Istick Users Please Read - Safety

[Deleted]

Jan 17, 2016 18:59:35 GMT Bobsbeer said:

I must admit I never take the atty off while charging. Never gave that aspect a thought to be honest. I always charge from my USB ports on the laptop, so when the computer goes off at night, so does the charging. However I must admit that it is left on all day, even if I'm not in front of it, and if I go out it gets left on. So any connected mods get left charging unattended.

There must be something about the batteries that we use that are inherently unsafe. Yes the odd laptop goes up, but there will be many more laptops out there in regular use, so it stands to reason there will be the occasional fault. Yes one Dreamliner battery went up in smoke, but there seems to be more e-cig mods go up in flames than any other type of battery. Or they are the ones that get the headlines, which I doubt. If loads of phones or laptops were going up in smoke we would hear about that in a heartbeat as people tried to sue Samsung and Apple etc. Many laptops use 18650 batteries. They were invented to use in laptops. So are we just pushing them too far? Is it the way we use these batteries that is causing a problem? I don't know what power drain a laptop has, but looking at the battery casing they must have about 10-12 x 18650 batteries in there. They get charged everyday or get left on charge all the time in many cases. Yet loads are not going up in flames. Is it the high drain use? Is it just a matter of too high charging rate as people may plug into anything that has a micro usb plug on, which is most phone chargers these days? Just seems it is something that should be looked into.

As jtc said I wonder of vaping batteries go through more abuse. Thrown onto tables, thrown into bags, dropped etc. probably more than computers and tablets etc.

There have been a few cases of phones burning when left on pillows overnight.

Nick

[snow]

Not sure about the atty needing to be removed as my 30w isticks can be used as pass throughs - and I regularly use them like that whilst they are charging via the usb in my pc.

[charliehorse]

It looks like the guy in the story has posted a few times in reply to people in the comments section of the paper. Most of the comments being along the same lines of How could this idiot be so stupid etc.

This is one such reply

"If you read my comments i put it on charge at about half 2 and i was getting up at 5 so i dont think 2and a half hours charge is to much sometimes it used to take 4 to 5 hours to fully charge and no matter how long you leave it on charge with the correct charger it should never do this that is my point they are not getting checked properly and aswell as far as im concerned this battery was 45pound so i wouldnt consider it a cheap one myself "

Also alluded to in another comment is that he bought it, along with the correct charger from a "reputable uk shop" [shop not named]

In one way he's right, you should be able to trust the onboard charger not to fry your battery and have it burst into flames, especially where its a built in battery and you have no other option.

[Jerri]

Jan 17, 2016 22:46:32 GMT Bobsbeer said:

Before you rush to condemn this guy, just stop and think. I know we don't know how he was charging his iStick, but if he has only been vaping for 12 months, the iStick is very likely to be less than 12 months old. Very few people would start vaping with that sort of equipment, but even if it is 12 months old, that is not very old for what is supposed to be decent quality equipment. I have had a few iSticks, although none over 12 months old as they seem to stop working or not hold their charge much after 9 months old, but maybe he was lucky, or unlucky depending on how you look at it, and it carried on working.

While he may have been stupid to charge overnight, unattended, there will be many thousands who do, and think hey, I charge my phone overnight, so why not my e cig, and millions charging their phone. On the phone side, it was the fake chargers not the batteries causing the fires, and they got loads of publicity. In this and other e cig cases, it is the batteries, or at least the electronics inside the e cig, not the charger.

Jerri and amygx you both sound as though you are very strict in your charging regime. Well done. I think you will find you are both in the minority in the vaping community though. I have been vaping for over 12 months and touch wood no incidents. I would have said the same as that guy though. I started vaping because I thought vaping was better for my health.

I know I'm in the minority. I have friends who vape and they charge over night etc.

Maybe because I've been a member of the forums and seen so many of these stories but even if my battery did this (touch wood it never will) I wouldn't think to myself 'well vaping is clearly dangerous!' If think 'crap, something must have been faulty there'. And I'd still think vaping was better for my health.

That's just basic common sense.

You can bet your life if his phone had done it a) we wouldn't be hearing about it and b) he'd be after suing the phone makers for some compo. And he'd use the pay out to get a shiny new expensive mobile phone. Not call for them to be banned.

Sorry but it's all bull, the government have the press in their pockets and right now they've been instructed to demonise ecigs in any way possible. Hence the stories of kids and puppies drinking eliquid and getting sick etc. And the repeated stories of eliquid containing everything from bleach to chopped up kittens. Every week there's a new story of an ecig blowing up or nearly killing someone or something.

Watch them all disappear once the government are making bucket loads of cash from vaping. Then we'll get lovely stories about vaping saving the lives of life time smokers at deaths door etc.

Edit : Sorry just realised that sounds like I'm having a rant at you! I'm not just a rant in general! Apologies if you felt it was aimed at you!

[vapee]

Charging in a lipo safety bag or fireproof container may stop something like this from happening, they even make a purpose built box I've seen at hobbyking and others, also placing that on a fireproof surface too. Also nowadays most mods only take what they need from the plug so a 2amp plug for the istick will only lead to a 0.7amp draw, but its true it might be safer to have a 1amp one in case the istick malfunctions and starts drawing say 2 amps and the battery is not capable of that. Also the charge cable needs to be a high quality one with thicker wires if using it with anything rated for 2amps.

The only issue with charging bags is the temperature but generally its not a huge problem, it depends on the device, some don't get too hot.
I think most people charge these days with an atty on top which is why the side charge usb ports are popular and leave the atty connected most of the time to save the 510 threads and for convenience, its generally safe only issue that may have a very low chance of happening is if the mod malfunctions and starts firing by itself if either left not unlocked or just somehow switches itself on and fires the atty then overheats etc.

[mart166]

Just for the records, I had a telephone stand built in my hall and incorporated a USB charging station (for when I had a smartphone), this I use when at home, but my Nitecore charger stands in the kitchen in a tiled area by the toaster, so nothing flammable, just for the odd times I go out and forget bats are charging (which is often with a brain like mine lol).

MP

[letsavit]

I charge also on a tiled floor in my kitchen, I walk one way I'm in the garden, I walk the other I pass a smoke alarm, I go to sleep next to my bed side cabinet I pass another smoke alarm.

I never charge overnight while I have my children over, even when alone I'm not that stupid to charge a cheap Chinese device by my face while I sleep....

Edit, This link under the article is much more interesting.....

[mart166]

Jan 18, 2016 10:02:30 GMT letsavit said:

I charge also on a tiled floor in my kitchen, I walk one way I'm in the garden, I walk the other I pass a smoke alarm, I go to sleep next to my bed side cabinet I pass another smoke alarm.

I never charge overnight while I have my children over, even when alone I'm not that stupid to charge a cheap Chinese device by my face while I sleep....

Edit, This link under the article is much more interesting.....

That link was crap, no pictures of me, and i was a celeb (once), as for underwear ...................leave it to your imagination.




MP

[smarties]

Did Eleaf do a gold istick robby I've seen clones in gold but never a genuine one, the one in the picture looks gold to me.

[car147]

I don't think they did, I have a gold Istick ( sold as style on FT) and the screws etc were different to the genuine article.

[vapebake]

I think people are being a little too harsh on him with the charging overnight thing. Many including myself and in this thread have admitted doing it. You cannot say what an idiot before saying how Mobile phones charge overnight and use lithium ion batteries aswell. Thats precisely the point, millions of mobile phones are charged overnight without problems so people will assume the same with their ecig

I do wish they would tell us what model, charger he was using, etc though

[robby]

Jan 21, 2016 18:51:12 GMT vapebake said:

I think people are being a little too harsh on him with the charging overnight thing. Many including myself and in this thread have admitted doing it. You cannot say what an idiot before saying how Mobile phones charge overnight and use lithium ion batteries aswell. Thats precisely the point, millions of mobile phones are charged overnight without problems so people will assume the same with their ecig

I do wish they would tell us what model, charger he was using, etc though

Yes, we have to remember that probably less than 10% of vapers belong to FB or forums and happily charge overnight, especially if they have been doing that with their phone for the past lot of years.