EV Battery Fire Causes 100 cars to be burned at a scrap yard

[SergeyIndy]

St. Louis: Clearly a scrap yard does not know how to handle EVs. 20 trips to get water to put out the fire.

Deputy Chief means business, but the uniform could be better to protect from fire:

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[gnr3312]

I always keep a fire extinguisher at home for kitchen fires. What kind of extinguisher is needed for electric flames?

 

[PorscheTaycan]

I found this - for electrical fires, avoid water, use CO2:

 

[69Mach390]

I always keep a fire extinguisher at home for kitchen fires. What kind of extinguisher is needed for electric flames?

You can’t put an EV fire out with a fire extinguisher if the battery catches fire.

The issue is it’s a runaway thermal reaction.

Basically it’s a chemical reaction that creates its own oxygen.

An EV can literally burn under water. The water isn’t to extinguish the flames it’s to cool things down to stop the reaction.

I remember this video from a few years ago when a Tesla accidentally ended up in the water at a boat ramp. Salt water isn’t the worst for EV batteries.
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[Richard 4S]

When the main dealer works on the battery (e.g. change a module) they have to seal it after and then do a pressure test to prove the seal is air tight.

 

[chun]

I always keep a fire extinguisher at home for kitchen fires. What kind of extinguisher is needed for electric flames?

I don't think you'll be able to do much with a single fire extinguisher if you see smoke from the HV battery. At that point point, thermal runaway is already happening, and you're main concern would be to get away and call the firefighters.

But it is good to have one in the car for other smaller electrical fires - could be the difference between a damaged and tottaled car. I have one from my cayman, however, i never checked if it's "the right one", the powder one.

 

[prj]

The only thing that can help with the battery in earlier stages is a fire blanket.
But if it's already going full tilt then even that might not help, since it can create oxygen.

I heard there are also some special fire extinguishers now specifically for lithium fires that create an oxygen proof barrier.

 

[69Mach390]

The only thing that can help with the battery in earlier stages is a fire blanket.
But if it's already going full tilt then even that might not help, since it can create oxygen.

I heard there are also some special fire extinguishers now specifically for lithium fires that create an oxygen proof barrier.

Interesting. I wonder how it creates a barrier and if it would help early on.

The frequency of these fires isn’t the issue, it’s the intensity.

A lot of the drag strips in the US are permanently banning EVs. Basically their insurance won’t cover it and they don’t have a good way to put out fires when they happen.

Gas car fire- on board small fire extinguisher, tow car, no damage to track and they’re good to go.

EV fire shuts down the track, major damage and repairs. https://dragillustrated.com/orlando...ectric-vehicles-from-competition-and-testing/

 

[ct14garage]

I always keep a fire extinguisher at home for kitchen fires. What kind of extinguisher is needed for electric flames?

I found this - for electrical fires, avoid water, use CO2:

Good luck using a tiny extinguisher to put out a battery fire.

Once a battery fire starts you wont be able to extinguish it until all the chemicals in the battery have burned out.

The best chance is to contain it by using an EV fire blanket. We have many of them at the shop and often cover EVs with it overnight or during holidays etc. I guess it wouldnt hurt to have one at home just in case.

 

[gnr3312]

Good luck using a tiny extinguisher to put out a battery fire.

Once a battery fire starts you wont be able to extinguish it until all the chemicals in the battery have burned out.

The best chance is to contain it by using an EV fire blanket. We have many of them at the shop and often cover EVs with it overnight or during holidays etc. I guess it wouldnt hurt to have one at home just in case.

This is a great idea @ct14garage, I’m leaving for a weeklong trip in May and I may just cover my Taycan that will sit in the garage.

 

[69Mach390]

Good luck using a tiny extinguisher to put out a battery fire.

Once a battery fire starts you wont be able to extinguish it until all the chemicals in the battery have burned out.

The best chance is to contain it by using an EV fire blanket. We have many of them at the shop and often cover EVs with it overnight or during holidays etc. I guess it wouldnt hurt to have one at home just in case.

It absolutely would hurt to have one at home.

Notice the professional firefighter in full gear who put the blanket on in that picture?

If your EV is on fire at your house (or even worse in your garage), call the fire department then call your insurance company. That’s all you can do.

The best idea I’ve heard for your home is to put a smoke detector in the garage. So you can know to get out of the house.

 

[prj]

The best idea I’ve heard for your home is to put a smoke detector in the garage. So you can know to get out of the house.

A detached garage solves a lot of issues

 

[ct14garage]

If your EV is on fire at your house (or even worse in your garage), call the fire department then call your insurance company. That’s all you can do.

You usually put the blanket on before the car is on fire. IE, when it's quarantined.

For example yesterday we had a Taycan slid to the shop which took a hit to the battery over a bump and the red battery light showed for a few hours and was undrivable for a few hours.

Likely it's nothing, but the car has to be quarantined at the shop for 72 hours under a fire blanket before touching it! An employee put it on with his bare hands

Even if the car was on fire we have firefighter suits and helmets at the shop so my staff would be able to cover whichever car is on fire before the fire department is even dispatched. By the time they come anything near the car would be gone! EV fires are very quick and violent.

For homes, I would never leave on holiday for any extended period of time and leave an EV parked in the garage without being covered by fire blanket. A fire and the entire house is gone.

 

[69Mach390]

You usually put the blanket on before the car is on fire. IE, when it's quarantined.

For example yesterday we had a Taycan slid to the shop which took a hit to the battery over a bump and the red battery light showed for a few hours and was undrivable for a few hours.

Likely it's nothing, but the car has to be quarantined at the shop for 72 hours under a fire blanket before touching it! An employee put it on with his bare hands

Even if the car was on fire we have firefighter suits and helmets at the shop so my staff would be able to cover whichever car is on fire before the fire department is even dispatched. By the time they come anything near the car would be gone! EV fires are very quick and violent.

For homes, I would never leave on holiday for any extended period of time and leave an EV parked in the garage without being covered by fire blanket. A fire and the entire house is gone.

Not sure how much good a fire blanket would do if you’re on vacation and the car catches fire.

It might keep the fire minimized…… for a little bit but that’s about it.

That said, the chances of them just catching fire spontaneously is almost zero…… unless you live somewhere it can flood. Totally different story but then a blanket also wouldn’t save you.

Only chance the car would have with a blanket is if the HV battery didn’t catch on fire.

Oof… looks like the fire blanket also adds the risk of explosion!! https://fsri.org/news/potential-hazard-involving-ev-fire-blankets

Video on what fire fighters do once they put the blanket on. Just more confirmation that a blanket by itself isn’t enough.

And just for fun- the video of a blanket exploding:

 

[ct14garage]

Oof… looks like the fire blanket also adds the risk of explosion!! https://fsri.org/news/potential-hazard-involving-ev-fire-blankets

The explosion is a steam explosion caused by the unbelievable amount of water they threw at it


Notice how Chinese firefighters (clearly more experienced in EV fires) never throw much water at it and train to do so?

The EV fire blanket instructions say it very clearly, once the fire blanket has been put on you are at most supposed to gently douse the blanket from the outside with a bit of water to cool it. NOT use a professional firefighter hose pulling thousands of gallons of water underneath it which will cause a steam explosion....

Even if you put no water on it, fire won't go thru it as long as the fire blanket is good quality. These blankets are rated for 1600C continuous for at least 8 hours.

Granted the car underneath it will burn itself to ashes, but this is non negotiable no matter what you do. Thousands of gallons of water wont change this fact either. Once EV fires starts nothing will stop it.

The blanket is there to prevent the EV fire from burning adjacent things be it cars walls etc (As in the blanket is the difference between your car burning itself to ashes and your car and your garage burning themselves to ashes!)

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