Charging the Igo/Echo unattended?

[annakat]

I have a new Igo, which I adore. There is a long charge time but I figured that wasn't a problem because I can just leave one batt on the charger overnight. I was woken up the other night by the green button LED flashing (which is new). Upon contacting my seller, I was told that I shouldn't leave it unattended, it had been on the charger too long and he was surprised it didn't start a fire.

Not surprisingly, I'm a touch perturbed by this news! I rarely have time to babysit a charging PV for long periods of time and had counted on that overnight plan but would really prefer not to burn in my sleep!
I had also been overnight charging my Echo - is this also a problem with them?
When are you people charging these things? Do I need to change devices? Is there some sort of booster to speed the process (but again, NOT starting a fire is kind of a dealbreaker)? [Note: I have been very careful to use each device with the charger it came with.]

 

[Tom10]

Here's lots of good information for you to read and study. It appears that the bottom line is that all rechargeable-batteries are dangerous - some more so than others.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/ecf-library/129569-rechargeable-batteries.html

 

[annakat]

Thank you Tom. So I guess it's a calculated risk. Are other people charging overnight? I honestly thought it was akin to the risk of charging a cellphone - thus my concern about what appears to be an elevated fire risk.

 

[fun2btango]

I feel your concern. Before all this broke about batteries/chargers and fire issues(somewhere in this forum is a thread regarding this) I was charging mine overnite. However, I have enough batteries, both the Echo and Igo (auto and manual in both) that I no longer need to charge overnite. I don't let them drain. Usually the next morning I will plug one in and it will only take a couple of hours. If you're working, you could do it after you come home or if you can take it with you to work and plug in. So far for me I've not received any bad batteries or charges!! But i don't charge at night anymore, at least while I'm asleep~!

 

[Tom10]

Thank you Tom. So I guess it's a calculated risk. Are other people charging overnight? I honestly thought it was akin to the risk of charging a cellphone - thus my concern about what appears to be an elevated fire risk.

Yes, I think there is risk involved, so I have adopted some measures:

1 - I charge mine attended before they get low, and I feel the charger and the battery frequently for heat.

2 - I remove the battery from the charger when it's charged.

3 - I use Lipo-Safe charging bags or stop the charging if I'm going to be out of the room for any period of time.

4 - Maybe I do overkill on safety - I toss the battery and/or charger if they get hot (not just warm) and replace them. I did have a battery that got hot after being on the charger for only a couple of hours, so I did toss it.

5 - I try to get good protected batteries for all of my equipment. I've already decided that I will take more safety measures if I have a single bad incident. I thought some about charging my batteries on the concrete floor of my garage surrounded by concrete cinder-blocks. Regardless, I'm determined NOT to burn the house down or get anyone hurt charging my batteries.

 

[txtumbleweed]

There have been people that have had problems but I have charged all mine for two years unattended and haven't had any problem. I do have a lipo bag but haven't used it yet. I do try to charge them on a fire proof surface and make sure there isn't anything flammable close to them. There isn't anymore danger from an igo or echo than an ego or anyother pv.