How likely are aftermarket laptop batteries to explode on me?

[JebusPrime]

Bought a replacement battery off ebay for my old 2012 Acer AO725 to extend its usage a bit further, and the manual that comes with it gave so many warnings about explosive danger. All the aftermarket batteries for my laptop on ebay had the same product pictures, so I assume they all had the same suppliers and I don't have that many options to choose from.

Was originally going to buy an OEM battery, then I realized the laptop was made in 2012, and it's not like the original manufacturer will continue making OEM batteries for a device they stopped production a long time ago. Would I really want to buy a "brand new" battery made in 2012? Battery expert told me those batteries won't be in their best condition even if they weren't used for 6 years.

But now that I have read the scary manual that mentioned explosions like 5 times, I am wondering if I made the wrong choice.

Who should I have bought batteries from? How should I test a new battery to see if I am safe from explosions or not?

 

[eidairaman1]

Bought a replacement battery off ebay for my old 2012 Acer AO725 to extend its usage a bit further, and the manual that comes with it gave so many warnings about explosive danger. All the aftermarket batteries for my laptop on ebay had the same product pictures, so I assume they all had the same suppliers and I don't have that many options to choose from.

Was originally going to buy an OEM battery, then I realized the laptop was made in 2012, and it's not like the original manufacturer will continue making OEM batteries for a device they stopped production a long time ago. Would I really want to buy a "brand new" battery made in 2012? Battery expert told me those batteries won't be in their best condition even if they weren't used for 6 years.

But now that I have read the scary manual that mentioned explosions like 5 times, I am wondering if I made the wrong choice.

Who should I have bought batteries from? How should I test a new battery to see if I am safe from explosions or not?

The OEM of the laptop.

 

[W1zzard]

it gave so many warnings about explosive danger.

They are just covering their asses in case something goes wrong and you decide to sue them.

I wouldn't be concerned that much. I'm quite sure every single exploding battery gets covered by news reports, which going by my impression, is very few, given that there must be billions of them out there.

 

[JebusPrime]

The OEM of the laptop.

Even if they are 6 years old kind of brand new? Acer already isn't that good with their quality though.

 

[OneMoar]

better chance of getting getting struck by a train in your living room

 

[Vya Domus]

As long as you don't puncture them with something or throw them in a fire , they should be fine.

 

[Vayra86]

better chance of getting getting struck by a train in your living room

Comments like this combined with your avatar just crack me up EVERY time. lol

As to OPs question, the most likely event is that the number of cycles these batteries will recharge is drastically reduced OR that the charge is significantly lower when at 100%. Batteries degrade. And if they explode, they were bad from the get go.

 

[trog100]

they explode if they get short circuited.. tap a nail in one and see what happens.. they dont actually explode as such more burst into flames.. though a few years back i did have one go "bang" in my pants pocket.. it set my pants on fire and blew the contents of my pocket all over the workshop floor..

a nice mixture of loose change keys and one fully charged lithium cell..

i dont think aftermarket batteries are any more likely to catch fire than the original ones.. making them super thin to keep devices as thin as possible dosnt help..

but as has been said there aint many fires relative to the amounts of batteries in daily use..

trog

 

[Caring1]

Risk is relative to the age of the battery, obviously the older the more dangerous it can be to keep charging them and the risk of overheating etc,and what it is manufactured from is a factor too.
Lithium have the highest risk of dangerous explosions, fire etc, NiCad can explode as can NiMh but not as seriously.

 

[eidairaman1]

Even if they are 6 years old kind of brand new? Acer already isn't that good with their quality though.

How many reports of their specific batteries have been reported for hazardous failures?