Vape explosions are a hot topic these days. Thanks to cameras being everywhere, we see a new video of a supposed exploding e-cig every couple weeks or so. It’s not so much that vapes blow up a lot, but that when they do, it’s a story that spreads seemingly without end. What we have is an optics problem. It’s not what actually happens that’s an issue; it’s what people think is happening.

There’s no evidence that actual mods or vape pens explode any more than any other battery powered consumer electronics product. The optics problem is that vaping is already not the most popular activity among the non-vaping, non-smoking public — so it’s an easy target for the news, and a popular thing to spread on social media. Eventually, the stories lead to denunciations of vaping by opportunistic politicians like Sens.

In reality, most of the battery issues are caused by some kind of user error, but that is impossible to easily explain to people who don’t understand the tech. And some of the fault lies with vape shops and online sellers, who may sell inappropriate products to uneducated new vapers, or not properly explain how to safely carry extra batteries. Furthermore, many inexperienced vapers buy products from online sites that include no instructions or warnings.

Almost all vape batteries are lithium-ion (Li-ion) or lithium-polymer (LiPo) cells. These batteries are generally safe. However, it is possible to get a lemon — especially if you choose cheap batteries, which are often rewrapped, low-quality cells. Batteries are mass-produced and tested in the factory. Those that don’t meet the standards for direct sale to electronics manufacturers are sometimes sold to resellers.

In the future, the risk of exploding vapes may disappear. New battery formulas are being developed that replace the flammable liquid electrolyte in lithium batteries with stable solid-state electrolyte made from glass. Other researchers have developed a battery design with a fire-resistant barrier between the positive and negative poles of the battery. Generally speaking, vapers who follow basic principles of battery safety very rarely have any problems, let alone actual vape explosions. Aside from the very rare “bad battery,” most exploding vapes are created by a few specific — and avoidable — causes.

When you use a battery in a vape device, the power button causes a circuit to compete between the positive and negative poles of the battery, and power flows to the device. Any conductive material that connects the two poles will do the same thing — however, if there’s nothing drawing power from the battery, it causes a short circuit and the energy loops into the battery, which causes it to rapidly overheat and possibly catch fire or explode.

Often news stories with headlines like “Vaporizer explodes!” are really about loose batteries exploding — or overheating and venting, and sometimes catching on fire. The major source of such events is batteries carried loose in a purse or pocket with keys or change. The metal objects accidentally connect the positive and negative poles of the battery, and boom! Most of the viral videos we see of fires in vapers’ pockets are loose batteries — not mods or pens.
Batteries have a limit to the amperage they will supply, and the numbers are often exaggerated. Sometimes also, the manufacturer will mark the battery as “30 amp,” when in reality that is only a rating for a brief period (a pulse, or peak, rating), rather than a limit for continuous use.

This is crucial when building low-resistance coils, and it’s especially important with mechanical mods, which have no electronic safety protections. If the atomizer you use needs more amperage than the battery can supply, the battery overheats and can go into thermal runaway. If the battery can’t vent when it overheats, the energy can be powerful enough to cause a fire or explosion. If you are building low-ohm coils, you must understand how the battery works in conjunction with the resistance of the atty, and you must understand battery amperage ratings and how they apply to vaping. If you don’t understand that, stick with known products. Frankly, there are so many inexpensive, high-quality variable-wattage mods nowadays, it’s hard to see why anyone wants to take even small risks with mech mods.

Aside from batteries that don’t provide enough current (amperage) to support some atomizers, there is the issue of counterfeit batteries. These are often very low-amp batteries that are wrapped to imitate well-known models (with higher amperage ratings) that people trust. Almost every popular battery on the market has been counterfeited. How to avoid counterfeits? Buy only from reputable dealers. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Saving a couple dollars on a battery isn’t worth the risk. If you choose one of the best batteries, they won’t be the cheapest, but you may make your money back in long-term performance. High quality battery models have more lifetime capacity; they’ll take more charges than low-end cells.

tags:battery, ecigs mod