I’m starting to understand why when my grandfather retired from running a welding shop in Compton (yes, that Compton) he moved back to Wyoming!
“But then her eyes fell on a lithium-ion battery she was charging.”
If they were charging a lithium battery overnight, which it appears to be as they were just waking up to the fire, then they were stupid for doing that.
Lithium-ion batteries can ignite or explode when overcharged. Overcharging causes them to overheat, creating a dangerous chain reaction called thermal runaway that can result in fire, venting of toxic gases, or violent rupture. This occurs because excess energy breaks down the internal components, causing the battery to produce its own fuel and oxygen, making it extremely difficult to extinguish. And to add insult to injury, if they are not thoroughly extinguished, they will re-ignite. Kind of the gift that keeps on giving.
Not too smart. A good rundown on these batteries and how to treat them is here:
https://www.fire.qld.gov.au/safety-education/battery-and-charging-safety/lithium-ion-battery-safety
They really worked hard on this and it shows.
wy69
All your DeWalt and Milwaukee and Ryobi and such tool batteries are lithium-ion. There are literally hundreds of millions of them out there in daily use. We don’t seem to have an inordinate number of fires caused by them.
I heard of an instance (maybe more than one) when there have been similar issues on a plane with a cell phone. And it wasn’t being charged. It just blew up.
“She tossed the suddenly smoking battery onto a rug by the door.”
SMH
Never understood why people panic when they see fire.
For fire departments, and everyone else...
https://www.nfpa.org/education-and-research/energy-transition/lithium-ion-batteries
Welcome to the future, this is much better for the climate and everyone’s health, don’t you know.
”When you get one (cell) that gets an insult and it wants to ignite, generally, it talks to its closest neighbor, which does the same thing, and on and on and on.”
Articles about lithium-ion battery fires would be a whole lot better if they told the reader what type of device the battery was servicing so we can avoid the problem. They almost never do — with the exception of the rash of E-bike related fires that got them banned in NYC.
I have some major battery backups for my freezer and refrigerator. On standby are larger units. They are all lead-acid batteries.
So I have a few LifePo4 batteries I used for amateur radio, 6AH, 15AH, 20AH and 50AH. When charging, I only charge during the day and not overnight. I set a timer to check on the charging and for the most part willing to let solar panels outside do the charging. I think batteries with BMS are not as liable for these problems as those without (Battery Management System)
Ignorant question from me: would I know if inhale amynkithium batteries in my house? Afaik I never bought anything with one. How would I know if something is lithium? Is it in appliances you charge with your computer tower and the little cords?
They put a fan in a window o door to draw out the fumes.