LiPo Disposal...How do YOU do it?

[ThBrtmn]

I was getting ready to dispose of a dead pack and was wondering how everyone disposes of the their spent LiPos. Talking to a buddy yesterday he said that one method was to soak it in SaltWater for a several days to neutralize the cells and then chuck it in the trash can.
I was thinking about taking it to Batteries Plus or someplace like that and let them do it.
How does everyone else get Rid of em.

[charles]

Bart,

I have not yet had to dispose of one, but the saltwater method is what I have heard also. I think you first submerge the pack and then open it under the water. It will then be fine to just put in the trash... The only thing I don't know for sure is the amount of time to leave in the water.

Charles

[Russ McC]

I always send them back to TP for service, if there bad I always buy a new set and they keep the old set so I have not yet disposed of any. You could intentionally over amp them if possible and have a nice fire then there would be nothing left to do any harm.

[Laurens]

Yes but I would only do that if you can get it on tape :glasses2:

[ErichF]

The only one that I had to dispose of took care of itself in the back of my Explorer after I put on a 2S pack while the charger was still set to 3S :shock:

Man what a mess to clean up that was. Good thing I had it sitting in a cake pan (just in case).

Lesson Learned. I'm one of the club's strongest advocates of Li-polys and saftey.

Erich

[ThBrtmn]

You could intentionally over amp them if possible and have a nice fire then there would be nothing left to do any harm



I thought about doing a cool destruction video...I would hate for it to screw up my charger though? Do you think it would.

[Laurens]

I don't think your charger will have any damage, just make sure you have long leads, so the charger can't catch any fire.

[malc1]

So what were the conclusions regarding the safe disposal of spent packs?
I`ve got three puffed up 2200 packs here that I need to get rid off.

[warpspeed]

http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/scootermonkey/gun.jpg

+

http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/scootermonkey/550ed002.jpg

=

http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/scootermonkey/international_fireworks_2_b.jpg

[Duke600]

We should all get together one 4th of july and enjoy our dead packs together, FIRE FIRE FIRE FIRE!!!!!!

[WayneBrown]

I use a shotgun, and a thrower. Birdshot makes lots of itty-bitty holes in the packs, but you better have water onhand to deal with the smoldering grass fire afterwards....

[Rodney]

Lithium is a hazardous waste product, should not be thrown in the trash as it will end up in your landfill. The saltwater trick does nothing for the chemical.
They should be disposed of properly, we all have children and family that need to drink water in the future so lets take care of them too.
Check with Thunderpower or Flightpower and see what they have to say about this.
Where I work they are packed in mineral oil, that keeps even the worst puffed lipos form shorting and burning. Then shipped to a plant that recycles what they can and properly disposes of the rest. This is all regulated process and shouldn't be taken lightly as there are a lot of these out there.

[borocouncilman]

Lithium is a hazardous waste product, should not be thrown in the trash as it will end up in your landfill. The saltwater trick does nothing for the chemical.
They should be disposed of properly, we all have children and family that need to drink water in the future so lets take care of them too.
Check with Thunderpower or Flightpower and see what they have to say about this.
Where I work they are packed in mineral oil, that keeps even the worst puffed lipos form shorting and burning. Then shipped to a plant that recycles what they can and properly disposes of the rest. This is all regulated process and shouldn't be taken lightly as there are a lot of these out there.

How do I responsibly dispose of one with crash damage?
Who will accept this type of hazardous material?

[Gra55h0pper]

Rodney wrote:
Lithium is a hazardous waste product, should not be thrown in the trash as it will end up in your landfill. The saltwater trick does nothing for the chemical.
They should be disposed of properly, we all have children and family that need to drink water in the future so lets take care of them too.
Check with Thunderpower or Flightpower and see what they have to say about this.


However, ThunderPower states in the battery disposal instructions on their website (http://thunderpowerrc.com/PDF/DISPOSAL-OF-LIPO-BATTERIES.pdf):

Remove the LiPo battery from the salt water, wrap it in newspaper or paper towels and
place it in the normal trash. They are landfill safe.


So are they landfill safe or not? Any expert opinions?

[Pinecone]

Lithium is very reactive, so if it gets into the waste stream it reacts to a reasoanbly inert salt. Fully discahrged there is little to no free lithium.

The problem with salt water bath is, 1) if the pack has much of a charge on, the corrosion will eat the tabs off before the pack discharges, and 2) it does nothing to react any remaining litium in the pack.

[Jafa]

I was told you had to put a low wattage blub across the battery and leave it to fully discharge over a day or so - needless to say this needs to be done in a safe environment

That should take care of the voltage and the lithium
so the pack can be put into the salt water (why?)

And then - where to send the packs?

[Pinecone]

The idea with salt water is:

1) The conductive water will allow the pack to fully discharge (but in reality unless the pack is near dead, the tab corrode off first).

2) If you puncture the pack (fully dischareged) in salt water, the salt reacts with the remaining lithium relaly making the pack inert.

Of course, if you are truely environmentally concious, the mylar pouches don't degrade. :)

[b_vanfossen]

buy a .99 toggle switch from auto parts store and long lead wires and watch the sparks fly- smoke also helps with miskitos :mr. green:

[ShotgunTC88]

I hate to admit this................

But yea, I get so pissed at a dead battery that I poke it in the firepit outside blow it by overcharge just to watch $60 burn,

THEN I soak it (whats left of the poor thing) with salt water and toss it.

and sweart that "next time" I will take better care of my Lipo'$

Shotgun

[ShotgunTC88]

I use a shotgun, and a thrower. Birdshot makes lots of itty-bitty holes in the packs, but you better have water onhand to deal with the smoldering grass fire afterwards....
LOL............

Dam, We are both sick mofos'............;)

Shotgun

[Pinecone]

From Kokam, who actually make the CELLs, not just assemble packs:

Dispose of cells/packs as follows:
a. Discharge: with the cell/pack in a safe area, connect a moderate resistance across the terminals until the cell/pack is discharged. CAUTION: cell/pack may be hot!
b. Discard:
- LiPo: puncture plastic envelope, immerse in salt water for several hours, place in regular trash.

[dogfart]

Since I have some bi-polar tendencies and hate to waste anything, I take 'em apart and use the Litium inside to self-medicate. It works wonders for me, once I get past the corrosive affect it has on my mouth and GI Track.