How To Know If Your Vape Is Going to Explode? (Causes & Prevention)

You have probably heard about numerous vape explosions, which dominated the news for a few years, right? Since vapes entered the American market in 2006, they slowly began rising in popularity as a ‘healthier’ alternative to smoking regular cigarettes.

More and more people switched to vaping as a substitute for regular cigarettes. In contrast, others used e-cigarettes as a method to quit smoking, which has been proven to be effective.

Even though the technology behind most vape devices has changed in the last couple of years, there is still some risk of vape explosion!

So, let’s see how to know if your vape is going to explode and how to prevent it!

Vape Explosion: How Does It Happen?

In order to understand the causes of vape explosion, we must go through the anatomy or structure of vaping devices. While today you can find various vaping devices, most of them are based on the same principle- they are vaporizers powered by batteries!

The structure of the vape device includes the mouthpiece, heating coil, battery, atomizers, and e-liquid in a tank or cartridge. The most common culprit that causes vape explosion is the battery!

If you are not new to the vape world, you have probably heard about ‘venting,’ which differs from thermal runaway.

There is a tiny disk inside the battery, and if something happens, like a short or you place the batteries incorrectly, the disk will break, and you will hear a hissing sound or even see some liquid oozing out of the battery.

This is referred to as venting, and if you experience such a situation, take the device and the battery outside and leave it there until the ‘process’ finishes.

On the other hand, thermal runaway happens when the battery heats up so fast that the disk has no chance to break- pressure builds up, and it turns into a literal bomb.

Vape Explosion: What Causes It?

While most people might think that equipment failures cause the explosion, in reality, that is rarely the case. Most explosions are connected to damaged vape batteries or mishandling of the battery and the device. Therefore, it is a vape battery explosion!

As mentioned, that is particularly common with mechanical mods, allowing users to modify the device to their needs.

So, when you have someone not quite educated on the anatomy and the mechanics behind the device and the battery, and they modify it, that can create a short, resulting in a vape accident.

Ultimately, it comes down to being a user error. If you take safety precautions and learn how to handle the device and battery, you will never experience such a situation.

Also, most of these accidents happen with advanced devices, such as mech mods, not the average starter kit or vape pens.

1. Loose Battery in a Pocket

So, as mentioned, the main reason the explosion happens is short-circuiting in the battery, and you would not believe the percentage of accidents that occur while the device is in the user’s pocket.

In fact, according to FDA Center for Tobacco Products, around 77.3% of burns caused by vape explosions were located on the lower trunk and upper leg, which is where the pocket is. So, what happens there?

As you know, we often carry coins, keys, or other stuff in our pockets with the vaping device. For the lithium-ion battery to short out, it will not happen just because something in your pocket, like a key, touched the end of the battery and exploded.

It happens when your keys touch both the positive and negative. Here is an image of the battery’s anatomy! If you look at your battery (regardless of the brand), you will notice that it has a case or a wrapper that houses the cells and the circuit board.

On the positive terminal, you will see a ring rate on the outside, an insulator that can be colored black or white. The ring covers the negative terminal very close to the positive.

If that ring is damaged or not properly covering the negative terminal and a coin makes contact with the positive while simultaneously touching the negative, it results in K-Boom!

What happens is that the energy flows from the positive to the negative instead of into a power circuit and loops back into the battery, overheating and exploding.

2. Damaged or Low-Quality Batteries

Damaged and low-quality batteries are very dangerous; with these, you have a greater chance of having a vape accident, especially if you are using a mechanical mod.

As you can guess, not all batteries you can find on the market have high quality, and sometimes a ‘bad’ one can get in your hands. Generally, most lithium-ion batteries are very safe, but given that they are mass-produced, you expect an error here and there.

Those chances are higher if you opt for counterfeit and low-quality lithium batteries, which can be recognized by the wrapper, which usually imitates the models manufactured by popular brands.

Also, avoid batteries with damaged wrappers because the wrapper is there for a reason called safety measures. It protects the battery’s metal case from any external contact that may compromise its performance or cause a short!

If you notice the case is damaged, dispose of the battery or re-wrap the battery yourself.

3. Using a Wrong Charger

Most people think you can use any charger to power your battery for electronic cigarettes- if the connector fits the charging port, it is good to go!

Well, this is not quite correct, and if you ask an experienced and knowledgeable vaper or seller of vapes, they will tell you that you should use a charger specifically designed for the device that you have!

Sometimes you can overcharge batteries using the wrong charger, especially if you use the one intended for high-capacity batteries. Vape chargers come in all shapes and forms- different output voltages and currents.

So, imagine using a charger for a high-capacity battery to charge a small e-cigarette- this creates instability within the battery cell and results in an accident. The most common e-cig battery is 18650, and those operate at 3.7 volts, although they can be charged to 4.1 or even 4.2.

How to Prevent Battery From Exploding?

• If you have a loose battery, do not keep it in areas where it can get into contact with metal objects. You can buy plastic or silicone wrappers or cases to prevent such accidents, which are very cheap and affordable.
• Most batteries include a warning from the manufacturer and instructions on how to handle it, especially lithium batteries, so make sure to follow the instructions and handle it in accordance with the manufacturer’s note.
• Always check whether it has safety features and short-circuit protection when buying new vapes or vaping devices.
• The same goes for batteries-avoid buying counterfeit, damaged, and low-quality batteries. Those will cost a couple of dollars extra but, trust me, are worth avoiding a potential accident, second-degree burns, and permanent scarring.
• When buying a new vape device, we suggest you buy a specific charger for that device to avoid overcharging it and creating instability. Also, look for battery chargers with overcharge protection, preventing charging over the capacity intended for that battery.
• Do not let the battery come in contact with other metal objects. Your vaping device should be stored or kept at room temperature, not too hot or cold.
• Do not use old and new batteries together.

How to Know If Your Vape Is Going To Explode?

If you have a mechanical mod and have altered it, there may be a possibility that the device’s battery might blow up if you do not know exactly what you are doing.

This is not set in stone, but given that these mods are unpredictable and we can never know how you have altered the device, there is still a chance, and given that messing with it can result in severe burns and injuries, it is simply not worth it.

Using a battery that seems sketchy or its wrapper is damaged, deteriorated, or peeled off, can lead to an accident.

If the battery is left in a heated car on a hot day, that can also create instability. Also, if you hear some hissing or the battery and the charger are overheating, that is your clue to stop everything, buy a new device, battery, charger, or all of it!

Conclusion

Knowing whether your vape will explode is related to how you handle the device and, most importantly, the battery. Most of the explosions are a result of mishandling or improper use, although people think that it is the manufacturer’s fault.

Learning about the mechanism behind the device and its battery will help you understand and use it better and ultimately avoid experiencing an accident.

We have covered in great detail how the explosion happens and what causes it, so you can know what not to do when using and charging it!

Have you ever had a situation where you thought the vape device would explode? If so, share the experience with us! If you have any questions, do not be shy and ask away!