When to Replace Your Battery

Battery safety - when to replace batteries

Using a battery beyond its intended lifespan, or using a battery that has been damaged can cause the battery to fail. Depending on the type of battery being used and its application, the results of a catastrophic failure can be somewhat unpredictable.

We recommend the replacement of any battery meeting the following conditions. Batteries have a lifespan, and are meant to be replaced once their life has come to an end. It's always better to be safe than sorry.

Damaged Batteries

There are several conditions under which a battery may be considered to be damaged.  Once a battery is damaged, it should be replaced.  Using damaged batteries may cause them to discharge unevenly, become hot, or to experience catastrophic failure.

Torn wrappers: If your battery's wrapper is torn, especially towards the positive contact, you'll want to make sure that you replace it ASAP. Torn wrappers can result in the battery shorting inside the device. Though batteries can be re-wrapped, it's not recommended unless being performed by someone trained to do so. Re-wrapping without knowing exactly what you're doing can injure you, so please leave it to the pros, or don't do it at all.

Moisture: When your battery has been the victim of unfortunate submersion in water, or is showing spots of mildew or mold on the wrapper, it's time for a replacement. If such spots are showing on or through the wrapper, there is likely moisture inside the battery, which may cause it to fail.

Dents: Sometimes the damage is exceptionally apparent. If a battery has been dropped on a hard surface and is showing dents, it should be replaced. The contents of the battery are not designed to move, and when the battery becomes dented, contents have to shift to the new shape of the battery. This may also occur if you have a habit of excessively tightening them into your mods and denting the contacts.

Old Batteries

Aging batteries should also be replaced. If you've had the same battery in regular rotation for several months, it's time to replace them. I'm being deliberately vague on exact time frames because there are several factors that play into what causes batteries to "expire" more or less quickly.

Usage: If you constantly run the same batteries in a mechanical mod, with low resistance builds close to their limits, they will begin to die more quickly, because they've had a stressful life.

Rotation: The more batteries you keep in rotation, the less often you use any single battery, so those batteries that are used less often will survive longer.

Paired Batteries: These may not be old batteries, but if you pair your batteries in devices that use more than one at a time (which you should), and one becomes damaged or needs replacement for any other reason, you'll want to replace both batteries in the pair, no matter how old they are. If you can find another use for the battery that's left, like using it in a mechanical mod or a flashlight or other regulated device, go for it. It may not be dangerous, but do not switch out single batteries from a pair.

I've stopped using a battery. Now what?

Now that you know when batteries need to be replaced, what should you do with the old ones? I'd like to mention here that this applies to all batteries sold in a vape shop, from eGo batteries to devices with internal batteries that cannot be removed, like an MVP.

Don't throw them out: If a battery must be removed from service for any of the reasons above, please do not just chuck them into the trash can. Lithium batteries can wreak havoc on the environment, and can injure people that are near them. Imagine a battery shorting in a trash bag as you're taking the garbage to the dumpster, and being unaware of it until catastrophic failure.

Recycle: You can drop off any damaged batteries. We have a recycling program for your unwanted supplies. Customers can drop off items to be disposed of.