this post was submitted on 22 Jul 2023
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Mechanical Keyboards

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As the title says, I was wondering if there's any concerns regarding the battery life or fire hazard if I cover the battery with foam? Should I cut the foam to fit around the battery? I've seen people do both online.

I have some denser, rubber like foam as well as a more fluffy one, looking for deeper sound. TIA!

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I always leave the battery with some space around it. You never know when it starts to vent. Also wrapping around battery decreases airflow, I know that the current in this cases is not big and battery should probably never heat up, but I'm just careful with batteries.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Thanks, yeah I was thinking along those lines and I'd rather be safe than sorry.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It'll be fine. Keyboards without any lights use very little power so the battery won't get warm during use.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The keyboard I'm modding has RGB, so I guess I should cut around it?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

how many hours does the battery last?

continuing my above answer: your cell should be a cheap 1C (which is just cheaper than the 3+C, not bad, it’s totally fine for your application) The C rating means “the max amperage you can draw from the battery to be safe is times ”. So a 1C 2000mAh battery has max amp draw of 2A (or 2000mA) while a 2C 500mAh has 1A (2x500mA)

If your battery lasts for more than 10 hours straight that means you draw 1/10th of max amp - meaning a cool battery. In case of a 1C 2000mAh you draw 200mA

So: if your keeb lasts more than 10-15 hours you’re more probably fine as the battery is kept cool

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Wow, thanks for the thorough explanation! I have a Keychron K2 V2, so it should be 4000mAh as per the website.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

pffft there’s no way you draw even near enough battery to even notice any temperature change

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Cool thanks for easing my mind!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The amount of current you draw should be super low, even for 1C batteries so the produced heat should be negligible. I would however leave some space for potential puffing and maybe somehow a small window to check (if possible)

1-2mm would be fine. if you don’t have such space, i’d personally do it but i wouldn’t recommend it

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Love all the helpful advice on Lemmy, thank you!

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