Are Green Products A New Fire Hazard?

On today’s show we are talking about new dangers in apartment buildings that have not been fully handled in the design of buildings or the building code. 

Certain metals produce their own fuel once ignited. You probably have done the science experiment of lighting a piece of magnesium wire on fire. Once lit, you can put this piece of burning wire into a tub of water and it will keep burning. 

The conventional wisdom in fire fighting is that if you have a fire, then the fastest way to put it out is to remove its source of oxygen. But what happens when the fire produces its own oxygen and the chemical reaction continues no matter what you do? 

Have you ever wondered why fireworks don’t go out even if it’s raining? Once a firework is lit, it will continue to burn until all of the fuel is expended. 

Now imagine if the fire is in the underground garage in your apartment building, or perhaps in the bicycle storage room next to the lobby of your building. Those electric bicycles are now a new type of fire hazard that didn’t exist a few years ago. The electric vehicles are a new type of fire hazard that didn’t exist a few years ago. 

When I look at the risks in a building, I believe that the bicycle room represents an equal if not a greater fire risk than the garage. In many cases, charging is being retrofitted into buildings that were never designed to have electric vehicles. This is something that you as a building owner need to become educated about and take real steps to mitigate that risk. 

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Episode Transcript

(00:02):
Welcome to the Real Estate Espresso podcast, your morning
shot of what's new in the world of real estate investing.
I'm your host, Victor Minash. On today's show, we're talking
about new dangers in apartment buildings that have not been
fully handled in the design of buildings or in fact, even in
the building code. Certain metals produce their own
fuel once they're ignited. You've probably done the science
experiment of lighting a piece of magnesium wire or magnesium

(00:25):
ribbon on fire. Once lit, you can put this piece
of burning wire into a tub of water and it will keep burning.
If you're unsure about that, go on YouTube and you'll see dozens
of videos with this science experiment.
Well, it turns out magnesium is not the only metal that exhibits
those characteristics. You can do the same trick with
aluminum. Of course, you can do it with a
lithium ion battery as well. Once the fire starts, there's

(00:47):
very little that's going to extinguish it.
The conventional wisdom in firefighting is that if you have
a fire, then the fastest way to put it out is to remove its
source of oxygen. But what happens when the fire
produces its own oxygen and the chemical reaction continues no
matter what you do? Have you ever wondered why
fireworks don't go out even if it's raining?
Once a firework is lit, it'll continue to burn until all of

(01:10):
the fuel is expended. News headlines are becoming more
frequent about ships at sea transporting electric vehicles
Catching Fire. There's one right now near
Alaska as we speak, that was transporting about 3000 vehicles
from China to Mexico. That fire is out of control, and
it's unclear whether the fire started on the deck with
electric vehicles or elsewhere in the ship.
Now imagine if the fire is in the underground garage of your

(01:32):
apartment building or perhaps inthe bicycle storage room next to
the lobby of your building. Those electric bicycles are now
a new type of fire hazard that didn't exist a few years ago.
The electric vehicles are a new type of fire hazard that did not
exist a few years ago. When we talk about fire
mitigation in a building that usually consists of several
layers of protection, there's the actual assemblies in the

(01:53):
structure of the building that have a burn rating.
So, for example, if you have a wall with a 2 hour burn rating,
it's going to take a fire burning for two hours to
penetrate that wall. That's designed to give enough
time for people to get out of the building and for emergency
responders to respond to the fire.
The fire suppression in a building is designed to douse
the fire, usually with water, and hopefully put out the fire.

(02:13):
Now, there's different types of systems.
Sprinklers are the most common, but some industrial and data
center applications use a halon system, and that fire
suppression is chemical in nature.
Those systems will put out the fire, but it will kill any
humans also caught in their path.
And then third, of course, waterdoesn't put out every single
type of fire. We know that in that instance,

(02:34):
water based sprinkler systems help slow down the fire by
providing local cooling. The placement of chargers and
the use of approved chargers is a major factor in reducing the
risk of fire. Charging does generate heat, and
overcharging forces the battery to store more energy than it's
actually designed to hold. That could lead to excessive
heat generation. It can damage the internal

(02:54):
electrolyte. That's the insulator that
separates the terminals of the battery, the anode and the
cathode, and it can produce plating on the lithium that can
cause short circuits. It can lead to rapid and
uncontrolled temperature increases, known as thermal
runaway. Most reputable lithium ion
batteries and chargers do have abattery management system or
protection circuits designed to prevent overcharging and stop

(03:16):
the charge when the battery reaches full capacity.
But defective batteries, poor quality chargers or bypassing
the safety features can lead to overcharging.
Using a charger designed for a different battery can undermine
those protection systems. It can lead to incorrect
charging rates, excessive heat and damage to the cells.
Even brand new batteries can have microscopic impurities and

(03:37):
defects from the manufacturing process.
And that too can lead to internal short circuits,
especially under the stress of charging.
The fumes from a battery fire are highly toxic.
That can make it difficult, if not impossible, to fight a fire
if the fire is in a confined space.
The heat generated from a fire in the garage can structurally
damage a building, forcing the demolition of the building even

(03:58):
if the fire doesn't spread to the apartments.
That's actually the biggest risk.
The chargers for electric bicycles are less sophisticated
than those for automobiles. Those products are much more
cost sensitive and they don't have the same protection
circuits that you would find in an automotive system.
Now, while some E bikes, especially from reputable
brands, pursue certain certifications like Underwriters

(04:19):
Labs 2849, this isn't universally mandated for all E
bikes on the market. There's a wide range of quality
and safety standards, particularly with cheaper,
uncertified imports. And This is why fire incidents
related to E bikes and scooters are a major and growing concern,
often linked to aftermarket batteries, improper charging, or

(04:39):
just lower quality products thatlack the safety features around
a well engineered system. Now, when I look at all the
risks in a building, I happen tobelieve that the bicycle room
itself represents and equal, if not a greater fire risk than the
garage. In many cases, charging is being
retrofitted into buildings that were never designed to have
electric vehicles. And this is something that you

(05:00):
as a building owner need to become educated about and take
real steps to mitigate. As you think about that, have an
awesome rest of your day. Go make some great things happen
and we'll talk to you again tomorrow.