swollen macbook battery

[cdeanrun]

need to replace or reduce swelling

[pigoo3]

Ok…and the question is??

- Nick

p.s. Thread moved to proper sub-forum.

[cdeanrun]

my battery charges fine but is swollen to the point it hardly sits well in the laptop and on occasion will inhibit keyboard performance. i have heard or running down the battery an opening and releasing gases trapped within using a pin. what have you heard? and what and how do i access a sub-forum?

[pigoo3]

Threads merged. Same topic/same question.

- Nick

[pigoo3]

i have heard or running down the battery an opening and releasing gases trapped within using a pin.

OMG...where do people "hear" these things?? Your battery needs to be replaced...period! A swollen laptop battery is not a ballon.

and what and how do i access a sub-forum?

There is no special access. You simply go to the same area you originally posted...and it has a link to where the thread was moved to.

- Nick

[p_rod]

Hey Nick!

I hope he replaces his battery STAT or we may not be hearing from him for awhile. Most folks don't realize the danger of these batteries if they start to swell. I know personally of two cases of friends in the RC hobby that lost their homes, totally, to batteries on chargers that were not being observed during charging and weren't inside the special ceramic jugs that most RC folks using non-NiCad batteries use nowadays.

I still use the old but very dependable NiCads for my blimps and in some of my older RC planes, but in the drones I now fly I have no choice but to use LiPo's and I always charge them inside a ceramic vessel under supervision. IOW, never leave them alone. I know that isn't the same with our cell phones and laptops but those too have started enough fires out there too.

I did find this link out there.....probably the same site the OP found on taking care of a swollen battery. I love his suggestion that "when you prick the envelope of the battery, be sure to hold your breath so you do not breathe in the toxic vapors". It's on the Net, it must be true. :-)

How to ‘fix’ a swollen MacBook battery | Leaves caution behind

Cheers!

Pat


PS! Scroll down to the last three comments on that site: here they are, two from an incredulous viewer and an answer from the blogger:



zellerzeller says:
January 21, 2014 at 12:49 pm
You should amend your safety disclaimer. As following your fix might blow someone up someday…
Lithium is flammable, and it is potentially explosive when exposed to air and especially to water. As swelling occurs due to the overcharge, native lithium is already deposited in the cells. Opening them is the same as playing Russian roulette.


Reply
zellerzeller says:
January 21, 2014 at 12:51 pm
Source I’m from a family of chemists/electrochemists


Reply
David says:
January 21, 2014 at 12:54 pm
Thanks for the cautionary note (and I think I have always made it clear this could be risky), but on the other hand, there have tens of thousands of views of this post and no reports of fires or explosions so far…

[pigoo3]

It's on the Net, it must be true. :-)

This is exactly the problem Pat!!! If one person was to tell another person this solution verbally...they'd say they were crazy. But write it down on the internet...and now it becomes legitimate.

Of course...then this can also put anything you or I write into question as well.

OP now has the info. They can do the smart thing & replace the battery ASAP...or "poke a hole" in the battery...then:

- allow any corrosive gases or liquids to leak out of the battery and possibly destroy the computer eventually
- the battery may not return to it's original shape
- the problem that's causing the swelling will still be present
- if the gases coming from the battery are flammable...a spark from anywhere could start a fire inside of the computer. Destroying the computer...and maybe burning down the OP's apartment or home.

I know which of these two choices I would choose!

- Nick

[p_rod]

I know which of these two choices I would choose!

- Nick

And I do too, Nick. A battery is a heckuva lot cheaper than recovering from a fire and/or burns or inhalation trauma. I just hope he does the smart thing and gets a new battery.

On a side note, about a year ago we were talking about solar panels and I have yet to pull the trigger but am very close. Are you still happy with your Harbor Freight panels? If so, those'll be on my shopping list next week. I don't need a LOT of power, just enough to recharge my MBA, cellphone, (not that it would work itshtf); some smaller batteries and such but I have a lot of good data stored on both. I have also found a couple or very reasonable marine deep cycle batteries that when wired together with an inverter (which I already have) should run just about anything I have around here save an AC unit or refrigerator. :-)

[pigoo3]

A battery is a heckuva lot cheaper than recovering from a fire and/or burns or inhalation trauma. I just hope he does the smart thing and gets a new battery.

Thanks for adding those reader comments from that webpage in your earlier post. I LOVE the authors logic...10's of thousands of views and no reports of fires or explosions so far...

Firstly...many of those viewers may not have battery issues. You & I looked at the article out of curiously...and now a bunch of Mac-Forums members will look at it as well (out of curiosity). Lots of views...does not necessarily translate into lots of folks "poking the hole".

But...hey. As long as the author mentions that there is risk involved...then folks giving the solution a try should be aware that there is some danger.

On a side note, about a year ago we were talking about solar panels and I have yet to pull the trigger but am very close. Are you still happy with your Harbor Freight panels?

I have also found a couple or very reasonable marine deep cycle batteries that when wired together with an inverter (which I already have) should run just about anything I have around here save an AC unit or refrigerator. :-)

To be honest...I haven't done very much with them lately. With Wintertime & snow...I don't mess with them too much. And I haven't made the investment yet into getting some deep cycle marine batteries. Hoping to find some good used cheap one's on Craig's List.

But I agree...at a potential 45 watts/set (I have two)...that's enough power to charge almost any rechargeable device...and on a good day (Sunny)...should be enough "juice" to run a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air. Or at least allow it to greatly extend battery life while using the computer outside. Great for camping too!

- Nick