Battery stores for fire safety
9 May 2023
Regular followers of the blog will recall the dramatic blaze caused by a self-igniting cordless tool battery that severely damaged Alide Hire Services’ Bristol depot on Boxing Day.
Such instances are thankfully rare but it highlighted the issue of battery storage, handling and management, an issue which was discussed during a recent webinar organised by the magazine Fire Safety Matters.
Some sobering facts were given by Mark Whiteley, Sales Director with asecos, which makes a range of purpose-designed containers for storing and charging lithium-ion batteries in indoor locations.
Their key feature is that they are designed to withstand fire from inside or outside the cabinet for 90 minutes, giving time to evacuate the building and call emergency services.
Speaking to me after the presentation, Mark said that lithium-ion batteries used in much cordless equipment are typically packs comprising several cells wired together. “If any of these cells is damaged, if it goes into thermal runaway (a domino effect whereby the intense heat causes adjacent cells to ignite) it can create a chain reaction, but the length of time from first to last could be an hour or just minutes.”
Mark pointed out that one particular issue that the hire industry faces is that tool hire companies don’t know how a battery has been handled by a customer during the hire period. It might have been dropped, damaged or abused, and this is why batteries should be inspected closely after each hire for signs of breakage, dents, cracks or leakage.
Any suspect batteries should be immediately quarantined until they can be examined more closely or disposed of.
“As the quarantined batteries represent more of a hazard, they need to be stored outside the main building in a steel container,” said Mark.
“If the battery is found to be undamaged and needs to be charged, it can be done with our products inside the hire depot.”
One item in the asecos range is the Ion Classic 90 steel cabinet (pictured) which can store and charge lithium-ion batteries. As stated above, it is designed to withstand heat for 90 minutes to the EN 14470-1 standard. It has space underneath to accommodate a pallet truck so that the unit can be removed outside, and also has self-closing doors.
An alarm activates if the interior temperature rises above 50C, if smoke is detected and when the temperature reaches 70C. An optional relay system is available that can send text message alerts to up to five mobile phone users if the alarm triggers.
The asecos (www.asecos.com) cabinets are not cheap, but where safety is concerned that probably isn’t the main consideration.
● Don't forget to explore the Site-Eco area of the blog for news of sustainable products and developments relevant to the world of hire.
