3 ms·

Shit. I have old phones in boxes in boxes that I've forgotten about. How worried should I be?

• Filligree 2y ago
  It's not likely to catch fire, but... try to get rid of them.
• Workaccount2 2y ago
  There are likely billions of abandoned devices with lithium batteries sitting the in the back of drawers all over the country, and fires from them randomly bursting into flames seems pretty rare. But even if 1000 of these things burst into flames a day, that is still 0.04% chance of any given device burning up in a year.
• bityard 2y ago
  If you are concerned about them, discharge the batteries completely. If you leave the battery discharged, it (very likely) won't start a fire. But it will also continue to self-discharge, which will ruin the battery over time. In which case, the device is likely junk anyway, so you might as well just take them in to be recycled now rather than later. Just please do NOT throw them in the garbage.
• thatsit 2y ago
  The biggest danger is trying to recharge them after they have been stored for a long time. The anode and cathode might short-circuit and then a fire will likely start. If you want to check out an old gadget or battery make sure to watch it while charging and have a fire safe container or a plan to extinguish the fire at hand.