My powerbank's unwell.......

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macliam
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My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by macliam » Sun Jul 24 2022 6:36pm

Image

I fear my 10k mAh powerbank is unwell..........

It was just sitting there on my desk, unplugged and fully charged, when there was a loud "crack" and the case split. One of the two internal packs has now swollen to several times its original size.

Odd thing is, it still seems to be working!
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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by blythburgh » Mon Jul 25 2022 9:01am

Ah that will be the brexit bonus, things break but still work
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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by Chadwick » Mon Jul 25 2022 7:33pm

I'm no electronics expert, but it may be time to consider the possibilities of potentially reviewing the criteria under which you might reasonably feel there is a legitimate requirement to confirm that a need for replacement exists in principle, subject to further analysis and assessment of course.
Last edited by Chadwick on Tue Jul 26 2022 7:55am, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by macliam » Mon Jul 25 2022 10:25pm

Well, it looks like the swelling is due to gas..... hydrogen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and others..... which are helpfully described as "toxic". :wtf:

Given that lithium itself reacts violently when it comes into contact with water and gives off hydrogen in an exothermic reaction, it's not surprising that fires have been reported. :shifty:

The cell seems really, really solid, so the idea that it is swollen due to gas seems odd.... I can't imagine that the envelope would sustain the kind of pressure necessary...... but It's certainly not staying on my desk!
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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by macliam » Fri Jul 29 2022 7:29pm

The vendor asked for some more info - and it seems I bought it in 2017, so rather longer ago than I thought. However, they say it should not have swollen like that, so are refunding the original purchase price!

I then went online and found an Ansmann model with the same capacity (though no digital display) with a 40% discount... making it cheaper than the one that went west! Not only that, but the purchase qualified for cashback on TopCat and so got me a further £2 on their offer today.

Every cloud...... :D
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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by macliam » Sat Jul 30 2022 4:51pm

Wow, service in an unusual way for these days. Today, one day after the email promising a refund, I have received a snail-mail letter asking me to take it and the powerbank to my local branch, where a full refund will be made..... and again apologising for the failure of the item.

That's impressive...
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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by macliam » Tue Aug 02 2022 3:51pm

I was wrong! The Ansmann I bought has now arrived and is double the capacity of my now-departed powerbank at 75% of the cost..... phenominal value for a German product with a 3-year warranty.

So I've actually come out on the right side for once!
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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by Chadwick » Tue Aug 02 2022 4:35pm

macliam wrote:
Fri Jul 29 2022 7:29pm
The vendor asked for some more info - and it seems I bought it in 2017, so rather longer ago than I thought. However, they say it should not have swollen like that, so are refunding the original purchase price!
Possibly it's a potential fire hazard, so they're keen to keep you happy and avoid any negative publicity.

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Re: My powerbank's unwell.......

Post by macliam » Tue Aug 02 2022 8:58pm

The staff at the local branch were less than happy to take the dud powerbank..... especially one whose iphone had exploded! But I got the refund and they gingerly moved the return to a bare corner of the warehouse!!

The Ansmann is a heavy beast by comparison.....but with all sorts of jiggerypokery to avoid the same issue - well for 3 years at least!
Just because I'm paranoid, it doesn't mean they're not out to get me

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