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Man Used 80 Discarded Vape Batteries to Power an Electric Scooter Proving the Importance of E-Waste
(www.goodnewsnetwork.org)
this post was submitted on 04 Sep 2023
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It’s wild that we’re wasting lithium batteries like that.
Or that they are considered disposable by the people making and buying them
These should be banned
Agreed. As somebody who vapes, myself, it drives me crazy seeing discarded batteries littering the streets around here. The only legitimate use I've seen for disposable vapes was for use in prisons. There's a company that makes disposable vapes that are designed with intentionally flimsy materials, so that no part of it can be fashioned into a weapon or be used to start fires.
But for the average, non-incarcerated user, there's no excuse for it. They're more expensive in the long run, and far worse for the environment. If you're gonna vape, just buy yourself a proper mod kit, where there is much less waste produced.
I'd also support a ban on these if the US government hadn't just completely wiped out 99% of the rest of the market with the PMTA and labeling juice and hardware as "tobacco products" even though they contain zero tobacco and aren't used to consume tobacco. Outside a handful of sketchy headshops, I can't find juice, coils, or mods anywhere in my city of 250k+ and I can't buy them online anymore either. Wiping out the disposable market, something available at your local convenience store, will probably be the final nail in the coffin for the whole industry.
Don't be alarmed though, cigarettes will still remain available at all major (and minor) retailers nationwide.
While I agree with the hardware part of it (makes it a pain in the ass to order coils online, as I have to sign for the delivery but I work nights and am usually sleeping during the 8-hour delivery window), I have to disagree when it comes to juice. I don't see an issue with that being regulated as a tobacco product, since the nicotine in most juices is still extracted from tobacco plants (usually from the same tobacco farms that provide leaf to cigarette manufacturers), and the sale of juice should absolutely be restricted from minors.
Though, the current regulations we have aren't exactly adequate, and absolutely need to be reformed. As an adult, I shouldn't have as much issue as I do just trying to order consumables for my device.
The math really doesn't check out on them, for the price of just two of these you can buy a bottle of vape juice, and a replaceable pod based vape from a company like OXVA. Once you've bought three that covers the cost of more pods and more juice and you're set for way longer. Still kinda bad since the pods are technically disposable but they last longer, they're far smaller in size, and they don't have a lithium ion battery. I see people buy these things for convenience, and I admit I did once when I had lost my vape and was waiting for the replacement to come in. But I can't imagine throwing an entire device away every month or so.
That’s what happens when producers of consumer items are not regulated. There’s no downside besides cost, so producers use the cheapest method available to get their product to market.
There’s a video on YT about a guy repairing a single use cock ring. A viewer apparently sent in his used cock ring for repair. Creator discovers it doesn’t work because of a corroded battery connection. I think he later finds the battery at a local store or orders it online. Replaced the battery and the sex toy is now functioning again.
He even adds some liquid resistance and warranties the item against further damage (or so he says, haha)
I think nicotine does something to people's brains, rendering them unable to consider consequences.
Funny, but the real problem is that they're allowed to be marketed as "disposable" in the first place. I'm surprised there haven't been more reports of "random" trash fires that were really from lithium batteries improperly disposed of.
The craziest thing is pretty much all of those "disposable" batteries are actually rechargeable, they just lack a circuit to do so.
Even worse, at least for Washington State disposable cannabis vapes, is that they have USB-C ports, recharge, and use the same 510 format ceramic vaporizer cylinders as the lower-impact disposable cartridges for reusable batteries, but everything is unthreaded and glued together and it's marked as disposable. It's absolutely insane to me that a device with an 80mAh battery, USB-C port, and recharging circuit would be sold like it was the equivalent of a soda can.
All they have to do is put a 510 thread into the vape, and it could be reused dozens of times, but they want to keep you buying the marked-up disposables.
They are pretty convenient for smoking discretely, but whenever I buy one I end up mining the battery and recharge circuit out of it, and either using it in a project, or chuck the whole thing in the e-waste bin at my office in hopes that it will get shipped somewhere better than a landfill.
This is why I hate disposables. There is a ton of waste around them between the plastic and circuitry and battery.
Granted, pre-filled atomizers are only marginally better, unless they start selling recreational vape juice and people start dripping pot. The convenience of a vaporizer just can’t be beat though. Near instant action and clothes don’t reek.
It's a lot like "flushable wipes" and the fact that they should not be flushed and will clog your plumbing.
This is why I hate disposables. There is a ton of waste around them between the plastic and circuitry and battery.
Granted, pre-filled atomizers are only marginally better, unless they start selling recreational vape juice and people start dripping pot. The convenience of a vaporizer just can’t be beat though. Near instant action and clothes don’t reek.
Addiction. That is what nicotine does to peoples brains. It makes people ignore the consequences to their own body. (I say this while toking on a vape. However, I haven't smoked a cigarette in a while, so that is nice.)
People are just generally idiots.