Flying in heat and humidity..

Ninetoes

Ninetoes

Say again Howland.
Quadcopters are my newest addiction. I had never flown one before so I purchased a Syma X5C-1 and a Cheerwing CW4 (love this one,thanks Quadcopter 101) My concern is right now where I live(AZ) it is 110 outside and high humidity. Are either of these a factor in quad wear and tear? Is the high humidity bad for the circuit boards,batteries,motors etc? I know it's bad for me,lol.
 
Most components like flight controllers give you specs on safe operating ranges, and it's usually around 140F so I don't worry about it much. The 2 things that can be affected most are firstly batteries (never leave them in your car for any length of time) and more importantly on flight controllers with barometers. Not so much heat but changes in barometric pressure. If the weather has changed drastically since the last time I flew, I always do a quick calibration. I'm also a big proponent of doing a compass calibration every time I fly, especially if I'm flying in a different location.
 
Thank Renov8r..That helps ease my mind quite a bit..I am so new to this,I need to just fly more and worry less!
 
You should always err on the side of caution. Do a preflight check for loose screws, no disconnected, props tight, batteries secured properly. If you're unsure of anything, just ask. Nothing worse than seeing your prized possession disappearing over the horizon on it's way back to China......
 
Thanks again Renov8r..Sorry for the late reply. I tend to get kinda concerned about my quad,and like you said I snug all screws,check props,scotch tape on SD card slot,that sort of thing. I'm too old and fat to spend my time searching thru the grass and leaves for quad parts,lol. When I bought me X5C-1 I bought several of every spare part I could find. I have two or three of everything except main body. I am totally new to this and did not know what to expect. I am having fun learning it all,and that's what counts.
 
I live in Texas, where lately the heat has been in the 90's with humidity in the 50% - 60% range. I have flown my my aircraft in these conditions and have noticed the motors being hot to the touch after around 8 - 10 minutes of flying. Twice, I've had my Parallax Elev-8 suddenly pitch over and crash inexplicably during a 2nd flight after swapping out batteries. I've become suspicious that excessive heat from one or more motors have caused loss of power, but I have no evidence to go on. I have noticed that on cooler days (temps in the mid 70's) the motors feel fine after a flight.

Since then, I let my aircraft sit and cool down after a flight - will fly another aircraft in the meantime. I've had no mishaps since then. If you've had any pilot training, then you know that heat and humidity increase density altitude, meaning that your aircraft has to work harder to stay in the air. This means that you have to fly at higher throttle settings than normal and you'll go through you battery quicker.
 
Aerodynamically speaking, the hotter the temperature the less lift any aircraft will have. Full size Jumbo jet or Micro Quad. The colder the temperature the denser the air, hence more lift from same thrust drag etc.

Now, having said this, I have no idea to what extent this affects aircraft our size. But, if you are flying at the edge of your performance envelope, weight or lack of power, you may see a big difference between cold an hot days.

I am sure we will hear from a NASA engineer now.....:-)
 
Well, density altitude is a function of both temperature and humidity. out here in central Texas, I have to deal with both! But I have not done the calculations - something I should do!
 
GlassKnees said:
Well, density altitude is a function of both temperature and humidity. out here in central Texas, I have to deal with both! But I have not done the calculations - something I should do!
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Roger that, South Carolina had the hottest summer on record, I think. And My wife will attest to the humidity. So far my Tarantula has not complained, wait till I hang my Go Pro clone on it...hahaha

As an aside, our brave helicopter pilots had to deal with hi temperatures and humidity in Vietnam. Many a rolling takeoff that took way to long. Bless them all.

Bill
 
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