Battery Concerns...I'm freaked out.

[stuvix]

Ok, so I know this topic is covered many times over, but I really need some clarification here.

I keep reading about batteries exploding and now I'm scared out of my mind. I used to charge my eGo's and 18650's overnight, but now, I'll never do that again. I now always charge them when I'm home, and when I'm nearby.

I've read that eGo's have a weak spot at the end so that if it explodes, the explosion at least happens away from your face.

What about the Lavatube?

I'm not going to lie, I've dropped my LT a few times. The last time (and I hope it's the last) the battery end received a nice dent from the pin inside the LT. I obviously recycled the battery and did not use it. The cap where the atty connector is came slightly loose, but I was able to push it back in and it looks fine. Is that going to be it's new "weak" spot? Blowing the thing into my face?

I know the LT has it's own protection, i.e. the amp limit, but who's to say that can't fail? My supplier doesn't even say what the batteries are, IMR, ICR, etc. All I know is that they came with my LT, are 18650, and 2200 mAh. From what I've read, they must be unprotected, since protected ones wouldn't fit. I'm going to contact them to find out all the details.

My point: I know I need to be concerned and smart with my batteries. I check each battery for damage before use, and as I said I no longer charge overnight/in my absence. Is there really such a worry about my LT exploding??

Forgot to mention...When I read about "mods" exploding, is that referring to any mods or just ones that folks build themselves at home?

 

[barbee865]

any battery can have a major failure. I'm not overly worried about it though. I have stopped charging batteries overnight and when i'm not home though.
My general rule of thumb is to not use a damaged battery and if using li-ion always use a protected cell from a reputable manufacturer (and retailer). Read: no ebay or dealextreme junk. Cheaping out on something that goes next to your face is generally a bad idea.
I use NiMH and li-ion in my silver bullet on a daily basis and have for months and have had no issues. Usually when a battery has a meltdown its down to user error or a fault mod. not the batt.
However, always check your batteries when they come off the charger. if they're charged above 4.2v toss them and get a new charger.

 

[kwalka]

Do not take this the wrong way, my interest is in your safety! You should be scared, because that means you are not qualified to be using the aforementioned products. Click on my signature and get reading! Any APV (advanced personal vaporizer), mod, with removable, rechargable batts runs the risk of failure. That is why it is imperative that you do your homework. I do not own a LT. What you said about the top popping open vs a weak point makes sense. Is there a spring inside to absorb the impact of hitting the floor or is the battery itself taking the impact?
You are correct about never charging while unattended. You also need to purchase a Li-Po charging blast bag. It is a bag, thats like $15 that the whole charger and batts go into while charging. The bag is designed to contain any failure that may occur while charging.
There is a difference between an AW protected and an AW IMR. The IMR is considered a safer chemistry and does not need protection.
Good luck and get reading.

 

[MickeyRat]

It's not usually the mods that explode, it's the batteries. That said, if a mod isn't vented, there is a possibility that the gas build up from the batteries will cause the the mod to explode. There may be one but, I don't know of a commercially available mod that isn't vented. If you go to the modders forum, you'll find that if they are making a metal tube, they make sure it's vented too.

Your level of concern about charging is a little extreme. These are batteries. They aren't dynamite. They aren't going to blow your house apart or take out a wall with an explosion. The bigger danger is starting a fire. However, a battery exploding is a pretty rare occurrence. The ones that explode and start a fire are even more rare. It's still a risk and reasonable precautions need to be taken but, your risks driving to work in the morning are a lot greater.

You have to make up your own mind but, between my wife and I, there's always a battery charging somewhere. We can't always be there and sometimes we need to leave them on over night. So, I use a charging bag. Go on Amazon and search for Li-Po Sack and you'll see several. You can get one for under $15. Is it absolutely safe to do what I'm doing. I don't think so but, it's reasonably safe and that's enough for me.

As for having it blow up in your face; so far, there have only been a couple incidents of that that I know about and I don't know of any that occurred when the proper batteries were used. If you are using a proprietary battery like an ego, you are assured you have the proper battery. If you are using generic batteries, you need to make sure they are protected or IMR. If you're worried about the battery's protection circuits failing, then go with IMR. There are some counterfeits out there. So, buy them from a reputable dealer. When you aren't using a charged battery, keep it in a plastic case. They are available lots of places. In fact, sometimes generic batteries come in them.

Keep things in perspective. There are all manner of hazards around you every day. Your drive to work and your stove in your kitchen are quite a bit more likely to hurt you or burn your house down than these batteries.

 

[Maestro]

Do you have any other rechargeable batteries on the go? Cordless phone? Cellphone? Laptop? MP3 player? Electric Toothbrush? Electric Razor? Camera? Well, you get the point. Most of the time there's no trouble if they're used as intended.

 

[stuvix]

Click on my signature and get reading! Is there a spring inside to absorb the impact of hitting the floor or is the battery itself taking the impact?
You are correct about never charging while unattended. You also need to purchase a Li-Po charging blast bag. It is a bag, thats like $15 that the whole charger and batts go into while charging. The bag is designed to contain any failure that may occur while charging.
There is a difference between an AW protected and an AW IMR. The IMR is considered a safer chemistry and does not need protection.
Good luck and get reading.

It's OK to give me scare, I'm already there anyways. Good link by the way, that's a must read for anyone using an e-cig. I'm definitely going to buy one of those charging sacks, you can't be too careful. And very good point about not using a battery right after charging. I won't be doing that anymore, and if I do (with an eGo or something) I'll fire it far from my face first to get the battery going.

As for the Lavatube, it has a spring on the bottom end (on the removable end cap) and then a little pin connector on the other end. So when I dropped it, atty side down, the impact drove the pin into the battery. Hell, I'm surprised the battery didn't blow after that.

 

[stuvix]

Do you have any other rechargeable batteries on the go? Cordless phone? Cellphone? Laptop? MP3 player? Electric Toothbrush? Electric Razor? Camera? Well, you get the point. Most of the time there's no trouble if they're used as intended.

That's very true. I definitely have lots of other batteries constantly charging. I'm more worried about it blowing up in my face to be honest. As long as I charge the things when I'm around, I don't foresee much danger.

I guess out of the - who knows how many - batteries being charged at any given moment in our e-cig community, and only having a couple incidents of battery failures, I shouldn't be too worried. But seeing those posts with the pictures/videos of the aftermath of a faulty battery really scared the **** out of me.

 

[Los Marauder]

I have only heard of one Ego type battery blowing up someones face. They would vent out the end. The mods though are a different animal all together. Batteries made for vaping i.e. Ego and their clones, are designed specificaly for their purpose. Rechargables are designed for everything and anything. It is impoossible to configure a universal battery that will always be perfectly safe in all applications. No company wants a law suit, or anyone one hurt. But greedy people DO exist. Take the well heeded advise and buy honest batts, not the possible knock offs. If any question of quality exists, recycle that batt.

 

[Mac]

If you are using commercially produced products you don't have much to worry about.

 

[mynameisrob]

Rtd Vapor sells a Li-Po charging bag for only $7.74, and their shipping is cheap. They also have a good selection of AW batteries and good prices. I just got 2 18350 IMRs that I ordered from them last week for my SS mini lavatube and they work great

 

[Butters78]

I don't think I'll ever use a charging bag. With that thinking I'll have to get a bag for my cell and toothbrush.

 

[Spazmelda]

I don't have anything useful to add, just wanted to comment on your FERRETS! They are so cute. Don't let the little stinkers chew on your charger cord. LOL.

 

[dcannon1]

Use good batteries (I use AW IMR), a good charger (I use Pila), and a protected APV and your device will probably be as likely to explode or start a fire as your cell phone, laptop, or electric toothbrush (all of those devices have been documented to fail spectacularly though). If you don't do one of those things, like use good batteries with a bad charger then you could be in for some issues.

I have read several accounts of ego style batteries venting while charging. I suspect these batteries have been abused in some way. I have noticed many vendors of ego devices are now mentioning a number of lifetime charges the egos are good for (similar to normal batteries). For all we know some of these venting egos could have been charged 2000 times. Egos are basically disposable units with a longer lifespan since you don't change out the internal battery.

 

[bnrkwest]

Precautions are good. Just so you know that any charger or any battery can fail, it keeps you on your toes. If your charger gets too warm and your batts get too warm do not use them. I just had this happen on a new charger with new AW IMR batts. The charger got warm on one side, put a discolored spot on bottom of IMR batt. Other side of charger stayed cool so put in a batt on that side to try it, next thing I smell hot electrical smell, unplug and find other new batt also discolored on bottom side. I returned it all to vendor for exchange. So any thing can fail at any time, just be watchful and aware. It is also a good idea to test your batts of the charger with a multi meter, these batts should never be above 4.2 v off the charger, if they are, do not use them, they are over charged and that is a bad thing. bnrk

 

[Retriever]

I get freaked out about batteries too, so you are not alone. I sold several great mods because of it. Right now I am using one of the new batts from Smokelessimage, a 1300mAh that will last you all day. I pair this with one of their new clearomizers and I am all set. If you do decide to stick with the big batts, always test them with a multimeter before and after charging to make sure they are performing properly. I would also go with an AW IMR, as it uses a "safer" chemistry. These batts have no record of exploding, they do, however, get extremely hot when shorted out. Good luck!

 

[caged]

More people have injured themselves with cigarettes and lighters than with e-cig batteries. The is a risk associated with everything you do.

 

[Dana A]

It's good to be aware of the risk. Just don't let it keep you up at night. If you take the advice given here you will have great chances of never having a problem. Always better to be too safe rather than not safe enough. Good luck and happy vaping.

 

[stuvix]

Well I suppose (minus the charging bag) that I'm doing everything right. Lighters have been known to blow up too...and up until I found e-cigs I can say with confidence that I was never without a lighter on my person.

So let there be no more fear! E-cigs rock, end of story.

 

[DaveP]

Of the millions of PV's in use, there have been a few battery blowups. These were mostly dual battery mods and probably involved batteries that were unevenly charged when inserted into the mod. Reverse charging can take place if you do this. Check the voltage when they come off for even charge.

The best and safest mod is probably a single battery mod that uses a boost type regulator to create voltages higher than the battery voltage. If it's a tube mod, it should have a good sized hole in the bottom cap that you can see light through when removed from the mod. The battery should have some play when inserted in the tube so that swelling of the battery won't result in venting pressure being exerted on the "face" end.

Don't vape a battery that just came off the charger. Let it sit for a while to completely cool off before using. Don't charge a battery that just came out of the PV in a warm state. Give it a few minutes to cool off internally.

Read and educate yourself on what causes failures. We still don't know the entire story, but there are things we can do to balance the odds against US becoming the next news story. Cars are dangerous, but people drive them every day, and every day someone dies in an automobile. You don't hear anyone recommending that cars be banned. We do hear about safe driving tips to prevent us from becoming the next statistic.

 

[bnrkwest]

I also like the APV's that have all sorts of built in safety features that use one batt, not stacked. I think the biggest thing is be sure you have the right batts for the right APV, use the right charger for that batt, check with multi meter or APV if it has that feature to check batts v. Never charge over night unattended incase of charger failure. Never use a charger that gets too warm and never batts that have gotten too warm because of internal damage. Use the correct ohm carto or atty for the correct PV unit used. It takes some homework but worth it. Then vape bnrk
I use 3 APV's- GLV 2 SM's and Provari mini VV, have an ego passthru and 808's as back ups.