If you got an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), or drone, as a holiday gift, you may be eagerly waiting for a warm day to take it out. When the winter weather clears, be sure that you take out your drone with a full battery. Many drones have lithium batteries, which are really great at storing energy for good lengths of time. However, even lithium batteries need a break. Read on to see how to take care of and extend your drone's battery life.

Be Mindful of the Weather

Always check your local weather reports before heading out with your drone. Again, winter weather isn't great for your drone. While drones are high tech and aerodynamic, they aren't always waterproofed. This means that any moisture that gets near batteries and other electrical components can cause damage.

Besides avoiding adverse weather, you need to avoid windy days. Wind can actually reduce your battery life more quickly since the drone has to use extra energy to balance the drone and push through the resistance.

Lastly, avoid overly hot or overly cold days. Extreme weather conditions can speed up or slow down chemical reactions in the batteries. Many batteries, even lithium ones, can be affected.

Charge and Store Your Drone and Controller Properly

When you take your drone out and it runs out of batteries, you may immediately want to recharge it. However, many drones have failsafes in place and won't immediately recharge if a drone is still warm from recent flying. Make sure that you let your drone cool down, and then you can recharge its batteries. Usually drones will have an indicator light telling you that it's okay to charge.

When you store your drone and control for charging, make sure they are in a cool—or room temperature—place that is also dry. Once your drone is back to full capacity, then you need to remove it from the charger. Overcharging can weaken the batteries.

Don't Push the Drone's Distance Too Much

Drones usually have a range of one to three miles. However, some people like to push their drones to see just how far they will go. Many drones are technologically advanced enough that they will land on their own when they are at a low battery. However, it's dangerous to push your drone to far—the batteries may not handle it, and your drone could crash!

Keep an eye on your flight controller's indicator light. Many controllers will flash a light to alert you of a low battery. If that's the case, you can turn the drone back around so that you can land it.

For more information on your drone or drone batteries, talk with the manufacturer or an outdoor hobby store that sells UAVs.

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