73833 / 259 charger behavior

[mangocats]

Mostly, I am just trying to understand what it is doing and keep the battery safe and healthy.

Just after 2:35pm I measured BATT at 4.225v and decided to terminate the no-load test before voltage climbed any higher. Lights were still amber & red. When I connected the load (42 to 60mA) the green light immediately lit, amber extinguished, and now voltage is reading 4.212v.

If the 259 will keep the battery in safe operating zone and allow charging 1500mAh+ of capacity within 2 hours or less, then it will meet my needs.

I just want to understand what it is doing and avoid damaging another battery along the way.

[adafruit_support_bill]

As LiPo charge controllers go, the MCP73833 is a fairly basic no-frills device. We have had very few problems with them over the many years we have been making these boards. Applications are somewhat limited by the lack of load-sharing but does well as a basic charger.

4.225V is within the +/- 0.75% claimed spec for VReg. That should not be a problem for the cell. I do not have an explanation for the reported behavior of the status LEDs.

[mangocats]

I don't see a reason why a 2000mAh cell would take that long.

Neither do I, but now it's starting to behave more like I would expect: cycling back and forth between amber and green light every few hours with 5v input and the 45mA load attached.