Is my battery vented?

[kody2248]

So, I'm a dumby and unscrewed my switch's pin a little to much. Without remembering to check first, I set it down behind me and kept on using my computer. About 10-15 minutes later, I smell something burning and begin running around the house to check the source. Turns out, it my mech mod and i was smelling the cotton being fried. I grabbed my mod which was extremely hot. It's a full copper mod and it had to be well over 120 degrees hot. I did my best to unscrew it and get the battery out of there. I read that the proper thing to do is throw the battery in a cup of tap water if it is venting. After doing that and cooling my mod off, inspecting any possible damage, it doesn't appear there is any. I'd like a second opinion on my battery though. It'd be nice to reuse it but not if it will be dangerous.

It's currently reading 3.4 volts. There wasn't any leaking of liquid out of the battery but the seems around the body of the battery are much darker and visible now. It's a VTC5 though it may be fake haha. Any input is appreciated!

 

[InTheShade]

I did a similar thing with a mod in my backpack. I didn't reuse the battery. (it was an AW 18650) and replaced it.

To me, it's simply not worth the risk - how much is a new VTC5 like $9-10? Even if the best battery expert on the ECF told me it was OK, I would toss it in the recycling and replace it with one from RTD Vapor (when they back in stock)

Just my opinion of course.

 

[jblack741]

Even though it sounds like you just burnt up your wicking and coils, don't take the risk with the battery. Chalk it up to lesson learned and buy another battery. You may also want to check your insulators around the 510 connection, your atty pos post and the delrin or o-ring on top of your switch. With that kind of heat you may have suffered some unseen damage.

Be safe!

 

[Baditude]

I've not had a Sony VTC 30 amp battery vent before, but I have had a Trustfire ICR vent two years ago, and an AW 18350 IMR battery vent about a year ago.

There was no doubt about the ICR battery venting (see below). The AW IMR made a high-pitched "whining" noise while it vented hot gas and part of the plastic wrap melted away on the positive end of the battery; otherwise there was no physical evidence that it had vented. No leakage of fluid. I didn't bother to check the voltage as I assumed it was no longer safe to use, so I just disposed of it.

Trustfire ICR

From your pics, I can't see any external physical damage. The voltage still reading 3.4 volts suggests that it didn't over-discharge. (IMR/hybrid batteries like the Sony VTC can drain down to 2.5 volts relatively safely and still be viable.) The fact that there was no leakage of fluid, no visable defect of the actual casing or endcaps, and you weren't aware of any gas escape -- is good. The heat that the battery produced probably caused the darker looking seams on the wrapper.

I think you are in the grey area of deciding whether this battery is safe to use again. If it was me, having had a couple of batteries vent or explode before, I would err on the side of safety and not use the battery again. The heat the battery experienced may well have done some unseen internal damage, and I'd never feel safe to use that battery again. Batteries are cheap relatively speaking, so I'd replace it. Just my .

 

[Cullin Kin]

You would know if you battery had vented. Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTzEHsJVZhA

Not all batteries vent like that though, some are much more calm. Point being, I feel you would have at least noticed something was not right besides the burning smell.

My feeling is that your battery is fine (you never know about the internals though). It may not be worth the risk to try and use it again, but I, this may be just me but, would see if it will hold a charge. I would charge it outside and away from everything though, like using an extension chord and putting it in the middle of a driveway or something lol.

If it does hold a charge, I would take the next step and put it in your mech and do a 'controlled' fire of the mod. Like using one of those long grabby thingies, like this:

Make sure you wear safety goggles and mess up your hair while wearing a ripped up dirty lab coat. Why? Why not? If that all works, I would say your fine.

My assumption is, it was probably firing for maybe a minute or so because if it had been firing for that entire 10-15 minutes, something worse would have been inevitable.

 

[kody2248]

Awesome thank you all for the input. As far as the battery goes, I probably won't be reusing it. It's not worth it as was said already. It is unfortunate because I literally just bought this battery last week.

As far as my mod itself: I'm not sure if it's ruined. I've been using it since the incident and all seems well. My 510 connector threading is machined directly into my top cap. For a positive connector, I have two adjustable screws , one for atomizer connector adjustments the other for battery rattle adjustments. This is all insulated by a thick black plastic ring. The ring itself is not sitting as flush as usual, in fact, it can fall out freely. This could be due to the overheating. My thoughts are that it is being held in by an o-ring that melted away. I have an Infinite Cartel copper clone if anyone is familiar with this.

Again thank you all for your input it's much appreciated.

 

[InTheShade]

You would know if you battery had vented. Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTzEHsJVZhA

Not all batteries vent like that though, some are much more calm. Point being, I feel you would have at least noticed something was not right besides the burning smell.

My feeling is that your battery is fine (you never know about the internals though). It may not be worth the risk to try and use it again, but I, this may be just me but, would see if it will hold a charge. I would charge it outside and away from everything though, like using an extension chord and putting it in the middle of a driveway or something lol.

If it does hold a charge, I would take the next step and put it in your mech and do a 'controlled' fire of the mod. Like using one of those long grabby thingies, like this:

Make sure you wear safety goggles and mess up your hair while wearing a ripped up dirty lab coat. Why? Why not? If that all works, I would say your fine.

My assumption is, it was probably firing for maybe a minute or so because if it had been firing for that entire 10-15 minutes, something worse would have been inevitable.

I'm not sure I agree with your conclusion but I love this post

 

[Cullin Kin]

Awesome thank you all for the input. As far as the battery goes, I probably won't be reusing it. It's not worth it as was said already. It is unfortunate because I literally just bought this battery last week.

As far as my mod itself: I'm not sure if it's ruined. I've been using it since the incident and all seems well. My 510 connector threading is machined directly into my top cap. For a positive connector, I have two adjustable screws , one for atomizer connector adjustments the other for battery rattle adjustments. This is all insulated by a thick black plastic ring. The ring itself is not sitting as flush as usual, in fact, it can fall out freely. This could be due to the overheating. My thoughts are that it is being held in by an o-ring that melted away. I have an Infinite Cartel copper clone if anyone is familiar with this.

Again thank you all for your input it's much appreciated.

With heat like that, I have no doubt that an insulator or something could have deformed. A lot of sites sell replacements for those types of things, check around. Sorry this all happened and at least now, you can say lesson learned.

I'm not sure I agree with your conclusion but I love this post

lol I'm just one of those people who will try everything to get something to work before throwing it away and buying a new one.

You should probably listen to these people and just throw it away. Thank Sony for making a great battery though! If it were any battery with the word 'fire' in the name, the outcome may have been much more catastrophic.

P.S. if you do do (I said do do lol) the mad scientist thing, make sure to film it so we can see!

 

[k702]

Did I read correctly and you dropped it in water?

Don't know about any complications of a wet battery...


FYI I think you're supposed to drop a venting battery in salt water... the salt does something to neutralize the fluid that comes out iirc

 

[tayone415]

So, I'm a dumby and unscrewed my switch's pin a little to much. Without remembering to check first, I set it down behind me and kept on using my computer. About 10-15 minutes later, I smell something burning and begin running around the house to check the source. Turns out, it my mech mod and i was smelling the cotton being fried. I grabbed my mod which was extremely hot. It's a full copper mod and it had to be well over 120 degrees hot. I did my best to unscrew it and get the battery out of there. I read that the proper thing to do is throw the battery in a cup of tap water if it is venting. After doing that and cooling my mod off, inspecting any possible damage, it doesn't appear there is any. I'd like a second opinion on my battery though. It'd be nice to reuse it but not if it will be dangerous.

It's currently reading 3.4 volts. There wasn't any leaking of liquid out of the battery but the seems around the body of the battery are much darker and visible now. It's a VTC5 though it may be fake haha. Any input is appreciated!

View attachment 362203View attachment 362204View attachment 362205

I had a mod auto fire and the top and bottom cap was stuck for what felt to be 20-30 seconds on a sub-ohm build. It was a VTC5 and after finally getting the top cap and taking the battery out the battery just felt warm and the battery wrapper looked the same as when I put it in, didn't see anything leaking out or smell anything like acid, but I didn't feel safe using it and just tossed it. If you don't feel safe using it then just toss it for your own piece of mind.

 

[ScottChensoda]

As you've obviously already checked the circuitry by checking its reading, chemically the battery is sound and hasn't been over-discharged if it's reading 3.4v but only you can decide if it is structurally sound, as you are there. From the blurry pics it looks reasonable enough apart from a good clean. It's not for me to tell you what to do but if it was me, I would place it back in the charger and keep a very close eye on it during its first re-charge to ensure everything is going ok during its charging cycle. But then I'm old, practical and logical and not a subscriber to this 'ultra-safe' society we live in. You will have reduced the cell's overall life cycle by an indeterminable amount but there's no obvious reason why it shouldn't perform as it should.

If it had vented then the temperature would be twice as much and there would be a very small upturned hole on the edge of the positive terminal with probable signs of liquid exudation running down the sides. As for the cup of water trick for a venting Li-ion cell, I'd give that a big miss if I were you and just try to get the cell outside in a clear area and place a bucket or even a box of some kind over it, should it decide to go pop.

Alternately and it's something I firmly believe every household should possess, is to buy a $10 fire blanket and keep that to hand. Many a house would have been saved from destruction if every kitchen owned one.

Oh and btw young Kody, try not to bite your nails. Terrible habit.

 

[iClearoman]

I would probably go the safe route and not reuse it as it could have started mealting on the inside and caused a weak spot. This is very dangerous cause it could vent (I.e. explode) if it gets too hot. You also probably damaged some of the cells when it got really hot so it might not charge fully anymore.

Good luck!

 

[InTheShade]

... Snip...Alternately and it's something I firmly believe every household should possess, is to buy a $10 fire blanket and keep that to hand. Many a house would have been saved from destruction if every kitchen owned one.

Oh and btw young Kody, try not to bite your nails. Terrible habit.

My dad had a fire blanket in the kitchen when I was (much) younger. I was always fascinated by what was in that bright-red canister.

We had a grease fire one day, and he used it. I was so disappointed that the blanket itself wasn't bright red like the outside of the canister that I didn't even notice the flames licking at the ceiling.

I have a fire extinguisher in my kitchen now but I really want a bright-red fire blanket.

 

[Despraci]

I've not had a Sony VTC 30 amp battery vent before, but I have had a Trustfire ICR vent two years ago, and an AW 18350 IMR battery vent about a year ago.

There was no doubt about the ICR battery venting (see below). The AW IMR made a high-pitched "whining" noise while it vented hot gas and part of the plastic wrap melted away on the positive end of the battery; otherwise there was no physical evidence that it had vented. No leakage of fluid. I didn't bother to check the voltage as I assumed it was no longer safe to use, so I just disposed of it.

View attachment 362207 Trustfire ICR

From your pics, I can't see any external physical damage. The voltage still reading 3.4 volts suggests that it didn't over-discharge. (IMR/hybrid batteries like the Sony VTC can drain down to 2.5 volts relatively safely and still be viable.) The fact that there was no leakage of fluid, no visable defect of the actual casing or endcaps, and you weren't aware of any gas escape -- is good. The heat that the battery produced probably caused the darker looking seams on the wrapper.

I think you are in the grey area of deciding whether this battery is safe to use again. If it was me, having had a couple of batteries vent or explode before, I would err on the side of safety and not use the battery again. The heat the battery experienced may well have done some unseen internal damage, and I'd never feel safe to use that battery again. Batteries are cheap relatively speaking, so I'd replace it. Just my .

I agree with Baditude and others. Though I don't think you did any damage, what is your face worth, or maybe a hand?

I did the same thing when I sat my mod down one day it was auto-firing, I ended up disposing the battery and ordering some new VTC5. It sucks to waste a battery because of a mistake, but these are the reasons we use good IMR batteries. It gives room for error without personal injury or damage to the mod.

 

[Rapture]

Where are you guys disposing of your batteries?

 

[kody2248]

Thanks again for all the advice. I will stick with the safer path and just recycle it. Sadly, I have on less battery now though and I'm struggling to keep a constant vape going between charges of my other two

Oh and btw young Kody, try not to bite your nails. Terrible habit.

Haha, I was biting my nails reading all the replies. I didn't think it was that noticable

 

[kody2248]

Not to double post but I just watched the video Cullin Kin linked of the Ultra Fire venting and my god... that was violent.