WARNING: Do not use the charger or batteries that come with the Vamo 18350 kit (pics)

[Coastal Cowboy]

That wasn't me. Although I had ordered the same kit, I already had a pair of Panasonic 650's on the way and two AW IMR's already in the box. I also already had a Nitecore charger. The batteries went into the backup box and as soon as I saw these photos, that charger went bye bye.

I concur that it was the cheap charger that caused the incident. The label on the charger clearly shows that it delivers 700ma, and while the battery's nominal capacity is 900mah, my speculation is that the one that vented had an actual capacity that was significantly lower. If you deliver more current than the battery's capacity, things like this happen when charging.

 

[dwarfcat]

wonderful, it appears I have that exact charger and batteries plugged in here at work charging. I dont want to spend a fortune on batteries and a charger =-(. What would be a somewhat cost effective and cheap replacement?

 

[Lessifer]

wonderful, it appears I have that exact charger and batteries plugged in here at work charging. I dont want to spend a fortune on batteries and a charger =-(. What would be a somewhat cost effective and cheap replacement?

the nitecore intellicharger either i2(2 bays) or i4(4bays) is a good economical charger, you can find it on ebay for less than $20.

 

[dwarfcat]

the nitecore intellicharger either i2(2 bays) or i4(4bays) is a good economical charger, you can find it on ebay for less than $20.

Cool! So the batteries themselves arent the issue here its a charger issue.

 

[dwarfcat]

The i2 doesnt specify that it will work with 18350 batteries. These things confuse me greatly lol

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

The i2 doesnt specify that it will work with 18350 batteries. These things confuse me greatly lol

If an 16340 will fit the 1mm longer and 2mm wider 18350 will fit...Li Ion charges to 4.2vdc all of em..no matter what brand, no matter what size, no matter what mAh rating...so it will fit and charge em...

The previous charger..instead of charging to that 4.2vdc point and stopping...the circuitry isn't smart enough to say "oh ok...battery is full, I should stop shoving electrical current into this energy tank and blowing it out at the seams"

 

[Lessifer]

The i2 doesnt specify that it will work with 18350 batteries. These things confuse me greatly lol

it works, I'm not sure why nitecore doesn't list the 18350 on any of the products, but it fits and charges just fine.

 

[Mrs C]

Quote Originally Posted by zoiDman View Post
What was that charger sitting on when the Battery Melted Down?

I dunno. The pics came from an Aussie forum. It looks like a mat/bed at a hunting camp, IYAM.

If you look at the pic the battery that vented is laying on whatever is stacked. Looks like heavy grit and paper.

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

The i2 doesnt specify that it will work with 18350 batteries. These things confuse me greatly lol

battery number shows the battery the physical size
18350
18 (18mm diameter)
35 (35mm long)
0 (cylindrical shape)

16340
16 (16mm diameter)
34 (34mm long)
0 (cylindrical shape)

18650
18 (18mm diameter)
65 (65mm long)
0 (cylindrical shape)

See the pattern yet

 

[dwarfcat]

Nice, thanks for the info guys. Hope this thing doesnt explode before I switch = (

 

[Lessifer]

Nice, thanks for the info guys. Hope this thing doesnt explode before I switch = (

Try not to leave your batteries on the charger longer than they need to be, and if you feel them getting hot, or even warm, take them off.

 

[LDS714]

I got one of those chargers with a Vamo kit. One day (obviously before reading this thread) it went *pop* and tripped the breaker on the outlet strip it was plugged into.

Now happily charging with the Nitecore i4, with a spare as a backup.

 

[jaamzhow]

Thank God that guys nod-out bed or his crack house basement didn't get totally burnt down.

 

[DaveP]

I used a Trustfire TR-001 for several years with no problems and I finally bought a 4 bay Nitecore I4. With any charger there are conditions that have to be met. When I charge two batteries with the Trustfire, sometimes a battery that is partially charged will show red (charging) when a single battery is inserted, but with two batteries one will show green or orange and the other red depending on the voltage levels of the two.

The Nitecore I4 is a little smarter, but the instructions warn that the slots are independent when used according to directions but dependent to some degree in various modes. If you use adjacent slots, each battery can receive up to 750ma charge rate. With 4 batteries, each gets 375ma. You can mix AA and AAA in Li-ion and/or lMR if you insert them properly. The instructions also reveal that 2 NiMH or Ni-Cad batts may overheat and fail if they are placed in adjacent slots. It advises using alternate slots for those if you charge only two or you can charge 4 at a time to give each battery a 375ma charge rate.

I had to read the instructions several times to get a feel for what was safe. Most battery chargers don't publish enough data to use them safely and still other chargers aren't safe in the first place. It's a cruel world when it comes to battery charging. The safest method is to consider them dangerous, read everything you can find on the model, and use them in the safest environments and only when you are present to monitor progress.

Then, there are chargers that are just flat out poorly designed, IMO. This one seems to be one of those.

 

[Pinggolfer]

It appears FT is still selling the kit. I wonder if they view this forum.

 

[DaveP]

It appears FT is still selling the kit. I wonder if they view this forum.

I would hope that someone from the source would comment on the failure rate and the solution. There appears to be varying fail safe protection in chargers of many designs and batteries aren't all designed the same either.

I've stuck with AW batteries for years just because they check each cell for characteristics that match design parameters and wholesale out the rest of a batch. Since then there have been many other good brands that are well built. In the early days of Li-ion and IMR products were not so critically examined in QC.

 

[Nu2Dis]

here's another...

 

[patkin]

I don't get the burned area picture. It looks like some kind of a construction area with raw dry-wall, cement floor and stacked materials (looks like that phoney grass carpeting stuff) or maybe a garage?.... but where in the world do they put outlets that close to corners? I've never seen rooms built that way. I have to wonder about that outlet/plug in fact. And why would anyone be charging batteries in their garage or at a construction site so low to the floor? I have to wonder about this.

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

Cool! So the batteries themselves arent the issue here its a charger issue.

unknown what the damage to the batteries that a defective charger might have caused internally...unfortunately...it "could" have made the batteries unsafe.

I recommend going ahead and replacing them with known good batteries from known good distributors...a venting battery inches from your face might be a bad thing

 

[Pinggolfer]

Does where the wall plug is that matters the OP was just saying be careful ordering that kit from FT. Better safe then sorry.