19V Output Power Bank for Laptops?

Grazz989 on 23/12/2020 - 03:14

G'day all.

I recently bought a DIY power bank kit with an adjustable voltage output to use with my 19V input laptop. It worked great! - Until a section of wiring on the circuit board decided to start smouldering (while it was off and unplugged) and almost burn my house down (as an aside, AliExpress are impossible to get a refund from once you're one millisecond after their 30 day period - not worth it for anything that needs to last longer than that).

Now I've got 12x 18650 salvaged batteries, and no power bank for my laptop.

The one that set itself on fire: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4001160327007.html
Another 6x 18650 unit I've tried that doesn't provide enough wattage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NykBOf6woSQ

Any advice would be appreciated. Cheers!

Electrical & Electronics

Comments

  • payless69 on 23/12/2020 - 07:12
    +2

    Lesson one: Buy powerbanks from an Australian source. Then your home insurance will pay and reclaim their losses.

    • Grazz989 on 23/12/2020 - 17:26
      +1

      Buy WHAT power banks, from which source exactly? - That is my question here afterall.

      I just can't find any 19v output power banks (especially with the replaceable 18650s since I have 12 of them now), except for the two I've mentioned.

      • payless69 on 23/12/2020 - 22:11

        I know they are hard to find, some folks use dc-dc converters to keep the 19V stable. Still I had a cheap 7" Target tablet that died just out of warranty. Curiosity struck and I pulled it apart but was unable to remove the small battery from the back of the screen where it was glued to. It tended to roll up. So at the end I gave it a moderate blow with a hammer and within a minute the battery started to smoke and ended up spewing a flame around 1m wide and 1.5m long for several seconds. Extremely scary!
        Youtube Louis Rossman who fixes macbooks in NYC. He bought cheap batteries for his e-bike from China and he had a huge fire.
        Cheap batteries either have a much smaller capacity or in the extreme can burn your house down.

  • FoxJump on 23/12/2020 - 07:32
    +1

    I use my car jumpstarter with a 12v laptop charger

    No fires yet!

  • dscott85 on 23/12/2020 - 09:13
    +1

    Damn, glad you & your house are ok Op. I think the lesson maybe is to be wary of electronic components bought online.

    I was building a Bluetooth speaker recently & had an amplifier circuit board burst into flame. The advertised max voltage handled by the board had been somewhat “embellished” & after 3 minutes of music it lit up like a candle scaring the bejesus out of me.

    I found out later that mine was not an isolated instance, others had used this same board to similar results. Goes to show you should be wary of electronic components purchased online & always test them in controlled settings.

  • epic on 23/12/2020 - 12:38
    +1

    Maybe consider a modular solution - a standard 12V battery with charger plus a voltage boost module. Search ali or ebay for 'adjustable step up dc-dc converter' with desired power rating.

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