DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CHARGE OR USE A SWOLLEN BATTERY.
YES! A swollen battery is dangerous. Do not attempt to use or charge a swollen or otherwise damaged battery. Keep it away from flammables and in a fire-resistant bag or container and take it to a recycle center ASAP. Google "battery recycle center near me"
What causes the battery to swell?
The technical reason:
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.
Normal everyday use of your battery will generate gas through a process called electrolyte decomposition. The electrolyte decomposition occurs even faster if you over-discharge a battery or overheat a battery.
Known causes for battery swelling:
- Unevenly charged cells - not charging to full before each use no matter how little you used it the time before
- Allowing the battery to get too hot - such as it would get inside a parked car
- attempting to charge a hot battery can damage it, causing the internal cells to swell - risking fire and explosion
- Leaving it on the charger after it has reached a full charge
- Over discharging the battery - using the battery longer than is recommended.
- Sitting unused longer that 3 days fully charged - the internal gases will build up inside - possibly causing it to swell
- Storing the battery fully charged - the internal gases will build up inside - possibly causing it to swell
- Not storing the battery discharged to storage voltage (the voltage on the battery)
Always charge the LiPo battery inside a fire resistant container such as a fireproof battery charging bag.
IMPORTANT: Fully charge charge every time to assure proper balance of all cells inside the battery. The final stage of the charging cycle is balancing the voltage between cells - so it's important to complete the charging cycle before using the battery. It's OK to interrupt the charging if you cannot be present to monitor the charging. But remember to continue to complete the charging cycle before using the battery.
CAUTION: The battery should always be allowed to come to room-temperature before charging. Charging a hot or cold battery might delay charging or damage the battery. For best results, charge the battery at temperatures between 50º and 80ºF (10º-30ºC).
Disclaimer
The advice given above is general in nature and you are responsible for the safety of your batteries. SwiftPaws is not responsible for any direct, indirect, special, or consequential damages and personal injuries, including that to life, and health, resulting from the customer’s application and use of batteries sold by SwiftPaws.com.