# Garage Fire Lost Everything Inside, the cause was a Lipo battery explosion



## kcortese12 (Nov 12, 2019)

On February 1st around 1:30am, my son heard a lout banging sound outside his window.

When he looked out, there were flames coming out of the wall of the garage.

He called 911, we all got out of the house, put the dog inside the truck and moved all our vehicles.

Fire department was here within 15 minutes and saved our house because it is only 4 foot away.

All my equipment is a total loss. Thank goodness we have good insurance.

We had a brand new freezer full of food, the insurance adjuster told us not to open it because the food is now contaminated.

All the fire inspectors came to the conclusion that it was a lipo battery that exploded causing the fire.

Rechargeable tool batteries and the chargers can also explode, so Please, if you have any tool batteries, PLEASE do NOT leave them on the charger, and make sure the charger is UNPLUGGED also because they can explode too!!!

UPDATE: My new garage is finally done. I replaced most of my equipment but still need a router table, Compound sliding miter saw, and drill press. I have my Mega V XL up and running today. Here are some pics of my new work shop.




























































tteries, do not .


----------



## Graham Prinn (Oct 29, 2019)

Wow, So sorry to hear this. Must be so frustrating to have this happen to you. Hopefully, the insurance will cover all your loses and your up and running again soon.


----------



## kcortese12 (Nov 12, 2019)

Graham Prinn said:


> Wow, So sorry to hear this. Must be so frustrating to have this happen to you. Hopefully, the insurance will cover all your loses and your up and running again soon.


Should be up and running some time in the summer.
The important thing is NOBODY GOT HURT. Material things can be replaced.


----------



## kp91 (Sep 10, 2004)

Thank the Lord only stuff was lost. 


My next house is going to have a detached workshop. Right now it's underneath 2 bedrooms. I am always concerned about a fire.


----------



## kcortese12 (Nov 12, 2019)

kp91 said:


> Thank the Lord only stuff was lost.
> 
> 
> My next house is going to have a detached workshop. Right now it's underneath 2 bedrooms. I am always concerned about a fire.


Our garage is detached, but only 5ft away. They will tear it down and rebuild. I think I want a separate room for the workshop. That way we can pull in the car and my shop will not loose heat.


----------



## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Oh wow!! Sure hate to hear about this but so glad y'all weren't hurt. Keep us posted!

David


----------



## John Smith_ (Jan 10, 2020)

wow - totally speechless.
as said - thank goodness your home was spared and everyone is okay.


----------



## honesttjohn (Feb 17, 2015)

Feeling for you. Good Luck.


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Very sorry to hear this . Thank you for the info ,as I keep my batteries on the charger on occasion. Not anymore .


----------



## old55 (Aug 11, 2013)

That’s sad, hopefully we can all learn from this.


----------



## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

Sorry to hear about your loss. Can not image what is going through your mind right now. I built a charging station several years ago. I remove the batteries from each tool after use and after charging, I have a master switch to turn off power to charger. My 47’x32’ garage/workshop is 50’ from house. My major concern is my gas heater failing. 

Hope insurance does not cause you a problem and you get everything replace soon.


----------



## papasombre (Sep 22, 2011)

Sorry to know that, Kcortese12.
Thanks to God your son heard the explosion and could get the alarm.
Another fact to take into consideration about cordless tools.


----------



## kywoodchopper (Jul 18, 2013)

kcortese12 said:


> On February 1st around 1:30am, my son heard a lout banging sound outside his window.
> 
> When he looked out, there were flames coming out of the wall of the garage.
> 
> ...


I had a friend that hired a painter to paint the inside of their house. The painter had plugged a battery charger in their garage and put a battery in it then left for the evening. The friend came home at night and saw smoke coming from their garage. It was the battery and charger that caused the fire. They were fortunate that they caught it as soon as it started.


----------



## sreilly (May 22, 2018)

Glad to hear everyone is fine. The insurance company will feel the bite if lumber prices are as crazy where you are as they are in my area. $6 for a not so nice 2x4........how anyone can afford to build these days is a wonder.


----------



## Chris Itin (Oct 15, 2019)

I'm very sorry to hear this, but glad nobody was injured. Just curious as to what device you had that was using a LiPo battery.


----------



## ger21 (Feb 10, 2019)

Yes, I've heard about LiPo batteries in RC planes being dangerous, but I don't know what elso LiPo batteries are used for??


----------



## kcortese12 (Nov 12, 2019)

RainMan 2.0 said:


> Very sorry to hear this . Thank you for the info ,as I keep my batteries on the charger on occasion. Not anymore .


Just keep the chargers unplugged.


----------



## kcortese12 (Nov 12, 2019)

ger21 said:


> Yes, I've heard about LiPo batteries in RC planes being dangerous, but I don't know what elso LiPo batteries are used for??


Lipo batteries are used in anything with remote controls. My son had them for his RC cars, my husband has them for his RC planes. My husband has his Lipo batteries in bags, and purchased a metal ammunition box with lid to store them in. That way the batteries are double canceled in case of explosion.


----------



## kcortese12 (Nov 12, 2019)

kywoodchopper said:


> I had a friend that hired a painter to paint the inside of their house. The painter had plugged a battery charger in their garage and put a battery in it then left for the evening. The friend came home at night and saw smoke coming from their garage. It was the battery and charger that caused the fire. They were fortunate that they caught it as soon as it started.


Oh no!!! So glad they were able to extinguish the fire before they lost the building.


----------



## Flipsaw (Mar 11, 2016)

Glad everyone is safe, and sorry for the loss. Prayers are with you during these tough times.


----------



## JOAT (Apr 9, 2010)

Bummer, but it could have been worse. One more thing to add to my list of why I do not use battery powered anything, except flashlights. All my cordless tools fall into the category of hand powered, saw, brace and bit, hammer, and so on.


----------



## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Definitely a lesson there. A good idea to do either a written or video inventory of your tools and other equipment. Insurance companies can be fussy about replacing equipment.


----------



## Cncest (Apr 26, 2020)

Sorry to hear. A good reminder to watch those batteries. My son had a battery in charger burst in flames. Damage was minor, just desk, carpet and paint.


----------



## thomas1389 (Jan 4, 2012)

Very sorry to hear of your problem and loss. Battery problem potential is always on my mind. All the best in recovery.


----------



## MYB506 (Dec 5, 2012)

So sorry to hear about your misfortune. Thanks for sharing this as it may prevent the next fire. I have all my chargers plugged into one power bar that has a disconnect switch, which I turn off once the charging it complete but I have left a battery in it to charge overnight. I won't be doing that anymore. Hope everything goes well with your insurance company.


----------



## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Wow... sad to hear that news.

Re, charging the batteries. @harrysin put me on to a HPM timer that can be set for up to 4 hrs then switches off at the power point. There should be a similar timer available in the US?


----------



## OCEdesigns (Jan 31, 2019)

Absolutely speechless!! It is so sad to see the destruction. As long as everyone is OK the rest can be replaced or fixed. I have always been paranoid about batteries and chargers so I never leave them on or plugged in. So sorry for your loss and thanks for sharing, even though you must be so upset!


----------



## roxanne562001 (Feb 5, 2012)

Wow glad everyone is ok very scary. My son has those batteries for his drone I will let him know. I hope you get back up and running soon.


----------



## TenGees (Sep 12, 2012)

Sorry to hear about your fire. Good thing that you had insurance and nobody was hurt.


----------



## TimPa (Jan 4, 2011)

wow, devastating. 

i saw your extreme persistence when you were trying to get your previous cnc working. so there is no doubt you will come out above this. i truly hope it all works out for you...

never heard of lipo batteries...


----------



## gjackson52 (Jul 4, 2015)

WOW, I had not heard of Lipo batteries. I am going to have to figure out if we have any of those around. Sorry for your loss, but thank you for the heads up.

Gary


----------



## MarkJonesRanger (Aug 14, 2020)

Take lots of pictures. I used a rake to go through the stuff in our house fire and took pictures of each item. They can't argue with photo evidence. Sorry for your loss. Fire is a tough. Look around closely at your fire restoration and cleanup. Some of them spend more time in court than they do fixing your house right contractors with the lowest bid often do very shoddy work. We went to court 3 different times and won all 3 and our lawyers said they can keep appealing it. How much money do you want to loose on this. Guy with the most money wins sad to say. Also your house insurance will more than double for about 4 years even when it's no fault of yours.


----------



## Tagwatts (Apr 11, 2012)

kcortese12 said:


> On February 1st around 1:30am, my son heard a lout banging sound outside his window.
> 
> When he looked out, there were flames coming out of the wall of the garage.
> 
> ...


This is a tragedy. It matters not how much you realize from your insurance. There are so many valuables that cannot be replaced. I wish you well and hope you can get everything replaced that you have lost. 
My daddy used to tell me threee moves are as good as a fire. This is obviously not true. I would be so devastated, I would not even know how to start to clean up and rectify your damage. I wish you well and May You be Blessed in Your Endeavors.


----------



## Old Ray (Feb 19, 2021)

So ,so sorry for your loss, glad no one was hurt and seems you have a handle on things going forward, so sad anyway. You will come back stronger, and better. It helps me realize getting our home needs a bigger breaker box to handle the garage now is something that will happen very soon after seeing your pictures. Until then everything except the lighting in the garage in shut down, turned off, un-plugged . And I will plug the battery chargers ASAP,
Thank God for good insurance, and that you a had it. 
May God bless you and your family as you all go forward after this happened, and may God give you the strength to never give up, In Jesus' name I ask, Amen!

Be Blessed through it all.
Ray


----------



## marecat3 (Nov 30, 2010)

So sorry to hear this but I am glad everyone is safe


----------



## kcortese12 (Nov 12, 2019)

A big thank you to all the well wishes and kind comnments from all you nice folks.
My insurance company is Farmers, and the adjuster is really helpful.
He will replace anything we lost, even down to rolls of tape.
I still haven't finished my inventory list with the replacement cost.
It is a very time consuming process.
I found a very good contractor who specializes in fire restoration and works closely with the claims adjuster.
This company has been in business a very long time and has a AAA rating, my insurance company has worked with them many times.
I will not work with any small local contractors because I do not need the headaches.
There will be a dumpster dropped off tomorrow, March 3rd and they will start the clean up.
It was tough because of the winter weather, it is still pretty cold, but the men will not get frost bite.
I have replaced some items, rebuilt my MegaV XL gantry with all new hardware, all I have to do is connect the gantry to the side rails, install the homing switches, and run all the wiring to the box. I tested the motors, and the Z carraige moves up and down and X moves like butter. 
I spent these past weeks designing projects, and converting some artwork which is very time consuming.
I will be back in business in a few months.
I still have work on my table that needs to be finished. 
Here is one I finished up the other day. It will be mounted on a nice piece of slab hemlock.
I can't do it right now because my scroll saw and clamps were lost in the fire.


----------



## Cncest (Apr 26, 2020)

Wow! the Buffalo looks fantastic!


----------



## old55 (Aug 11, 2013)

Nice work.


----------



## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Cncest said:


> Wow! the Buffalo looks fantastic!


+1


----------

