Battery Exploding and/or Smoking

[Imfallen_Angel]

Just a heads up to all of you Vapers out there. If you use the MXJO 18650 3000mAH batteries be warned. I had 1 blow up on the charger after 2hrs about 3 weeks ago. Now just 30mins ago i put one on the charger and it started smoking. I guess its safe to say that Either A:MXJO &/or Nitecore D4 charger will cause problems or B: batteries after so many charges need to be thrown away. But this right here is in enough for me to stop vaping. So if you have a MXJO battery &/or a Nitecore Charger be care full. And only charge batteries while you are near them.

Also want is a good 18650 &/or Charger that won't cause these problems?

I've yet to hear about Nitecore chargers being bad... but like any electronics, it can happen.

The battery that you speak of though, all re-wraps are a huge gamble and the odds are 99.9999% certain that it's the battery that broke down.

In every thread on here about batteries I've seen, no question about it, someone (including myself) warns the OP (and everyone) about buying re-wraps and to stick to "real" brand ones. There's a reason for that, but yet, people still continue to play Russian roulette to save a dollar over the most dangerous aspect of vaping.

 

[daviedog]

After the first battery vented on your charger, it would have been wise to replace the charger.

Take a look at Mooch's latest battery graphs and choose your battery based on his recommendations. Re-wrapped batteries are always a gamble, you never know what cell is under the wrapper. (Unless you re-wrap them yourself, which you should do if the wrap is damaged.)

Does Mooch have a " Charger List" too?.

 

[englishmick]

General rule of thumb for any batteries; when capacity drops to %80 do not use them. I've got some aging HG2 batteries that I no longer use for high wattage because they are reaching 300 cycles. MXJO cells are decent (I've got one in the M class right now) they just can't be pushed hard. General rule of thumb; when in doubt replace.

I wish this was easy. I have no idea how many cycles my batteries have been through. I have some button tops for Provaris that are less than a year old so no problem. Around 8 flat tops for various mods. The oldest are 2 1/2 years old. No idea where the capacity is at. I currently have 5 mods that use flat tops. I use them all at random with different tanks and resistances so it's unlikely I would notice if a particular battery was running down fast, at least without some dedicated effort.

I've disposed of half a dozen batteries over the last 2 1/2 years, five of them were eaten by Sigelei mods which have a habit of occasionally keeping the display on at the dim setting until the battery gets run down to 2 volts. I heard they shouldn't be used again if they get down that low. The only battery I ever had go off on me was in an old Sigelei 20 that short circuited. It started pumping smoke out of the hole at the bottom when I put a new battery in. I was able to get the bottom cap off before it got too hot to do much damage to my fingers.

I've asked before if there was a way of checking the health of a battery but apparently there isn't, other than watching their performance.

I don't worry too much because I never go over around 12W. And I use Mooch-approved HG batteries from Illumination Supply. Guess it's a bigger deal if you use high power or mechs.

I was thinking about a low tech solution, like retiring them when they get to 2 years old. When I first got on ECF someone suggested they should be retired after 1 year, but other folks replied that 1 year was too soon. But like people have said in this thread they are cheap enough that it's not a big deal.

After writing this post I've decided to go through my batteries and retire any that are over 2 years old. Answered my own question I guess.

 

[Bonskibon]

Does Mooch have a " Charger List" too?.

I thought I remembered him mentioning that he would be doing something like that. I could be wrong, but that came to mind after reading your post.

 

[Opinionated]

Does Mooch have a " Charger List" too?.

I use nitecore charger all the time (had a d4 and then a i4) and never had a problem one.. when my d4 started going out it showed in length of time it was taking to charge, and I switched out to the i4 at that time and threw the d4 away..

Never had a battery blow up in my charger... but then, I've never used anything but Sony and Samsung batteries either except for recently when I started using aw batteries for a couple devices.

 

[daviedog]

I use nitecore charger all the time (had a d4 and then a i4) and never had a problem one.. when my d4 started going out it showed in length of time it was taking to charge, and I switched out to the i4 at that time and threw the d4 away..

Never had a battery blow up in my charger... but then, I've never used anything but Sony and Samsung batteries either except for recently when I started using aw batteries for a couple devices.

When i first started, i used TrustFire, then upgraded to a Surefire charger & batteries.
No problem since the old devices, 2011, had current limiters. 2.5 amps i believe.
Today? Brave New World.
Good to see you don't skimp on your charging system..

 

[UncLeJunkLe]

I was thinking about a low tech solution, like retiring them when they get to 2 years old. When I first got on ECF someone suggested they should be retired after 1 year, but other folks replied that 1 year was too soon. But like people have said in this thread they are cheap enough that it's not a big deal.

never go over around 12W

I would say if you don't vape over 12W, then 2 years is OK with good brand batts.

It started pumping smoke out of the hole at the bottom when I put a new battery in. I was able to get the bottom cap off before it got too hot to do much damage to my fingers.

This is why a [edited] HATE screw caps for mods, but unfortunately I love my Picos too much.

 

[VHRB2014]

Because of their fast capacity loss, performance drop and short cycle life?

Tapatyped

I would`nt know any different Beck. Once I find what works for me, I pretty much stick with it. When I compare them to the few 25r`s I have here, they have more amps and the cycle life is hardly any different at the resistance I run.

And Im buying VTC 4`s right now for 4 dollar 40 cents. LOL.

 

[beckdg]

I've asked before if there was a way of checking the health of a battery but apparently there isn't, other than watching their performance.

When you get them label each one, measure and record...

Internal resistance at a specific room temperature.
Max cell temperature at 1/2*cdr from 4.2v to 3.0v.
Initial v-drop on that same load.
Capacity gained and drained on a full charge/discharge cycle from 3.0v to 4.2v and back.

Check under exact same conditions periodically to gauge degradation.

Tapatyped

 

[beckdg]

I would`nt know any different Beck. Once I find what works for me, I pretty much stick with it. When I compare them to the few 25r`s I have here, they have more amps and the cycle life is hardly any different at the resistance I run.

And Im buying VTC 4`s right now for 4 dollar 40 cents. LOL.

I'm not judging.

I run quite a few sonys myself.

Though I might change that here shortly. We'll see.

It's just... you DID ask the question. [emoji38]

Tapatyped

 

[englishmick]

When you get them label each one, measure and record...

Internal resistance at a specific room temperature.
Max cell temperature at 1/2*cdr from 4.2v to 3.0v.
Initial v-drop on that same load.
Capacity gained and drained on a full charge/discharge cycle from 3.0v to 4.2v and back.

Check under exact same conditions periodically to gauge degradation.

Tapatyped

Hey thanks. I copied and pasted this for later study. Some of it's a little over my head right now but this is the first specific information I've seen on how to monitor batteries so I'll definitely spend some time getting familiar with this stuff.

cheers

 

[kbeam418]

Until they blow up too?

My mxjo cells have a cdr of 18 amps and get used at 15 watts. I've been vaping for two years and have never had a cell come close to venting. I also work with journeyman that deal with three phase power. I know exactly what all my cells can take and I'm sure I'll be just fine.

 

[beckdg]

Hey thanks. I copied and pasted this for later study. Some of it's a little over my head right now but this is the first specific information I've seen on how to monitor batteries so I'll definitely spend some time getting familiar with this stuff.

cheers

A single 18650 battery sled with 4mm bullet connectors installed and a cheap ac/dc hobby charger capable of IR reading and capacity readout will get you all but your temp reading.

Splurge a little more and you might find one that will discharge at a set amperage.

Otherwise you can build a coil and connect it to a mech or homemade rig... or some people take light bulbs from a junk yard, connector and all. Just cut the wires, twist together and hook to a battery sled.

I'd suggest a temp gun for reading temps under load.

You don't need it to be accurate. Just consistent.

But to be honest, capacity and internal resistance is more than enough to gauge the cell health degradation.

Tapatyped

 

[beckdg]

Hey thanks. I copied and pasted this for later study. Some of it's a little over my head right now but this is the first specific information I've seen on how to monitor batteries so I'll definitely spend some time getting familiar with this stuff.

cheers

Also... ask about all this on battery or electronics subforums on RC forums such as rcgroups or ultimaterc.

They'll have the time... and as always... some will have the knowledge... to get you completely up to speed.

Tapatyped

 

[Imfallen_Angel]

My mxjo cells have a cdr of 18 amps and get used at 15 watts. I've been vaping for two years and have never had a cell come close to venting. I also work with journeyman that deal with three phase power. I know exactly what all my cells can take and I'm sure I'll be just fine.

Psst...
MXJO Yellow/Silver 35A 3000mAh 18650 Bench Test Results...only a 15A-20A battery, but near an HG2

You can argue if you want, but mxjo ARE second rate re-wraps and from what I've found, are probably rejected LG HE-2.

They may be "fine" at least at this time, but they are still second rate re-wraps and the numbers on the wrapper are false and are overstated. They may work fine for you for a normal lifespan if you don't push them, but regardless, I still prefer to tell people to buy actual first rate batteries and not re-wraps.

Just saying...

 

[kbeam418]

Psst...
MXJO Yellow/Silver 35A 3000mAh 18650 Bench Test Results...only a 15A-20A battery, but near an HG2

You can argue if you want, but mxjo ARE second rate re-wraps and from what I've found, are probably rejected LG HE-2.

They may be "fine" at least at this time, but they are still second rate re-wraps and the numbers on the wrapper are false and are overstated. They may work fine for you for a normal lifespan if you don't push them, but regardless, I still prefer to tell people to buy actual first rate batteries and not re-wraps.

Just saying...

When did I recommend them? I did the opposite. They work fine for me because I don't push them hard, I do not recommend them. They work fine for me because I know they are sub-par re-wraps and won't use them beyond ten amps. Just my

 

[beckdg]

I wanna know what batteries people have in their vehicles before they start ranting about rewraps and sub-par cells.

Especially when the user they're lecturing is someone not pushing their rewraps.

1) because if they're not using the best battery in their vehicles they're simply posers blowing smoke and flexing internet muscles.

Let's see them put real money where their internet mouths are.

2) because the best battery for the job is ALWAYS a battery that's not pushed to it's limits... and that has NOTHING to do with the labels.

This isn't MaxAmps where you're paying 6 to 10 times the price of something compatible and attempting to meet the inflated specs with draw GUARANTEES a nasty fire.

Tapatyped

 

[DaveP]

It's obviously not the charge rate that's causing overheat unless the charger is defective or the batteries are junk.

Nitecore D4
4.2V ± 1% / 3.7V ± 1% / 1.48V ± 1%
0.375A*4 / 0.75A*2

 

[DaveP]

Knowing the specs on your batteries is crucial. "Any old 18650 battery" isn't good enough for anything running more than 20 watts these days. I have some 5 year old AW's I bought for my Provari several years ago. They are 10A batteries and I vape at 2.5A. No problem!

Even a little Pico can require a 25A battery if you max it out at 75W. The easiest way to stay safe is to marry pairs, mark them, and keep them together for dual/triple mods. For all cells, rotate them and check for wrap nicks every time you insert or remove them.

The most important part is buying trusted name brands from reputable dealers. I'm not sure why so many vape dealers and shops sell Efest, but they do. Some Efests are great batteries, but the luck of the draw applies and that's like rolling dice with something you handle bare handed or place close to your face.

 

[NU_FTW]

I love rewraps.

They allow me to extend the life of a perfectly good cell after the kiddos damage the wrap taking it off the charger.

And I can go all murdered out or "matchy matchy" as some less testosterone motivated people would say.

Tapatyped

Ok, har har, i see what you did there. Yes rewraping a battery that you KNOW what it is is completely different than buying some online rewraper