Battery safety is arguably the most crucial part of vaping, especially considering the horror news stories of exploding devices back in the early dog days of vaporizers. Fortunately, there are more regulated mods and security measures regarding battery use that significantly reduced the risk of vaping devices in recent years. Because of this, the vape community is now in its heydays as people left and right are choosing e-cigarettes over smoking.
Speaking of batteries, lithium-ion is one of the best choices for vapers as it is long-lasting and cost-efficient, not to mention a plethora of advantages that put safety above all else. With that in mind, we’re here to give you a basic rundown on everything you should know about using lithium-ion batteries, and it’s a perennial favourite of vapers.
Why Choose a Lithium-ion Battery?
Lithium-ion batteries come with its advantages, such as the following:
- Lithium-ion batteries are lightweight as the electrodes are made of lithium and carbon.
- It only loses 5% of its charge per month, making it highly efficient compared to the 20% monthly loss of NiMH batteries.
- Lithium-ion batteries have no memory effect, which means that discharging completely before recharging is unnecessary, making it safe to use.
- You can charge lithium-ion batteries multiple times for up to 300 to 500 cycles.
- Lithium-ion batteries come in all shapes and sizes, making it an excellent fit for any gadget.
What Causes Lithium-ion Battery Explosions?
Batteries can be highly dangerous if you don’t apply proper safety practices as all pose their kind of risk, even lithium-ion batteries. The cause of its explosion typically points to its positive and negative electrodes touching, which is called a short-circuit.
This happens when the separator sheet between the electrodes gets damaged, which forces the lithium-ion to get hot and vent its electrolyte fluid. This can spark an explosion and lead to hazardous results.
Battery Safety Measures
Vaping devices now have an efficient chipset that monitors the temperature of your batteries and cuts off the power once it detects a spike in heat. In spite of this significant safety feature, practising battery safety measures is still a must. Here are some ways you can take care of your batteries:
- The performance of lithium-ion batteries suffers when you expose it beyond a temperature of 30 C or 86 F, which is why you must always keep them cool.
- It is better to store lithium-ion batteries at around 50% charge as anything above it will trigger its oxidation.
- Partial-discharge cycles are recommended for lithium-ion batteries as it has no charge memory, which means that it will not fare well when you engage it in deep-discharge cycles.
- Don’t store extra sets of lithium-ion batteries for back-up as the material deteriorates as soon as it leaves the factory. With that in mind, be sure to always check for the manufacture date when purchasing a new set.
- Never mix up your batteries as promoting an even charge and discharge of the lithium-ion will keep it functional for a longer period.
In Conclusion
There is always a risk of experiencing a short circuit when handling batteries, especially for uninformed beginners. Fortunately, all vaping devices contain a chipset that monitors the battery temperature and automatically shuts down the entire system once it gets too hot.
The chipset contains a voltage converter and regulator circuit, which is responsible for tracking the energy capacity and sensing the charging state of individual cells within a battery pack for the benefit of your safety.
While vape devices are designed with your safety in mind, knowing the proper ways to use lithium-ion batteries is still vital as misinformation can lead to dangerous consequences. With that in mind, the guide above should familiarize you with the fundamental safety measures of using lithium-ion batteries for your vaping needs.
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