battery collection bins: how safe?

[greenlight]

Battery collection bins are everywhere. They are in my apartment building, office buildings, city buildings, schools, etc.

If one battery shorts or explodes, I would expect the whole pile to get ugly.

How dangerous is this? Am I worrying unnecessarily?

 

[THE_dAY]

I've thought about that too, have a small ziplock bag that I collect my used batteries in then drop off at Target.
I do wonder how safe these bins are with all the batteries piled up on top of each other.
I'll even check my little ziplock bag of used batteries to see how they pile up but the ends are never close to touching each other.

 

[markr6]

People talk about nearly starting a fire in their pocket by carrying a loose battery. Stories of burning down a house with a 9V battery being shorted. This just sounds like a perfect way to start a fire, or worse. I'm surprised there are not a lot of new stories about fires from these bins. The first time it happens, I'm sure they'll offer some type of preventative measure.

 

[zipplet]

They worry me slightly. If I am disposing of cells that have any charge left in them for some reason (worn out li-ion or NiMH cells?) I will put tape over the ends first.

 

[G. Scott H.]

I've never seen one, but they sound like bombs in the making. What are these containers made of, and what types of cells can you put in them?

 

[zipplet]

In my apartment building, there is a battery collection "box" in the garbage room (which is indoors). It's simply PET bottle with the top cut off. Officially you are only supposed to throw alkaline batteries in there, but people also toss NiMH and lithium primary cells into it. We also place dead li-ion cells loose next to it for collection (in Japan, you are supposed to send them back to the manufacturer for them to deal with but I don't think anyone does that)

 

[gearhead1972]

I don't know these things have been around for years, I'd not a decade or more. I have never heard of a fire in them, at least not locally.

 

[mcnair55]

Never heard of one doing a nasty and I presume the insurers are happy with them.Strange how people need an Anorak to enjoy a hobby.

 

[teacher]

I have often wondered about this when walking by one in a Lowes store. I have no idea how to vote though???? To me they look like an accident waiting to happen, but.... I have never heard of one going up in flames. :shrug: :thinking:

 

[Borad]

There's over 12 million promising results for the search term battery recycling "bin caught fire" if anyone wants to dig through them.

 

[blah9]

I've always wondered exactly the same thing when I've dropped off 18650s to be recycled.

 

[Clm65]

Just last week at work we discussed an office fire at a power plant where the cause was batteries shorting out while in storage. So it definitely happens. 9v batteries are the most likely culprit, but AA, AAAs, etc, can short out too if conditions are just right. That is why it is best to store batteries in their original containers, and tape one end when disposing of them.

 

[Mr Floppy]

There's over 12 million promising results for the search term battery recycling "bin caught fire" if anyone wants to dig through them.

The one at my work caught on fire. The shame was that I can't get any laptop packs from them anymore. That and they put a lock on the mobile phone bin, makes it hard to scavenge something up these days.

The bin is now by appointment only, whatever that means.

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

I got 8 x 18650 2200mah from a recyclable battery box in Lidl, they tested at 1700-1800mah but they died after 6 months, so i put them back in the box i got them from.

John.

 

[Borad]

All they have to do is make the bins transparent and provide little plastic bags and twist ties right at the opening of the bin, and instructions. Some people who work where the bin is should be registered as the official battery checker. If a battery is unwrapped, they have to reach in and wrap it. They could have a sign in sheet that says when the bin was last checked.

 

[Big_Sam]

I remember seeing a battery recycling box on a ship rammed with CR123 shrinked into multiples for the divers lights, must have been a good half kilo of lithium in that box!

I've never heard of a fire in a box, apart from 9v batteries, it would be hard to short the terminals of most, and also most have spent the useful energy. At my local recycling place the battery box is 3foot square and rammed to the top, no problems so far.