I had a bloated battery and after charging it caught fire.  Fire came out with a force from inside the battery and it split in two. I had a fire extinguisher in my room and it took one minute to extinguish the fire. It was not easy to put down the flames. In my room, there was a lot of fumes and smoke. I was almost freaking out.
Forensic analysis of one of the photos shows that the fire started from inside outwords.


Eventual I will report this to DJI.

Yikes! Glad you had a fire extinguisher handy.

Never, ever, charge a bloated battery.

If one of your batteries starts bloating, discharge it ASAP to prevent a fire risk.

Ex Machina Posted at 7-19 07:31
Yikes! Glad you had a fire extinguisher handy.

Never, ever, charge a bloated battery.

I use bloated batteries all the time. Some of them bloat after some time. I do not know why.

WOW!!!! That's scary

Nasty scenes. Glad nobody was injured and that you managed to put it out rather than the fire brigade. Yep, never even use let alone charge a bloated battery. The cells are basically damaged once it's bloated.

David_Lexicon Posted at 7-19 08:32
I use bloated batteries all the time. Some of them bloat after some time. I do not know why.

When they bloat they are no longer safe, as you found out.

I had two of my Mavic Pro batteries suddenly bloat after 3.5 years; my third, bought at the same time, is still going strong.

A J Posted at 7-19 09:03
Nasty scenes. Glad nobody was injured and that you managed to put it out rather than the fire brigade. Yep, never even use let alone charge a bloated battery. The cells are basically damaged once it's bloated.

Why do they bloat? This battery was only 15 months since I bought it. Maybe it was defective.

David_Lexicon Posted at 7-19 11:18
Why do they bloat? This battery was only 15 months since I bought it. Maybe it was defective.

A number of variables can cause it to happen - usually excessive exposure to heat/sunlight for prolonged periods - such as leaving it in the car on a hot day, not letting the batteries breath after flight, trying to charge them in warm climates or too soon after flight, leaving them on a live charger for too long after they have fully charged, being stored for long periods on a 100% charge, being taken down to critical levels too often during flight (0-10%), getting the battery wet, extreme and sudden variance in temperatures for example - flying on a hot day then cooling them too quickly by placing them in front of the air con in the car. These batteries will typically last 200 recharge cycles as a minimum if properly maintained.

When the cells start bloating it's time to have the battery professionally disposed of. If you continue to use it then it may malfunction in flight and you'll lose the drone and if you charge it when seriously damaged - well, you now now know first hand what can happen...

A J Posted at 7-19 11:56
A number of variables can cause it to happen - usually excessive exposure to heat/sunlight for prolonged periods - such as leaving it in the car on a hot day, not letting the batteries breath after flight, trying to charge them in warm climates or too soon after flight, leaving them on a live charger for too long after they have fully charged, being stored for long periods on a 100% charge, being taken down to critical levels too often during flight (0-10%), getting the battery wet, extreme and sudden variance in temperatures for example - flying on a hot day then cooling them too quickly by placing them in front of the air con in the car. These batteries will typically last 200 recharge cycles as a minimum if properly maintained.

When the cells start bloating it's time to have the battery professionally disposed of. If you continue to use it then it may malfunction in flight and you'll lose the drone and if you charge it when seriously damaged - well, you now now know first hand what can happen...

Thank you so much for your explanation and suggestions. I will follow them to the full.

David_Lexicon Posted at 7-19 11:18
Why do they bloat? This battery was only 15 months since I bought it. Maybe it was defective.

The failure rate reported here seems to be quite significant (there was a poll). I personally have 2 out of 3 batteries in the garbage due to bloating. I baby my batteries but there is one fact I cannot change: I live in a place with a tropical climate. Whatever I do when I store them, I would still be using them at 28+ Celsius, year around.

That being said, I have never seen such a failure rate with anything else. My house is full of batteries (even some weird ones with extreme discharge rates) and the only other thing I have ever had problem with was a couple of 3rd party Panasonic camera batteries that swell slightly after years of use. They still work though, whereas MA ones split open

By the way bloated batteries catching fire is quite common. Sometimes the swelling pushes the electrodes together breaking the sealant barrier and creating a short circuit. That was exactly what happened to the recalled "exploding" Galaxy Note 7...

I am glad the incident did not cause any harm and you could contain the fire...

PS: You might find this interesting, just to see how things have impoved with the newer model :

https://forum.dji.com/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=220287&extra=page%3D1

David_Lexicon Posted at 7-19 12:49
Thank you so much for your explanation and suggestions. I will follow them to the full.

You’re welcome - maintaining the batteries requires far more TLC than anything else - including the drone. Being one of the most expensive, potentially dangerous and essential accessories makes it all the more important.

CemAygun Posted at 7-19 13:33
The failure rate reported here seems to be quite significant (there was a poll). I personally have 2 out of 3 batteries in the garbage due to bloating. I baby my batteries but there is one fact I cannot change: I live in a place with a tropical climate. Whatever I do when I store them, I would still be using them at 28+ Celsius, year around.

That being said, I have never seen such a failure rate with anything else. My house is full of batteries (even some weird ones with extreme discharge rates) and the only other thing I have ever had problem with was a couple of 3rd party Panasonic camera batteries that swell slightly after years of use. They still work though, whereas MA ones split open

I live about 10° above the Tropic of Cancer so I have the same problem.  During summer, the temperature in the shade will escalate to 34°C.  Direct sunlight temperature of 60°C.

Ex Machina Posted at 7-19 07:31
Yikes! Glad you had a fire extinguisher handy.

Never, ever, charge a bloated battery.

How do you discharge a battery?

nywrecker Posted at 7-20 18:26
How do you discharge a battery?

There are several ways:

1. Run the battery down while connected to the aircraft if it'll still fit.
2. If you bought the Fly More package that came with a utility USB adaptor, use it to charge up your phone/tablet.
3. Put the battery somewhere safe and wait for the smart battery to self-discharge (10-days default?).

I used options 1 and 2 to fully discharge my two swollen batteries.

A J Posted at 7-19 11:56
A number of variables can cause it to happen - usually excessive exposure to heat/sunlight for prolonged periods - such as leaving it in the car on a hot day, not letting the batteries breath after flight, trying to charge them in warm climates or too soon after flight, leaving them on a live charger for too long after they have fully charged, being stored for long periods on a 100% charge, being taken down to critical levels too often during flight (0-10%), getting the battery wet, extreme and sudden variance in temperatures for example - flying on a hot day then cooling them too quickly by placing them in front of the air con in the car. These batteries will typically last 200 recharge cycles as a minimum if properly maintained.

When the cells start bloating it's time to have the battery professionally disposed of. If you continue to use it then it may malfunction in flight and you'll lose the drone and if you charge it when seriously damaged - well, you now now know first hand what can happen...

I've accidentally run a camera Li-ion battery through the wash and had it come out swollen -- not sure if it was the wash or dry cycle that did it in, but both moisture and excessive heat are certain killers of these batteries.

Ex Machina Posted at 7-20 19:45
I've accidentally run a camera Li-ion battery through the wash and had it come out swollen -- not sure if it was the wash or dry cycle that did it in, but both moisture and excessive heat are certain killers of these batteries.

Imagine that catching fire in the washing machine with clothes in their - recipe for losing the house! These batteries can be lethal!

LiPo batteries are under a lot of internal pressure, unlike say NiMh.

The electrolyte within a LiPo battery is a volatile, extremely flammable solvent as opposed to the aqueous electrolyte in other battery chemistries.   Given how ubiquitous they are it's amazing that more of these don't explode as they might.

Very scary

This is the most in depth explanation I have found on LiPo batteries

Why do LiPo Battery swell

What causes a LiPo battery to swell?

To understand why a LiPo battery (or any other battery, for that matter) swells, we need to understand how its individual components interact to make the battery work. All batteries are made with three basic components: a negative end, a positive end, and an electrolyte solution. Batteries conduct electricity via the migration of ions from the positive end to the negative end and vice-versa. These ions can travel through the electrolyte solution.

LiPo batteries are distinct from the old-fashioned lithium-ion batteries due to their use of a solid polymer electrolyte. Through this solid electrolyte, lithium ions can move between the two terminals of a LiPo battery. A LiPo battery also has polymer separator that keeps the positive and negative terminals from coming into contact with each other.

Batteries swell because of the phenomenon of electrolyte decomposition. As its name implies, this is the process where the electrolyte solution decomposes into its individual components. In most cases, these components include oxygen. In the case of LiPo batteries, the polymeric nature of the electrolyte means that they also tend to produce carbon dioxide (CO2) and carbon monoxide (CO) when they decompose. The production of these gases is what causes a LiPo battery to expand and swell.

There have been a lot of instances of LiPo batteries catching fire while they are plugged in. The chances of a LiPo battery charging fire is even higher once electrolytic decomposition has kicked in, as the oxygen-rich gases are very flammable, A good practice to follow is once your LiPo battery has indicated that the battery is full, disconnect the battery and switch the charger off at the wall, and never leave the battery connected to the charger unattended.

One thing to remember about battery swelling is that it cannot be avoided. Electrolyte decomposition is a naturally occurring process, albeit it should be a slow one. However, improper maintenance of the battery can accelerate the decomposition process.

What should I do with a swollen LiPo battery?

The first thing you should know is that a swollen LiPo battery is a lost cause. You cannot fix it, and you should look for a replacement battery as soon as possible. Once you have decided to stop using your swollen LiPo battery, you should dispose of it properly.

bqnet1 Posted at 4-2 10:57
This is the most in depth explanation I have found on LiPo batteries

Why do LiPo Battery swell

Thank you for your detailed explanation. Since the incident, I had no other problems with this kind of batteries. So I guess my incident was very very rare.

David_Lexicon Posted at 4-2 11:07
Thank you for your detailed explanation. Since the incident, I had no other problems with this kind of batteries. So I guess my incident was very very rare.

Just my experience with the Mavic Enterprise duel, flying in Arizona.

Bat 1 -  55 charges on 80 flights Bloated.
Bat 2 - 60 charges on 70 flights Bloated

I have a question, i am using mini 3 pro 4 months ago, i connect the charger directly to the drone to charge battery ( apple original charger ) and after 30-40 minutes i felt the smell of electrical fire from the drone ( inside ) , my drone now is not working, not responding for charge or turn on , i cant see any thing, its died completely.
In this case what i should to do ? DJI can fix this drone under the warranty .
Note : i buy it from official reseller .

Glad everything is ok. Once It bloats I get rid of it. It's not worth the risk.

djiuser_ED4CYxkiK95M Posted at 9-11 05:41
I have a question, i am using mini 3 pro 4 months ago, i connect the charger directly to the drone to charge battery ( apple original charger ) and after 30-40 minutes i felt the smell of electrical fire from the drone ( inside ) , my drone now is not working, not responding for charge or turn on , i cant see any thing, its died completely.
In this case what i should to do ? DJI can fix this drone under the warranty .
Note : i buy it from official reseller .

Hello there. Sorry about the experience. Please use the following link to submit a repair request or contact our DJI Support for assistance: https://www.dji.com/nl/support?site=brandsite&from=nav. We appreciate your patience. Have a great day ahead.