Smoke coming from Pendleton e-bike battery

[brightonsid]

Hi, we have a 7 year old pendleton e-bike from Halfords.
My husband was trying to stop the battery from wobbling by tightening the screws on the frame, but smoke and a nasty smell started pouring out.
I don't know what he did but am scared the battery might explode...
The bike is outside the house and the smoke has now stopped, but wondered if anyone knows what happened and has any advice?

 

[soundwave]

the smell is electrolyte so one or more of the cells has been damaged or just has gone bad so dont use it charge it or keep it in the house and dont throw it in the bin as the lorry will catch fire when they squash it.

 

[matthewslack]

Hi, we have a 7 year old pendleton e-bike from Halfords.
My husband was trying to stop the battery from wobbling by tightening the screws on the frame, but smoke and a nasty smell started pouring out.
I don't know what he did but am scared the battery might explode...
The bike is outside the house and the smoke has now stopped, but wondered if anyone knows what happened and has any advice?

#ChargeSafe: The warning signs e-bikes & e-scooters could start a fire

Before a failing lithium battery catches fire, there are often a few warning signs. If you see any of these signs. You will need to take immediate action to stay safe and reduce the risk of fire.

www.london-fire.gov.uk

 

[brightonsid]

Thanks - is it safe to remove from the bike frame?

 

[soundwave]

yes but do it out side

 

[StuartsProjects]

Thanks - is it safe to remove from the bike frame?

How can we know for sure ?

The longer you leave the bike with the battery still attached outside and nothing happens, I would suggest the less the risk there will be when its removed.

If it were my bike, I would leave it overnight.

 

[Bikes4two]

I'm just wondering how a rack mounted battery would suffer damage from tightening?

Maybe a screw, not an original but one that was too long, penetrated the battery case?

I guess the OP will see more when they withdraw (if they can) the battery from the battery case.

 

[Nealh]

I also don't see how trying to tighten it up on the frame with the battery in situ could be done as the battery would prevent acces to the battery mount fixings.
The only fire likely to occur if it is shorted or the electrolite has leaked is if one tried charging it, to be sfae simply remove it from the bike and place some where out side safe.
At 7 yrs old it will be near nd of life so a new one will be needed.

 

[saneagle]

Hi, we have a 7 year old pendleton e-bike from Halfords.
My husband was trying to stop the battery from wobbling by tightening the screws on the frame, but smoke and a nasty smell started pouring out.
I don't know what he did but am scared the battery might explode...
The bike is outside the house and the smoke has now stopped, but wondered if anyone knows what happened and has any advice?

Most likely, he shorted a couple of wires and the wires melted. The battery is probably fine and not dangerous, but without knowing what he did or where the smoke came from, it's impossible to say for sure. If the smoke just came from the compartment at the front of the battery, you have nothing to worry about, but you should remove the battery from the bike until someone opens the compartment and repairs what's in there.

 

[Bikes4two]

Most likely, he shorted a couple of wires and the wires melted.

• Do you not think that a direct short would have blown the battery fuse?
• The OP says 'smoke pouring out' which to me suggests something prolonged and thus something other than wires shorting?
• As said, the whole battery and controller (both in the case) require further inspection by someone who understands what they are looking at.

 

[WheezyRider]

Can the OP post some photos - including exactly what was done to "tighten" the battery?

 

[Nealh]

It isn't clear how he acheived it .

 

[saneagle]

• Do you not think that a direct short would have blown the battery fuse?
• The OP says 'smoke pouring out' which to me suggests something prolonged and thus something other than wires shorting?
• As said, the whole battery and controller (both in the case) require further inspection by someone who understands what they are looking at.

No. First you're assuming that the battery has a fuse, when most don't. Secondly, If it were the battery, it would more likely burst into flames, thirdly, it might be just thin wires that touched. The smoke comes from the melting insulation that can happen on thin wires at very low currents.

You have to think about the failure mode. How can adjusting a rack damage a battery? I've never heard of that, but I've seen many wires pulled out of controllers. The wires from the frame to the battery are quite tight, so any pulling backwards of the battery and rack would have consequences. Also the only screws that are on the battery and rack are either on the axle or at the top of the seat-stays, both well away from the battery. OP says, " My husband was trying to stop the battery from wobbling by tightening the screws on the frame ". There's no way that can affect the battery directly even if he was completely ham-fisted. We can't say anything more until OP says exactly where the smoke came from, which would be pretty well definitive.