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adacey
12-30-2017, 07:08 AM
Has anyone tried wiring two 18650 cells in parallel for a Neopixel build? As I understand it, that would double the capacity of the batteries (useful for battery life) and the maximum current, so better for handling the power demands from these strips. I was planning to still use the 10A Panasonic cells (or equivalent, depending on what I can get in the UK) but was curious if anybody else has experience with this type of build? Would there any concerns with wiring a recharge port into this setup?

jbkuma
12-30-2017, 07:41 AM
Unless you know what you are doing, wiring lithium batteries in parallel is a bad idea. This can lead to a "thermal event" which you will decidedly not enjoy.

Here's a brief statement from Adafruit on the topic: https://learn.adafruit.com/li-ion-and-lipoly-batteries/multi-battery-packs

Factories match cells with similar characteristics and use circuitry to ensure the safety of battery packs to keep your laptops and space cars from exploding.

adacey
12-30-2017, 08:10 AM
Thanks, given all the warnings about dealing with Li-Ion cells I figured it was best to ask first.