Handled properly, are there still any Lithium Ion cells that can go up in smoke ?

Dr. Tweedbucket · Dec 3, 2015

Say you do everything right. Don't over charge, don't drain too far, don't short them, handle the batteries carefully and only use one per light ( no possible mis-match ).
Can a cell still become unstable for whatever reason? I mean, they are made in China for the most part and so many things that come out of there are train wrecked, I don't have a very high confidence level with something that can burn a house down.

And the reason for concern is, I'm starting to accquire more 18650 flashlights and am still a little paranoid. Most of them have low batt indicators and I have a good charger that turns off at 4.2V (Xtar VC4). I am in the habit of keeping the batteries removed unless I am going to use a particular light, but I wonder if that is going too far?

archimedes · Dec 3, 2015

Nothing is risk-free, I'd say.

HKJ · Dec 3, 2015

Only some brands of LiIon cells are made in China.
Most cells has been tested that they will not explode, even if mistreated, but they will vent!
This means the dangers are:

Cheap cells that has not passed the test.
Faulty cells.
The cell gets very hot
The cell is used in a place where venting is a problem (like in a flashlight).

RetroTechie · Dec 3, 2015

It's an illusion to think you can ever have 0 risk. Even the best manufacturers have off-days sometimes, even the best quality control cannot prevent all manufacturing defects from slipping through. Maybe 99,999%, but never 100%. And even if you do everything right, slipping up sometimes is only human.

So all you can do is minimize risk to a point where you can stop worrying. If you feel you can't no matter what: just skip Li-ions alltogether. The other thing you can do is prepare for the what-if case: for example store your Li-ions in a place where there's no (easily) flammable materials next to it. Then at worst you'd have a smoke / nasty fumes problem if one decides to go pop.

Personally I keep "the rules" in mind, apply them where practical (and so far limited Li-ion use to single-cell lights) and leave it at that. Other things in life are much more likely or dangerous. Well... statistically speaking, that is.

Dr. Tweedbucket · Dec 3, 2015

RetroTechie said:
It's an illusion to think you can ever have 0 risk. Even the best manufacturers have off-days sometimes, even the best quality control cannot prevent all manufacturing defects from slipping through. Maybe 99,999%, but never 100%. And even if you do everything right, slipping up sometimes is only human.

So all you can do is minimize risk to a point where you can stop worrying. If you feel you can't no matter what: just skip Li-ions alltogether. The other thing you can do is prepare for the what-if case: for example store your Li-ions in a place where there's no (easily) flammable materials next to it. Then at worst you'd have a smoke / nasty fumes problem if one decides to go pop.

Personally I keep "the rules" in mind, apply them where practical (and so far limited Li-ion use to single-cell lights) and leave it at that. Other things in life are much more likely or dangerous. Well... statistically speaking, that is.

Good ideas, thanks. Maybe I'll make a fireproof box to store all the lithium ion batterys in, then all I have to worry about is my active EDC light. That should me some peace of mind.

bwDraco · Jun 9, 2016

As long as you select reputable brands, lithium-ion batteries and chargers these days are very safe when used correctly, but there's always the possibility that a defective unit will fail in a dangerous (high temperatures, smoke, explosive venting) manner. Consider the number of cells in use in everyday electronic devices—I wouldn't worry about it.

Draco

Handled properly, are there still any Lithium Ion cells that can go up in smoke ?

Dr. Tweedbucket

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archimedes

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HKJ

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RetroTechie

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Dr. Tweedbucket

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bwDraco

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