Replaced Nox800 battery - think I discovered why they drown

jl1252 · Sep 15, 2021

My Nox is out of warranty (originally purchased in 2018. Pod replaced Fall 2020 under warranty). It started started exhibiting some weird charging behavior. I normally hunt for 4-6 hours at a time. This only depletes the battery maybe one bar (2 bars remaining). However, on some of my recent hunts the battery bar would drop after just 2 hours. I've always been in the habit of putting it on the charger overnight after each hunt so its ready to go the next morning. On the last few charging attempts, I've found the green light to be flickering erratically in the morning. Disconnecting and reconnecting the charging cable did not fix the issue. The only way to rectify it was to turn it on, then off, and then light would flash steady indicating it was charging normally.

I called ML and was told this issue was "probably" related to a faulty battery. I ordered a new one ($45 shipped) and received it in few days. I followed the directions and popped out the old one (date code of May 2020), and popped in the new one (date code of July 2019). While I was buttoning things back up I looked into the battery cavity and noticed a 1/4" hole that would allow water to pass into the main pod housing if the two tiny rubber gaskets failed on the battery housing cap.

I dont water hunt, but if I did, I would simply fill that hole with silicone, seal the battery cap with silicone, or to be extra careful, do both.

BTW, replacing the battery was super easy.

basstrackerman · Sep 15, 2021

Nox isn't out of warranty if the date code on battery is 2020.

mh9162013 · Sep 15, 2021

basstrackerman said:
Nox isn't out of warranty if the date code on battery is 2020.

Unless it's a metal detector that can also time travel!

But yeah, I found those date codes to be a bit odd.

mh9162013 · Sep 15, 2021

Given how smart the Minelab engineers are, I would imagine there's a reason that hole isn't sealed off.

But then again, those coil ears...

jl1252 · Sep 15, 2021

mh9162013 said:
Unless it's a metal detector that can also time travel!

But yeah, I found those date codes to be a bit odd.

Originally purchased in 2018. Pod was replaced in Fall 2020 under warranty. I was told the new pod does not carry any warranty, so the original purchase date still dictates warranty period, so I'm expired. ML fuzzy math. Fixed my post so its not so confusing.

jl1252 · Sep 15, 2021

mh9162013 said:
Given how smart the Minelab engineers are, I would imagine there's a reason that hole isn't sealed off.

But then again, those coil ears...

I'm not so sure. What purpose could that hole serve? They are relying on two very thin rubber gaskets to keep water out which isnt too smart. If that cap isnt seated correctly water will make it inside. I think I will seal the hole and cap with silicone just for extra insurance.

mh9162013 · Sep 15, 2021

jl1252 said:
I'm not so sure. What purpose could that hole serve? They are relying on two very thin rubber gaskets to keep water out which isnt too smart. If that cap isnt seated correctly water will make it inside. I think I will seal the hole and cap with silicone just for extra insurance.

I don't know the purpose. There could be a functional reason for having that hole there. But there could also be a reason that relates to production. Maybe that hole makes it easier to manufacture or assemble the pod?

Another explanation could be in case there's a problem with the lithium battery. Because the battery cap is pretty tightly attached inside the handle, if the battery were to violently vent or catch fire, the pressure could go through that hole and into the electronicss area where there are easier ways for the pressure to escape, such as the speaker holes.

As for the O-rings, they usually do a pretty good job of keeping out water, especially since they're not to be disturbed for years at a time. From my reading online, the Equinox's poor record regarding water infiltration is due to water coming into the pod through locations other than the O-rings on the cap for the battery.

choppadude · Sep 15, 2021

I read somewhere that the hole in question is to help relieve pressure when the unit is submerged

NCtoad · Sep 16, 2021

Let me see if I got this straight: You bought a new battery from minelab and it has a date code that’s over two years old? I know lithium batteries have an extraordinarily long shelf life, but I don’t know if I’d be happy if they sent me a battery that old. Especially at full price.

jordanmills · Sep 16, 2021

NCtoad said:
I know lithium batteries have an extraordinarily long shelf life

Not this type. If you're thinking of lithium-iron-sulfide (non-rechargeable), then yes they have very high charge density, very low internal resistance, and a very long shelf life. Lithium-ion/lithium-polymer batteries, used in almost all modern electronics with rechargeable batteries, are fairly short-lived and effective life is reduced by total cumulative charge/discharge, depth of charge, and time at temperature (mostly due to cathode oxidization). That last factor basically means "sitting on a shelf unused". Expected service life is two to five years from date of manufacture for most lion/lipo batteries.

jl1252 · Sep 17, 2021

NCtoad said:
Let me see if I got this straight: You bought a new battery from minelab and it has a date code that’s over two years old? I know lithium batteries have an extraordinarily long shelf life, but I don’t know if I’d be happy if they sent me a battery that old. Especially at full price.

Pretty much. I called ML, they transferred me to the Detector Center, who told me they were out if stock. However, the guy on the phone who was affiliated with Fort Bedford Detectors, sold me one. I will be calling him tomorrow because after charging it, it dropped to 2/3 charge after about 2 hours of detecting today, which is worse than my previous battery.

Beachhunt1 · Sep 19, 2021

jl1252 said:
pretty much. I called ml, they transferred me to the detector center, who told me they were out if stock. However, the guy on the phone who was affiliated with fort bedford detectors, sold me one. I will be calling him tomorrow because after charging it, it dropped to 2/3 charge after about 2 hours of detecting today, which is worse than my previous battery.

Ugh x10

Replaced Nox800 battery - think I discovered why they drown

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