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Ask HN: Is my collection of mobile devices a fire hazard?

10 points by tomcam ↗ HN
I have a disturbingly large collection of old tablets, phones, & laptops in my basement--probably 50-75 altogether. It's the detritus of a big family and having to test my software on lots of devices. The basement is a constant 55 or so degrees F.

Since we've learned that lithium batteries can apparently just explode spontaneously, should I take some sort of action? Remove the batteries where possible and... store them somewhere? If so where? And what about old iPhones where the battery isn't very accessible?

Or am I just paranoid?

22 comments

[ 6.4 ms ] story [ 67.4 ms ] thread
AHOHA
To have your smartphone batteries buldge? Maybe, especially Samsung, to have these batteries suddenly explode? Unlikely especially for laptops, phones/tables is still probable. If I were you and want to just make sure all is safe, you can buy some of these li-ion bags/containers that are fireproof, and store the batteries inside, and label them with their devices. I do that in addition to drones batteries, some of them are 6kg each!
tomcam
> these li-ion bags/containers that are fireproof,

First time I heard of these! Hitting Amazon now.

tomcam
> drones batteries, some of them are 6kg each

Holy crap your drone could be a drug mule

AHOHA
>drug mule

More like a moose mule!

>https://files.catbox.moe/vtyjud.jpeg

I actually wish one day to fly the above drone, but for other smaller heavy-lift drones, you can easily have a pair of these giant batteries (2 for redundancy) that can go more than that, for example this 12S that I used yesterday in one of the heavy-lift drone, the pair is around 9kg, obviously, when you do a BVLOS operation, you would need at least 6 pairs, and the logistics of these are quite something, including the protection against external damage.

>https://genstattu.com/ta-plus1-0-15c-16000-12s1p-c-xt90.html

Edit: the 6kg mentioned above is this if you’re interested: https://genstattu.com/tattu-pro-22000mah-44-4v-25c-12s-1p-li...

tomcam
You are teaching me way too much about an expensive hobby I am afraid I’m about to acquire.
Lariscus
At the very least I would invest in a ABC or BC fire extinguisher. You might also want to consider storing your devices in a fire proof container like a metal box.
pestatije
worry not, once the battery runs out of juice there's no fire hazard
tomcam
I didn’t know that! Thanks!
quadral
Can't you use browserstack for testing? Surely that's more convenient to use.
dryark
This comment amuses me as my company is a browserstack competitor and thus my company and our clients have large numbers of devices. When you are the cloud host, you have to worry about this and monitor devices for battery damage / swelling.

In our case though the battery temperature can be monitored and this partly lets you know when the battery is going bad before it actually gets to that point and risks catastrophic failure.

tomcam
Potential customer here. Is dryark up and running yet? On my iPhone it’s a blank page.
tomcam
Heading that way but it’s a wide range of devices
joshstrange
Pro tip, if you go to cancel your BrowserStack subscription they (at least used to) offer you 50% off your plan, indefinitely.

I’ve been paying 50% for 3+ years now. $40/mo was absurd for my usage but I can stomach $20.

That said I need to reevaluate the space. I’d much rather pay for non-expiring minutes. I just need mobile and desktop manual browser testing with the ability to install apps on the mobile devices and proxy to my local computer. My usage is tiny (0 on average, randomly 60-120min 2-3 months at max).

graybies
If you are really worried just throw the batteries in a bucket of sand.
dryark
I've been working with mobile device farming for a few years, and I have not heard of or seen a device that is powered down spontaneously combust despite having many with "puffed batteries". I definitely am concerned that such a battery or device containing such a battery can spontaneously combust but it doesn't generally seem to happen.

That said, I would definitely get rid of any swollen batteries or devices that are swollen ASAP. You can tell with phones as a swollen battery will generally pop the phone apart from the pressure of it.

As others are saying, you should also take precautions whether it happens or not. Place the devices in metal containers, pottery, or fireproof bags. Don't place them in a cardboard box filled with a bunch of other flammable items next to a shelf of books...

tomcam
> Don't place them in a cardboard box filled with a bunch of other flammable items next to a shelf of books...

Uh that’s totally not happening right now, obviously… I mean what kind of chump would, er… excuse me for a moment…

NoZebra120vClip
Or we could use the new vocabulary I introduced to Mom & Dad recently: "spicy pillow".
jasonjayr
IIRC lithium batteries will bulge and/or ignite when charged + charging?

Do depleted, disconnected batteries suffer the same risk?

hoofhearted
Nope, you should be fine.

As a past electrical journeyman turned device engineer in a device lab about 5 years ago, you should be fine as long as all of your power supplies and cords are properly rated and not overloaded.

The only issue I ever had was a large 120v to usb-a power bank had an internal fan cease up after a number of years. In my past data center experience, a lot of server room fires were started by ceased bearings and increased heat, as well as the load spike from the locked rotor current.

We shut the power bank off and ordered a new one. And we didn’t leave it running unmonitored or overnight while we waited on a backup.