Cetacean Posted at 2017-7-26 22:06
Aloha Jesse,

     The important part is going to be the battery serial number.  Make sure you get that number right.  There are numerous sources of counterfeit DJI batteries.  Please be prepared to deal with that contingency.  If DJI says the battery is counterfeit, be sure to take that information to the store where you got the battery.  The store will have to deal with you and DJI then.  That will be much better than you having to deal with the store alone.  Just a suggestion.

Sure thing! I purchased it from Best Buy in store  and it was an unopened box, brand new.

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-26 22:30
Sure thing! I purchased it from Best Buy in store  and it was an unopened box, brand new.

Please provide the serial number to me.
The SN of battery is in the bottom of the battery, the SN of aircraft is inside the battery compartment,

DJI Mindy Posted at 2017-7-26 22:38
Please provide the serial number to me.
The SN of battery is in the bottom of the battery, the SN of aircraft is inside the battery compartment,

I did, its in your PMs

Actually, one thing has been bothering me throughout this thread, and that is the explosion. Cyclindrical lithium-ion batteries are contained in a cylindrical steel case, and if they overheat too much, the build up of pressure can cause the can to explode. But there is no explosive substance inside a lithium-ion cell, it is only the pressure and once it explodes, it can burn quite fiercely.

But in DJI flight batteries, they use flat cells with just a polymer casing, and while it can burst, it is really not likely to cause a big bang as was shown in the FAA videos earlier. It will catch fire but it should not present a risk from explosion as such. As the battery in this case caused damage to the front of the plastic casing, blowing it outwards, I am wondering if it was a battery cell that exploded, or another component in the electronics behind the front panel.

DJI Mindy Posted at 2017-7-26 22:38
Please provide the serial number to me.
The SN of battery is in the bottom of the battery, the SN of aircraft is inside the battery compartment,

There might be an issue with the PMs now as it is not letting me message you any longer. It seems to delete itself even after I hit enter and its not logging anymore. Feel free to contact me at the email I gave you when I answered  your questions before. That way I can personally email you the SNs to the drone and battery.  Or provide me with an email to send them to. I accidently gave you the model number before, sorry.  

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-26 23:01
There might be an issue with the PMs now as it is not letting me message you any longer. It seems to delete itself even after I hit enter and its not logging anymore. Feel free to contact me at the email I gave you when I answered  your questions before. That way I can personally email you the SNs to the drone and battery.  Or provide me with an email to send them to. I accidently gave you the model number before, sorry.

The cells look intact from what can be seen in photos. One component at least behind the front panel does try to break loose, and that's the spring. Remember the batch of bad batteries where front of case was cracking just above LED 3 (if I remember correctly). So could be a combination of failed Cct board and spring pressure.

Geebax Posted at 2017-7-26 23:00
Actually, one thing has been bothering me throughout this thread, and that is the explosion. Cyclindrical lithium-ion batteries are contained in a cylindrical steel case, and if they overheat too much, the build up of pressure can cause the can to explode. But there is no explosive substance inside a lithium-ion cell, it is only the pressure and once it explodes, it can burn quite fiercely.

But in DJI flight batteries, they use flat cells with just a polymer casing, and while it can burst, it is really not likely to cause a big bang as was shown in the FAA videos earlier. It will catch fire but it should not present a risk from explosion as such. As the battery in this case caused damage to the front of the plastic casing, blowing it outwards, I am wondering if it was a battery cell that exploded, or another component in the electronics behind the front panel.

Not sure about the exact happenings behind the science of all this. Regardless whether it was the cell or another component that exploded, it just shouldn't have exploded.

Aardvark Posted at 2017-7-26 23:06
The cells look intact from what can be seen in photos. One component at least behind the front panel does try to break loose, and that's the spring. Remember the batch of bad batteries where front of case was cracking just above LED 3 (if I remember correctly). So could be a combination of failed Cct board and spring pressure.

The news about the batch of batteries that cracked open on their own that you mentioned is new to me. Is the failed Cct board + spring pressure a manufacture defect?

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-26 23:12
The news about the batch of batteries that cracked open on their own that you mentioned is new to me. Is the failed Cct board + spring pressure a manufacture defect?

If you bought from local retailer I would be straight back for a refund.

Regarding faulty batch, I never saw anything quite as bad as your battery, it does look to be a slightly different issue.

Here's a link https://forum.dji.com/thread-61024-1-1.html

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-26 23:12
The news about the batch of batteries that cracked open on their own that you mentioned is new to me. Is the failed Cct board + spring pressure a manufacture defect?

This was the other thread I referred to:-

http://forum.dji.com/thread-49941-1-1.html

Google is as good a search engine as any, when looking for a subject in the Forum, just pick up those with DJI links.

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-26 23:01
There might be an issue with the PMs now as it is not letting me message you any longer. It seems to delete itself even after I hit enter and its not logging anymore. Feel free to contact me at the email I gave you when I answered  your questions before. That way I can personally email you the SNs to the drone and battery.  Or provide me with an email to send them to. I accidently gave you the model number before, sorry.

I'm sorry that I don't have working email address that can be used to contact you. Please try to PM later.

Irate Retro Posted at 2017-7-26 15:49
In the 2nd photo, above the release button, I see at least one deep gash that could not have been caused by the explosion.  What happened to this battery to cause that damage?

Was there any fluid or chemicals around the battery in the closet?
The top of the battery has no scorch marks that I can see......and I don't see any chemicals on or around the battery body.  Of course you might have cleaned off the body before the pictures but I thought I would ask?

Tmygun Posted at 2017-7-27 03:09
Was there any fluid or chemicals around the battery in the closet?
The top of the battery has no scorch marks that I can see......and I don't see any chemicals on or around the battery body.  Of course you might have cleaned off the body before the pictures but I thought I would ask?

There doesn't seem to be any scorch marks. I don't know if it caught on fire, just that it exploded open. But there is a busted open top and melted plastic.

There was liquid when I found it. You can see it settled in some of the cracks in these photos:

Tmygun Posted at 2017-7-27 03:09
Was there any fluid or chemicals around the battery in the closet?
The top of the battery has no scorch marks that I can see......and I don't see any chemicals on or around the battery body.  Of course you might have cleaned off the body before the pictures but I thought I would ask?

Also, ...closet?

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-27 04:42
There doesn't seem to be any scorch marks. I don't know if it caught on fire, just that it exploded open. But there is a busted open top and melted plastic.

There was liquid when I found it. You can see it settled in some of the cracks in these photos:

Sorry.......OR in the closet.

Jessengu, if DJI is going to start dragging their feet again and using excuses about malfunctioning PMs and "no access to email", then it's time to light some fires.  I'd cause trouble gradually to give DJI a good chance each step of the way to come clean.

Start by filing a report with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission:  SaferProducts.gov - File a Report

Also I don't see the harm in posting the serial number that Mindy requested in the open forum.  Maybe I'm overlooking something though.  At least it'll put to rest these counterfeit claims.

Irate Retro Posted at 2017-7-27 05:13
Jessengu, if DJI is going to start dragging their feet again and using excuses about malfunctioning PMs and "no access to email", then it's time to light some fires.  I'd cause trouble gradually to give DJI a good chance each step of the way to come clean.

Start by filing a report with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission:  SaferProducts.gov - File a Report

Thanks for providing that link! Filing a report is surely something I will be doing.

As for the email thing, I found it ridiculous. How would a DJI admin not have a working email? Plus it's easy to just create another email. She raised a red flag with  me when she said that and her situation seems sketchy now.

DJI Mindy Posted at 2017-7-26 18:41
Jessengu, thanks for bringing this to our attention. We are so sorry for what happened to the battery.
We care much about your issue and will report to the supervisor for further analysis and resolution. Please provide the following information at your most convenience:
1. Serial number of battery and the aircraft;

Hi, DJI Mindy, please define "4. Did the battery experience alternate cooling and heating?"

"Alternate cooling and heating" sounds a lot like what happens every time I use my Phantom batteries.

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-26 15:42
Sorry I thought I uploaded the photo when I posted. I'm on mobile

Circumstanes were that I looked at it on the shelf one day and it was fine and looked at it a few days later and it seemed to have exploded for no reason.

What REALLY puzzles me, is that I don't see ANY sign of FIRE / HEAT / SWELLING on this battery...

Antonio76 Posted at 2017-7-27 08:00
What REALLY puzzles me, is that I don't see ANY sign of FIRE / HEAT / SWELLING on this battery...

Indeed, the actual battery is in the bottom 2/3rds of the casing , that all looks clean and smooth.
From the photos it looks like some sort of chemical poured onto the battery case and then someone attacked it with some plies.

Very strange...

Harbourside Posted at 2017-7-27 08:07
Indeed, the actual battery is in the bottom 2/3rds of the casing , that all looks clean and smooth.
From the photos it looks like some sort of chemical poured onto the battery case and then someone attacked it with some plies.

It certainly would help to have the original pictures (full size)...

Harbourside Posted at 2017-7-27 08:07
Indeed, the actual battery is in the bottom 2/3rds of the casing , that all looks clean and smooth.
From the photos it looks like some sort of chemical poured onto the battery case and then someone attacked it with some plies.

No chemicals were poured into it as it was in a locked room and no where near liquid. What are signs of HEAT or SWELLING if it's not melted sturdy  plastic that looked to have burst outward? I don't know if it caught fire cause if it did or if it did for a prolonged period I'm sure my house would have been ashes. But it certainly exploded and burst opened on its own.

As for questioning if I used pilers to open it up there aren't any piler marks on it . Plus why would I go through this whole thing of dealing with their customer service, posting to this forum, or filing a complaint if I did that? It wouldn't be worth it if that was the case.

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-27 04:42
There doesn't seem to be any scorch marks. I don't know if it caught on fire, just that it exploded open. But there is a busted open top and melted plastic.

There was liquid when I found it. You can see it settled in some of the cracks in these photos:

It looks to me like the liquid was a solvent and has softened the plastic, the springs for the latches have then pushed it outward so that it looks like an explosion but was probably very slow and did not get even warm.

What was the liquid?  Did it come from inside the battery or did it fall on the battery from above?  I don't think lithium batteries contain enough liquid to do that, normally when they swell up it is just hydrogen gas that is released.

Maybe the battery plastic can be dissolved by cooking oil or something silly!

Nigel_ Posted at 2017-7-27 08:41
It looks to me like the liquid was a solvent and has softened the plastic, the springs for the latches have then pushed it outward so that it looks like an explosion but was probably very slow and did not get even warm.

What was the liquid?  Did it come from inside the battery or did it fall on the battery from above?  I don't think lithium batteries contain enough liquid to do that, normally when they swell up it is just hydrogen gas that is released.

The liquid came from the battery as it was no where near any liquid products. I don't know  exactly what the liquid is.  I'm not an exspert on the product just an unlucky consumer.

Irate Retro Posted at 2017-7-26 15:42
Whatever object it is that punctures your battery in transit is also going to puncture your plastic vacuum bag.  A spontaneous split under pressure (if that's where you're going with this) would also tear open your bag if vacuum sealed.  Does not compute for me.

The lipos that go cridical on planes dont do so because there punctured. They do so because the pressure causes them to split. A vacuumed sealed bag will most definitely prevent that.

Antonio76 Posted at 2017-7-27 08:18
It certainly would help to have the original pictures (full size)...

I've been posting from my phone. I guess it selects the size for me on mobile. Conveniently, it's not letting me upload from my phone now but I uploaded some photos here:

http://s1146.photobucket.com/user/jjjngungu/story

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-27 08:43
The liquid came from the battery as it was no where near any liquid products. I don't know  exactly what the liquid is.  I'm not an exspert on the product just an unlucky consumer.

If it was battery electrolyte that caused the damage to the case then it is an issue of the battery being worn out and so not a warrantee issue.

Do you know how many charge cycles it had on it and how much capacity was left in it when fully charged?
If you had only used it a few times then you would have a better case than if it has been charged 500 times, probably needs to still have been at above 80% capacity for a reasonable warrantee claim though.

The capacity/charge data should be in the log file for the last flight that battery was used on if you still have it - make sure you keep it as evidence...

This whole thing seems a little strange to me. If the battery went critical it should have taken the path of least resistance which certainly wouldnt be through the front. If the battery had a thermal runaway reaction there wouldnt be anything left. There is no liquid inside of a lipo battery and if the cells were exposed to the air it wouldnt explode without some sort of hydrogen build up as well as an ignition source. For hydrogen to be present the cells would have to be swollen and then burst. I dont see any evidence of that. Something else happened here. The lipos played no part in whatever happened in my opinion. I also dont think the springs are nearly strong enough to do this, even is the plastic was made soft somehow. They might cause a bulge but there just isnt enough energy in the springs to do this. It looks like it was shot with a gun almost. There is some other variable that were not seeing that caused this. Thats just my opinion and I could be and have been wrong many times but thermal runaway would cause much more damage and the damage would be totally different than this.

Nigel_ Posted at 2017-7-27 09:12
If it was battery electrolyte that caused the damage to the case then it is an issue of the battery being worn out and so not a warrantee issue.

Do you know how many charge cycles it had on it and how much capacity was left in it when fully charged?

I always store my batteries at 50%. As for charge cycles I purchased it October of last year and it exploded around May/June  and even now it hasn't even been a full year. I haven't flown for more than 20 times with that battery so I defiantly didn't put it through 500 charge cycles.
As for the warranty, it's been past 6 months but the battery wasn't worn  out.  But  DJI loves to hide behind their six month policy instead of solving the issue of selling a faulty battery that exploded.

Duchunter Posted at 2017-7-27 09:19
This whole thing seems a little strange to me. If the battery went critical it should have taken the path of least resistance which certainly wouldnt be through the front. If the battery had a thermal runaway reaction there wouldnt be anything left. There is no liquid inside of a lipo battery and if the cells were exposed to the air it wouldnt explode without some sort of hydrogen build up as well as an ignition source. For hydrogen to be present the cells would have to be swollen and then burst. I dont see any evidence of that. Something else happened here. The lipos played no part in whatever happened in my opinion. I also dont think the springs are nearly strong enough to do this, even is the plastic was made soft somehow. They might cause a bulge but there just isnt enough energy in the springs to do this. It looks like it was shot with a gun almost. There is some other variable that were not seeing that caused this. Thats just my opinion and I could be and have been wrong many times but thermal runaway would cause much more damage and the damage would be totally different than this.

I'm not sure about exactly what happened chemically or if anything you're saying is valid either. We're all just consumers on a forum. I only posted this thread because I wanted to know if anyone else experienced anything like this with their battery and to share my experience with DJI customer service.

But I'm sure it if was shot with a gun.... it'd look a lot worst.

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-27 09:40
I always store my batteries at 50%. As for charge cycles I purchased it October of last year and it exploded around May/June  and even now it hasn't even been a full year. I haven't flown for more than 20 times with that battery so I defiantly didn't put it through 500 charge cycles.
As for the warranty, it's been past 6 months but the battery wasn't worn  out.  But  DJI loves to hide behind their six month policy instead of solving the issue of selling a faulty battery that exploded.

In that case, if the liquid came from inside then I think you have a decent case.

Like Duchunter says, the liquid is hard to explain, how did it manage to get onto the front if it came from the cells?  
Which way up was the battery stored?
If you look through the side of the battery, can you see all the way through between each of the cells or has one puffed up?

Duchunter Posted at 2017-7-27 09:19
This whole thing seems a little strange to me. If the battery went critical it should have taken the path of least resistance which certainly wouldnt be through the front. If the battery had a thermal runaway reaction there wouldnt be anything left. There is no liquid inside of a lipo battery and if the cells were exposed to the air it wouldnt explode without some sort of hydrogen build up as well as an ignition source. For hydrogen to be present the cells would have to be swollen and then burst. I dont see any evidence of that. Something else happened here. The lipos played no part in whatever happened in my opinion. I also dont think the springs are nearly strong enough to do this, even is the plastic was made soft somehow. They might cause a bulge but there just isnt enough energy in the springs to do this. It looks like it was shot with a gun almost. There is some other variable that were not seeing that caused this. Thats just my opinion and I could be and have been wrong many times but thermal runaway would cause much more damage and the damage would be totally different than this.

exactly, the electrolyte is a polimer, and it is actually "semi-dry" , so given the size of the battery there wouldn't have been that much liquid, even if it was pushed out by squeezing it. And if internal pressure had developed, the cells would have swelled up in the first place, and that would have been quite visible.

Nigel_ Posted at 2017-7-27 09:48
In that case, if the liquid came from inside then I think you have a decent case.

Like Duchunter says, the liquid is hard to explain, how did it manage to get onto the front if it came from the cells?  

DJI is fully aware of my case in detail as I spent months talking to many reps, supervisors, and an apparently high level manager. They ended contact with me yesterday by saying my case has been denied and suggested I buy another battery with my own money and look over thier after purchase policies.

I store it at 50% on a shelf separated from the drone in a air conditioned room at regular room tempeture along with my other equipment. This was the only battery that exploded.

As for the liquid I dont exactly know where from inside the battery it came from. I just know that it couldn't have come from outside the battery since there's no liquid on or anywhere near the shelf. The room is locked if I'm not in it so I highly doubt someone came and poured some plastic dissolving liquid on one of my batteries as some users have suggested. I just looked at it one day and it was fine and looked at it another day and it was busted open.

I can't see through the entire battery end to end but I can look into the top portion since it busted open.

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-27 10:19
DJI is fully aware of my case in detail as I spent months talking to many reps, supervisors, and an apparently high level manager. They ended contact with me yesterday by saying my case has been denied and suggested I buy another battery with my own money and look over thier after purchase policies.

I store it at 50% on a shelf separated from the drone in a air conditioned room at regular room tempeture along with my other equipment. This was the only battery that exploded.

If this was an issue that we were seeing on 1000s of batteries then you may be able to get somewhere, but when yours is the only battery failed in this way and the cause is not obvious then maybe it is time to give up.  Batteries are consumable items, they do have to be replaced occasionally, if it was an standard AA or a coin cell battery for a automobile remote control then you wouldn't bother, drone batteries may be more expensive but the warrantee works the same way.

Nigel_ Posted at 2017-7-27 11:38
If this was an issue that we were seeing on 1000s of batteries then you may be able to get somewhere, but when yours is the only battery failed in this way and the cause is not obvious then maybe it is time to give up.  Batteries are consumable items, they do have to be replaced occasionally, if it was an standard AA or a coin cell battery for a automobile remote control then you wouldn't bother, drone batteries may be more expensive but the warrantee works the same way.

I gave up hope on getting any kind of positive/ helpful response from  DJI already.

Sure, I agree, drone batteries should be replaced every now and then but not if it's been less than a year and used for only that many occasions. Also, it shouldn't blow up.

Trying to see if this has  happened to anyone on this forum is why I posted. I found more similar cases using google as someone suggested and looked into other odd happenings with their batteries like someone else mentioned as well.

Jessengu Posted at 2017-7-27 10:19
DJI is fully aware of my case in detail as I spent months talking to many reps, supervisors, and an apparently high level manager. They ended contact with me yesterday by saying my case has been denied and suggested I buy another battery with my own money and look over thier after purchase policies.

I store it at 50% on a shelf separated from the drone in a air conditioned room at regular room tempeture along with my other equipment. This was the only battery that exploded.

If you bought it from Best Buy then what's their warranty on goods ? Your purchase contract is with them surely.

Aardvark Posted at 2017-7-27 11:55
If you bought it from Best Buy then what's their warranty on goods ? Your purchase contract is with them surely.

Normally it's 14 days to return an item. For me it's 45 days due to a certain membership. I already contacted them and they said they couldn't do anything but suggested I contact DJI since it exploded and it would be a DJI problem instead of a Best Buy one. Their warranty is basically the manufacture's so it would vary depending on the item. They do offer their own protection plan  that I would have had to purchase when I bought the battery.

However, seeing that I purchased batteries from DJI previously and never had a problem with them exploding I didn't expect to need to purchase Best Buy's protection plan at the time. I treat all my  batteries the same way and never had an issue until I got this one.

Thanks for all the suggestions and time everyone. Hopefully this thread will be helpful for future flyers who stumble upon it or for DJI to improve on their customer service.

I just had my Mavic Pro batter explode.  not sure what to do next.  I was lucky. just walking down my hallway. Otherwise my house would be burned down.