AA battery exploded

Paul Howell · Sep 25, 2019

This morning I was shooting with my Konica T4 with winder. I had just finished a roll and swapping bodies for a T3 when there was a bang, it took a while to figure out one of the 6 AA batteries had exploded. There some sort of battery fluid all over the batter compartment and the bottom of the drive had been blown open. I was shooting with a monopod so I didnt feel the battery getting hot. I used many motor drives and winders over the years, Nikon, Minolta, Konica, Chinon and never had a battery explode before. Attached is an picture of the damage to the winder.

mshchem · Sep 25, 2019

Rechargeable?

Paul Howell · Sep 25, 2019

Nope, standard Energizer alkaline, been using them for years.

Kino · Sep 25, 2019

Used to be battery companies would replace whatever was damaged/destroyed by their product if you sent it to them.

Might be interesting to attempt!

Les Sarile · Sep 25, 2019

Wow! Didn't think they had enough energy in them even in a dead short?

AgX · Sep 25, 2019

I too had an alkaline AA or AAA explode. Quite dramatic.

Chan Tran · Sep 25, 2019

NiCad for sure but I didn't know the alkaline can supply enough current to do that.

Kino · Sep 25, 2019

Chan Tran said:
NiCad for sure but I didn't know the alkaline can supply enough current to do that.

If they are fresh and make a dead-short internally, it will explode violently.

AgX · Sep 25, 2019

Likely in no case the cell will explode as such like a grenade, but a cap will jump off. There will be a loud bang and quite some force. I rather would not hold a device (torch , remote control etc.) in hand in such moment.

The best one can do, is not to shorten a cell, and not to install cells in wrong orientation.

Paul Howell · Sep 25, 2019

Kino said:
If they are fresh and make a dead-short internally, it will explode violently.

Mine sure did, was at the Desert Botanical Garden at the time, I had just rewound the film, manual rewind, I did test the shutter and the winder still worked on 5 batteries. I have a second winder, so I will swap out, or might just repair the plastic with epoxy and keep using this drive.

AgX · Sep 25, 2019

Was in your case the cylinder torn open?? Or "just" and end cap went off?

Paul Howell · Sep 25, 2019

The cylinder or body of the battery split open, I did not have a plastic bag so I tossed all the batteries out as they were coated in the gel from the exploded battery.

Paul Howell · Sep 25, 2019

What concerns me is a battery exploding in the body of a camera body, like a Minolta A9000 or a Pentax SF with AA adapter, or an older point and shoot. I've had lithium batteries short out, they get hot , to this point none have exploded.

BrianShaw · Sep 25, 2019

I’ve ever experienced an exploding alkaline cell. But lithium cells can get hot, burn, and possibly explode due to internal shorts as well as other factors in their use and application.

__Brian · Sep 25, 2019

If you take apart a 9v battery you find Six 1.5v cells in them, maybe "AAAA"? I had one of the Six explode and rip the 9v shell apart.

Rare- but it happens.

benjiboy · Sep 25, 2019

You have omitted to say how long the batteries have been in the winder because they are prone to leak and explode if they are old. It's good practice to remove batteries from equipment when they aren't been used.

AgX · Sep 25, 2019

I have not experienced a leaking battery to explode nor heard of such, it also makes much less sense.
And then the buckets at collecting stations would be dangerous places...

Helios 1984 · Sep 25, 2019

A few weeks ago, one of my Imedion AA became burning hot so I removed it.
A few minutes later, it started to smoke and juice was bubbling out of the +.

darkosaric · Sep 25, 2019

Did anyone experienced same problems with CR123A? I have many point and shoots that are using those. After reading this, one more reason to use 100% mechanical, pretty scary stories.

shutterfinger · Sep 25, 2019

If you take a paper clip, unfold it, and place it across the + and - contacts of any battery the paper clip will get so hot it will burn your fingers in a matter of a few seconds. If you use pliers and hold the paper clip in contact with the battery terminals the battery will explode. To burn your fingers 2 to 3 seconds, to explode 5 to 6 seconds. Wear safety goggles and a rubber shop apron when confirming.

Check the winder and camera for a short at the winder contacts. If none exists then it was just a bad battery.

jim10219 · Sep 25, 2019

I've had a AAA battery explode. I mixed brands, which I knew was a mistake. They were all used, but I thought they had around the same amount of life in them. I was being cheap, foolsih, and hasty. Luckily, other than a loud explosion and frayed nerves, there was no damage.

Vaughn · Sep 26, 2019

Oh, great...I never have these kinds of problems until I read about them on the forums. Now I have worry about my Mini-Maglite blowing up in my pocket!

AgX · Sep 26, 2019

I often mix brands of used alkaline AA cells, typically for forming flashes. In advance I test and sort them by means of battery tester fot the same resting charge. Never had a problem.

I once by accident found out that a one AA out of four in a luninescant torch went hot ad even started to melt the surrounding plastic, I am sure that the cells were placed in right orientation and quite sure the torch was switched off.

In another case one cell out of two in remote control exploded out of its own with control not being used that moment. The cell might have been put in wrong orientation by someone else.

Reading this thread so far there are cases were it seems we did all right and still it happened.

NB23 · Sep 26, 2019

Good it didn’t explode while the camera was on your face

Paul Howell · Sep 26, 2019

benjiboy said:
You have omitted to say how long the batteries have been in the winder because they are prone to leak and explode if they are old. It's good practice to remove batteries from equipment when they aren't been used.

The batteries were new, right out of the box, had shot a roll of film a few days before, had taken the batters of the winder and camera. I use hearing aid batteries for the camera, the T4 takes 2, I put tape over the holes on the + side of the battery so they will last a little longer. The AAs I keep in the same bag as the Konica Kit, T4, winder, T3, 28, 58, 135 and 200 with small flash. As I shoot with a number of different 35mm I remove all the batteries as it may take months before I shoot that same camera again.

Never had a lithium explode, had one that hot really hot in a Pentax IQ Zoom that I could feel the heat so I was able to remove it. Has a rechargeable Lithium get so hot I fearful that it could catch fire, it was on Sigma SD 17 which is know for hot bottoms. I take all my batteries out, film and digital.

AA battery exploded

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