Case Study: Lithium Ion Battery Fires

The Unexpected Threat That Cost My Business $3 Million 

By Craig Wooster, Owner/President of Pool Specialists, Inc. 

As a business owner, I worry about many things. How can I keep my customers happy? How can I keep my employees happy? How can I manage my inventory to meet customers’ needs without going into the red? One thing I never worried about — until recently — was how to safely charge my lithium-ion batteries. 

Lithium-ion batteries are everywhere. You probably have them in your business and in your home. They’re used in cell phones, tablets, laptops, power tools, and even in your electronic toothbrush. But despite the pervasiveness of these batteries, most people don’t know that they can, on occasion, explode. And once they explode, that fire can’t be put out. It needs to be contained until it burns out, releasing toxic gasses along the way. 

Unfortunately, this was a lesson I learned too late.

The secret explosive in your home and business

My name is Craig Wooster, and I am the owner of Pool Specialists, Raleigh's premiere professional swimming pool contractor for cleaning, service, maintenance, repair, inspections, safety covers, and more. In August of 2022, a lithium-ion battery for my leaf blower exploded on a charger in my warehouse and burned half the warehouse down, destroying all its contents — my inventory — and damaging the roof. The fire started shortly after midnight, so fortunately, no one was injured, but it cost my business more than $3 million in damages. And thanks to delays with building permits, I’m still without a warehouse almost two years after the fire. 

Before the fire, I was unaware of the potential dangers posed by lithium-ion batteries. Since then, I’ve done my research. Lithium-ion batteries charge very quickly — a huge advantage to anyone who regularly uses power tools on the job. But that fast-acting charger can overheat and cause a thermal runaway condition. This condition can produce a violent explosion with high temperatures and significant flames. In the case of my fire, security footage showed not just the explosion, but molten lava spewing from the battery as the fire grew. Thermal runaway events also produce a high volume of toxic gas and smoke, which can be incredibly dangerous if employees are working nearby.  

Both the charger and the lithium-ion battery have circuitry to prevent this from happening, but on occasion, that circuitry fails. When that happens, there’s not much you can do but try to contain the flames until all the gasses burn. 

An innovative new battery charging containment solution

Up until recently, there hasn’t been a containment solution that allows for the safe storage and charging of lithium-ion batteries. That’s because most safety cabinets are designed to keep flames out rather than holding them in. But an innovative new product that was in R&D at the time of my fire, has since been released. 

Justrite, a leader in safety cabinets and equipment, heard my story and reached out to offer me their new lithium-ion battery storage cabinet so nothing like this will happen to me again. After inspecting and using their product, I can’t endorse it enough.

This benchtop cabinet safely holds eight charging stations and has a larger fan and vents than your standard safety cabinet to ensure the batteries don’t overheat. The latches will hold in the case of an explosion and special spark arrestors keep flames from protruding out of the box should a battery explode. The doors are doubled-lined and filled with mineral wool to dampen the blast of an explosion, choke out smoke, and prevent the doors from filling with gas and reigniting later. It also contains a horizontal spring-loaded damper that closes the vents quickly and tightly once the fusible link hits 135 degrees, which keeps the flames from escaping near the fan. 

This product has been through rigorous testing and, in my opinion, is the best cabinet on the market. It’s manufactured specifically for the safe charging of lithium-ion batteries and is a must-have for any businesses storing chargers — and let’s face it, that’s most.

Invest in your safety net

Justrite’s lithium-ion safety cabinet is your insurance policy against catastrophe. Lithium-ion battery explosions are incredibly dangerous and damaging, and without an effective containment solution, the fire will continue to burn uncontrolled. These fires can’t typically be put out with water, so containment is your best option.

Justrite’s cabinet will save you significant headaches and money in the long run, and it’s the only way I’ll ever charge lithium-ion batteries again. I just wish it would have been released before my fire cost me millions. 

For anyone who stores lithium-ion batteries at home or in the workplace, I cannot recommend Justrite’s lithium-ion battery charging cabinets enough. Save yourself millions in damages and pick one up today.