you checked the UVLO-voltage on the boost-converter? If it's below 3V it isn't good for this use.
+zaprodk I think he knows this, and he was probably checking his batteries frequently.
+zaprodk What are you talking about? Yes, care must be taken when reviving cells but after that- how are they different from other old cells? I'd only charge them under supervision and individually though.
+Sven Ollino If you know how secondary Lithium-cells work, you wouldn't be saying that. Have a look at this, it may teach you something new: www.mpoweruk.com/lithium_failures.htm
I understand that. The anode dissolves and may cause a short circuit in the long run. The short circuit may cause an explosion and possibly a fire with some chemistries and lower grade batteries. Old grade-A cells that have limited capacity and have been sitting above 1.5V pose little threat. With that said I still wouldn't hand them to any friends or family.
+Sven Ollino Exactly. I wouldn't want some of these cells going off while i sleep.
Congrats bro for your new variable power supply ,i will miss the black one :3 .
Keep up the nice work (y).
I wish I could have such an awesome mind that contains all this information about circuits and such, but oh well...
Still love to see everything being build and modified.
before i thought you said ``It can charge my phone 45 times``. And now i noticed you said 4-5 times.LOL
hence I know you love the English language and are always learning new things about it, I thought I would state that "iron" is not pronounced "eye-Ron", but pronounced ""eye-ern" or "eye-urn" pretty similar but depends on where you are. great tutorial. I'm always salvaging lithium cells and losing them. :p
This project is great! Keep it up!
Thanks for the great videos... I just became a patron. Thanks again and keep up the great work.
Recently I noticed someone on the amphour... very enjoyable.
+TheRogerx3 Thanks. Even though I wish I could speak more fluent in English.
Your English is fine.. also it's the charm of an international experience.
pretty cool. I took the circuit out of a powerbank (ebay) to make one of these. it does the charge control and boost. powerbank without a battery is about $2 on ebay. the project enclosure was the most expensive part, $8.
Man ! You are simply genius
If I had only seen a few seconds of this video without any sound, I would be able to tell this is a Great Scott video from the rivers of hot glue holding stuff in place!
i did found out the same when i unboxed my old laptop battery, the integrated "protection" circuits are real crap (maybe its on purpose? for profit). Also i suggest to take the parrallel cells apart because in my case they had uneven capacity. I recharged every cell on its own so i could restore all 12 batteries to the full 2200mAh (6 had to low voltage (2.3-2.5V). I plan to attach a BMS-circuit for every cell so they are better protected than the carppy BMS from the Laptop battery.
That's awesome dude great job!
I do some research about it some saying that should use resistor because the limit of TP4056 is 1amp and 5v. 1amp = 1 lithium battery therefore the total is 4amps in 4battery while the voltage will stay the same (3.7v). The question is why do some people(DIY) in UA-cam using only (1 tp4056) and USB when creating a powerbank?
You could modify the build to take up minimal space with a better boxing option, a different switch like a slider or a latching push switch and an easier build to follow for people with less technical knowledge or access to equipment.
nice. i have had some old laptop batteries laying around for awhile, but not anymore!
The problem with using BOOST CONVERTER is it changes its value (volts) over time. Since the cheap variable used in it. So to avoid damage, do check the output volts every month!
Just finished mine. Works great!
this is what I was hoping of seeing, so far I collected various cells, 21 to be specific
Man, your videos are awesome! I so much like your cretativity and your geek mind:). I want to have all your projects at home but I don't have enough equipment to make most of them, but I hope that once I'll do it.
+Emko Thanks mate ;-) I hope you will get your equipment someday.
haa, i already have one, but waaaay samller, anyway, thx scott to make a better representation of my idea, no envy at all, really, im happy to see someone with simillar ideas.
Do not use that boost converter, it's output is electrically noisy, unstable (noise/oscillations depedning on load/load charateristics), and can easily overheat. Also, use a fuse on the batteries. Be very careful not to short them out, as they can dump a LOT of current!
interesting project. could the cells be made into a pack that could charge a laptop externally? The Voltage would be much higher though but is it possible?
+Adrian AA Sure
Love that you're using Kali linux....