Welcome to Laser Pointer Forums - discuss green laser pointers, blue laser pointers, and all types of lasers

LPF Donation via Stripe | LPF Donation - Other Methods

Links below open in new window

ArcticMyst Security by Avery

Can a reverse polarity battery installation make damage?

Joined
Nov 1, 2010
Messages
479
Points
18
Just got DX High-Power 200mW Red Laser Pen .

While operating it I accidentally installed the batteries with the polarity reversed and pushed the on/off button for a few seconds. Obviously, no light emitted and when I reinstalled the batteries properly it seems that the laser functions (I can see the dot, burn a match, etc). The problem is that while operating it for the first time, I sensed this smell of a burnt electronics (that is now gone) and I think that somehow I damaged the laser.

Did anybody who owns that laser encounter with this smell during the initial operation? Is this smell (which is no longer exists) regular on the first time? Perhaps it comes from the glue that holds the driver and not from the electronics?

Your replies would br highly appreciated.
:thanks:
 





anselm

0
Joined
Nov 22, 2010
Messages
2,448
Points
0
If your laser performs fine, I wouldn't worry about a smell unless that
smell comes back after lasing for awhile.
Anyways, if your burning stuff, you shouldn't be surprised by such a smell.
It might not be the electronics at all.

If the laser could be damaged by reverse polarity, then it wouldn't work anymore by
now, would it?
 
Last edited:
Joined
Nov 1, 2010
Messages
479
Points
18
If your laser performs fine, I wouldn't worry about a smell unless that
smell comes back after lasing for awhile.
Anyways, if your burning stuff, you shouldn't be surprised by such a smell.
It might not be the electronics at all.

If the laser could be damaged by reverse polarity, then it wouldn't work anymore by
now, would it?

Well, I tend to think so as well, but just to be sure I will wait for other members replies, especially with respect to that smell.

Thank you anyway.
 
Joined
Aug 24, 2010
Messages
1,866
Points
48
Someof the lasers have polarity protection and some don't. If it still works you should be fine. As for the smell it could of had some solder splater, flux or glue on the driver and when it got warm it burned soe of it off. If it was something serious your laser would have died.
 
Joined
Dec 5, 2010
Messages
59
Points
8
I put the battery in backwards in a Lowes keychain LED the other day and it fried the board and quit working. That's OK, because I was gonna cannibalize the board anyway. After removing it, the LED still worked. Some drivers have reverse protection and some don't...And some real cheapies don't even have a driver and use button cells(I guess they are more constant current). Cheapie LED's are easiest to fry the diode. Oddly enough, on just a battery, if you reverse an LED polarity, it simply won't shine until you connect it correctly. But if you give an LED a volt or two over it's rating, even when polarity is correct, poof to that one too.

I don't believe laser diodes are near as robust as LED's. I've seen them bite the dust by looking at them wrong! If yours still has the same power, I'd say the board and diode are still OK. My experience shows that if you do something wrong to a laser diode, you will know right away because it weakens drastically, turns into a LED, or does nothing!
 
Joined
May 26, 2008
Messages
185
Points
18
I have a similar laser as yours but with a different focusing head.

Yours is know as a Dilda I think, and mine is the Mk2 version, the only difference being that it has a different focusing cap.

Mine was a kit so I know the driver I used has reverse polarity protection, it's hardly a challenging feature so very likely that yours has it too.

Also, as someone has already mentioned, if it wasn't protected your laser should be broken by now.

Especially as it uses high current lithium batteries and a sensitive red diode.

If you unscrew the focusing cap, you should be able to see the laser module; the bit under the focusing cap that has the laser diode in it.

You should then be able to easily unscrew it from the main body of the laser, CAREFULLY, and take a picture of the driver board with the spring contact attached.

If you post that picture on here, we may be able to positively identify the driver.
 




Top