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

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

#11

Post by tomcam »

AHOHA wrote: post #2

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 th…

> these li-ion bags/containers that are fireproof,

First time I heard of these! Hitting Amazon now.

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

#13

Post by joshstrange »

quadral wrote: post #5

Can't you use browserstack for testing? Surely that's more convenient to use.

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).

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

#14

Post by NoZebra120vClip »

dryark wrote: post #7

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 a…

Or we could use the new vocabulary I introduced to Mom & Dad recently: "spicy pillow".

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

#16

Post by 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.

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

#19

Post by aSockPuppeteer »

https://www.consumerreports.org/safety-recalls/why-lithium-i...

I have a few old devices too and just had a spicy pillow issue. Now it’s in a metal bucket waiting to be disassembled.

Manufacturing defects + thin anode/cathode wall. A quick search https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S09504... came up for batteries in storage exploding risk. Long read, increasing in occurrence.

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

#20

Post by tomcam »

AHOHA wrote: post #2

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 th…

> drones batteries, some of them are 6kg each

Holy crap your drone could be a drug mule

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