Symptoms
- No charging light when battery is connected to charger
- Charging light on but battery percentage never increases
- Charger gets warm but battery stays at 0 percent
- Battery was fine before but suddenly won't charge
Likely causes
- CommonBattery discharged below its safe minimum voltageSome smart batteries enter a protective state and need a special slow charge to recover.
- CommonCharger or charging cable faultyA worn cable or dead charger can prevent any charging.
- PossibleBattery contacts dirty or corrodedPoor contact can prevent charging current from flowing.
- PossibleBattery reached its maximum charge cycle lifeBatteries naturally lose the ability to hold charge after hundreds of cycles.
- Less commonInternal battery cell failureOne damaged cell can prevent the whole pack from charging.
What to do
- Check that the charger is plugged into a working outlet and the indicator light behaves as expected.
- Try a different charging cable and outlet if available.
- Clean the battery and charger contacts gently with a dry cloth.
- Let the battery sit connected to the charger for at least 15–20 minutes, since some deeply discharged smart batteries take time to begin registering charge.
- Try a different compatible battery in the same charger to see if the charger itself works.
- Note if the battery ever charged partially before failing completely, which can indicate a specific cell going bad.
- If a known-good charger and cable still won't charge the battery at all, the battery has likely failed and should be recycled and replaced.
Tools and parts
- Dry cloth
Replacement drone batterySearch: “genuine replacement battery for [drone model]”
When to call a pro
If a known-good charger still won't charge the battery after 20 minutes, the battery has likely failed and should be replaced.
Safety
Use caution
Never attempt to charge a battery that's swollen, punctured, or visibly damaged; recycle it instead through a battery disposal program.