iPad mini swollen ipad battery...needs replaced?

[jasonfodor]

bought an ipad mini 2 off ebay…came with a swollen battery (go figure)

I paid about $60 for it, the seller offered a partial refund of $40 because he forgot to mention it…so would end up being $20 (a steal)

he said he never had a problem with it. i’ve been using it for two weeks now and never had a issue with it. screen works fine. charges and holds a charge just like new. so my questions are

(1) is it dangerous? like does it require replacement or am I OK to keep using it as is?

(2) can I, by myself, replace the battery? I’ve replaced two iphone batteries, it’s pretty easy but those batteries weren’t swollen. Or is a swallow battery some risk factor and only an expert can replace it?

 

[RevTEG]

Are you pretty sure its a swollen battery that's pushing the screen out? I had the screen replaced on one of my kids old iPad mini's. The 3rd party screen wasn't a good fit and popped out like yours.

 

[digitalcuriosity]

I am pretty sure it is the battery and stop charging it as i also don’t think it’s an Apple battery so a fire could happen anytime.

 

[Newtons Apple]

I would not leave it charging without being in the room. If the battery IS bad, I would not try to charge it.

Take it to Apple and see what they say.

 

[charlituna]

bought an ipad mini 2 off ebay…came with a swollen battery (go figure)

I paid about $60 for it, the seller offered a partial refund of $40 because he forgot to mention it…so would end up being $20 (a steal)

he said he never had a problem with it. i’ve been using it for two weeks now and never had a issue with it. screen works fine. charges and holds a charge just like new. so my questions are

(1) is it dangerous? like does it require replacement or am I OK to keep using it as is?

(2) can I, by myself, replace the battery? I’ve replaced two iphone batteries, it’s pretty easy but those batteries weren’t swollen. Or is a swallow battery some risk factor and only an expert can replace it?

Do NOT try to fix it yourself. For a couple of reasons. First is that between you opening the device and putting in a 3rd party battery you will utterly screw yourself out of Apple cleaning up when you F up. Second is that swollen batteries are an explosion waiting to happen. Apple doesn’t even let their folks touch swollen batteries and they have training on dealing with battery fires, proper tools etc.

Either E waste the dang thing or contact apple to get a replacement. The battery rate replacement (which will be a whole iPad not just a battery) is around $79-99 plus tax. And you do have that $40 you were refunded.

Just be aware that if this seller put a 3rd party screen on it, you’ll get refused all replacements at any cost. It’s considered tampering.
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I am pretty sure it is the battery and stop charging it as i also don’t think it’s an Apple battery so a fire could happen anytime.

Apple batteries can have fires also.

 

[Steve121178]

Send it back & ask for a full refund.

 

[Nautilus007]

Send it back & ask for a full refund.

This, especially if you intend on keeping it for a while.

 

[willmtaylor]

Demand a full refund. Swollen li-ion batteries are a liability to you, your belongings, and your loved ones. Get it taken care of ASAP.

 

[jasonsmith00]

If you can attempt to replace the battery yourself with either a bucket of water/fire extinguisher next to you in case of fire if you are really worried about it. I changed an iPad battery a few weeks back and because I didn't apply enough heat I completely screwed the battery as I removed it to the point where I saw some slight smoke come out. I've had the battery in my room since and nothing has happened but I would not recommend keeping it.

 

[haruhiko]

Lol forgot to mention a major defect of the device. "Forgot"? Return it for whatever money you paid. It's worthless and the repair will be much more expensive than what you paid for the iPad. Mind you, swollen battery is very dangerous. Fire hazard.

 

[charlituna]

If you can attempt to replace the battery yourself with either a bucket of water/fire extinguisher next to you in case of fire if you are really worried about it. I changed an iPad battery a few weeks back and because I didn't apply enough heat I completely screwed the battery as I removed it to the point where I saw some slight smoke come out. I've had the battery in my room since and nothing has happened but I would not recommend keeping it.

Hell no to the water, fire extinguisher etc. you would just make the fire worse.

If you are going to attempt to replace a battery yourself bother to learn proper lithium battery safety.

 

[tps3443]

I’d release the pressure in the battery. It is just a layer of gas pressure that has built up inside of the plastic battery cover. You can easily pop a hole with a push pin or thumbtack and release the gas, and all is well. Lipo batteries swell overtime. And I’ve done this several times. Several guides on the internet about this too. They usually call it puffing, and you can de-puff the battery.

I’d say the most work involved is getting to the battery lol

There are two layers that protect the lithium, there is the first layer, and the outer layer. The gas leaks out of the first layer and become trapped in the second layer. You can easily pop a small hole in the outer layer while pressing on the lipo to flatten all of the gas out. Once this is done, you can simply put a small dot of crazy glue over the hole you made to reseal the battery.

Easy peesy!

I’ve probably done this 100 times to very expensive lipo batteries. The only thing you should take care with, is making sure you only pop a hole in the outer layer. The battery will not explode lol. Sure lipos can blow up, but that is only usually because they are in contact with moisture. And, you will have so much warning that this will happen. It’s not like they just go boom! Flames!

lithium reacts to the water violently, and there is moisture in the air around us, so lithium will slowly heat up once it is exposed to moisture in the air, you can actually feel it getting warmer, and warmer, and warmer, then hot, then it’ll catch fire. And in that case you could simply drop the battery in some denaturized alcohol and it is 100% stable

^ This won’t happen, and I’ve done this to older phones, laptops, and plenty of massively large 8S lithium polymer batteries. It has always worked, and the only time I’ve had lithium go up in flames was on purpose. You can hold it right in your hand and feel the heat build as it turns to flames.

 

[tps3443]

If you can attempt to replace the battery yourself with either a bucket of water/fire extinguisher next to you in case of fire if you are really worried about it. I changed an iPad battery a few weeks back and because I didn't apply enough heat I completely screwed the battery as I removed it to the point where I saw some slight smoke come out. I've had the battery in my room since and nothing has happened but I would not recommend keeping it.

Moisture is the reason lithium actually catches fire. Water would surely make it explode.

You could hold a small piece of lithium in your hand, and the moisture in the air, and from your skin would cause it to slowly heat until it is glowing red, then Ignites in to flames.