Alina Dangerfield reports lithium battery safety could help prevent a fire.

Lithium-ion battery fires can be scary are starting to become more common as an increasing number of items ranging from cell phones to electric bikes contain them. 

Division Chief Jay Cwiak with Truckee Meadows Fire & Rescue says these fires are preventable if the batteries are handled right, particularly when it comes to charging them.

If a lithium battery is over charged, or charged with the wrong charger, it can become very hot and erupt into a fire. He says the best way to avoid this is to read the manufacturer booklet that comes with items that contain the batteries. That booklet will list best practices and specify how, where, and with what charger to charge these batteries.

Local electric bike retailer E-Bike Hub specializes in the practice of safely using the batteries and educating the public on best practices, when it comes to electric bikes and scooters.

Owner Ryan Allison also stressed reading the manual for every item that contains a lithium-ion battery. He explained that many electric bikes and scooters that are bought at a lower price point tend to have batteries more prone to catching fire.

They also may not come with the correct type of charger or safety certification. He says it's important for these items to only be used with their specific battery and charger, not universal ones. A battery and charger he recommended is anything UL certified. The certification will be displayed with a reflective and highly visible sticker. 

If any battery starts to bulge, grow hot, put off a burning smell, or smoke, it may catch fire soon. In this case, all people should evacuate the area or building the battery is in and call 911 immediately.

Once a battery has reached the end of its life, like an old cell phone, it needs to be properly recycled. E-Bike Hub has a recycling receptacle at its store location in The Basement shopping center, provided by Redwood Recycling. As long as a battery is not damaged, it can be dropped off there. That goes for cell phone batteries, electric bike and scooter batteries, and so on.   

Anyone that has concerns about the safety of their electric bike or scooter may also stop by the bike shop for a free consultation.Â