Possible AAA battery leak in laundry. How to ensure cat safety?
December 4, 2019 10:29 PM Subscribe
When I put my laundry into my shared apartment dryer, I found a AAA battery in the drum. How can I tell if it has leaked? If it has leaked, how can I ensure the washer/dryer and my items are safe for my cat to be around?
Difficulty level: anxious pet parent not prepared to go “eh, it’s probably fine”.
The battery is an Energizer Industrial, which I believe makes it Zinc-Manganese Dioxide. The ends are kind of dinged up but it seems more like a peeling label (?) than anything metal. No visible acid but it’s presumably just had the washing of its life. My thumb feels a little tingly now but that could very well be psychosomatic.
I popped the battery in a flashlight with three others and it turned on. Would a leaking battery still work?
The battery itself is just slightly warm to the touch. Do I need to worry it might explode?
In my anxiety-riddled mind, my kitty will go onto my battery-acidified duvet cover, lick her paws, and promptly expire. She is but ten pounds of fluff and fussiness, and I have no chill where her wellbeing is involved. If you can provide reliable web sources for your answers, it would go a long way toward helping my poor, beleaguered brain relax or take appropriate action.
Thanks!
The battery is an Energizer Industrial, which I believe makes it Zinc-Manganese Dioxide. The ends are kind of dinged up but it seems more like a peeling label (?) than anything metal. No visible acid but it’s presumably just had the washing of its life. My thumb feels a little tingly now but that could very well be psychosomatic.
I popped the battery in a flashlight with three others and it turned on. Would a leaking battery still work?
The battery itself is just slightly warm to the touch. Do I need to worry it might explode?
In my anxiety-riddled mind, my kitty will go onto my battery-acidified duvet cover, lick her paws, and promptly expire. She is but ten pounds of fluff and fussiness, and I have no chill where her wellbeing is involved. If you can provide reliable web sources for your answers, it would go a long way toward helping my poor, beleaguered brain relax or take appropriate action.
Thanks!
Wait, did you find the battery BEFORE you dried the laundry and remove it? And if it worked in the flashlight it probably isn't damaged. I think you're fine, and my SO suggests rewashing and air drying everything to banish the overy-thinky psychosomatic aspects of the case.
posted by vrakatar at 10:46 PM on December 4, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by vrakatar at 10:46 PM on December 4, 2019 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Vrakatar, I found it before I dried everything, but I’m assuming it already had at least one go-round in the communal washer and dryer before I used it, because it’s not mine.
posted by ceramicspaniel at 10:49 PM on December 4, 2019 [1 favorite]
posted by ceramicspaniel at 10:49 PM on December 4, 2019 [1 favorite]
“eh, it’sposted by kickingtheground at 10:54 PM on December 4, 2019 [6 favorites]probablydefinitely fine”
If you see no signs of acid on the outside of the battery then it did not leak. It would not be subtle.
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 11:11 PM on December 4, 2019 [9 favorites]
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 11:11 PM on December 4, 2019 [9 favorites]
Don't worry. Unlike the lithium-ion batteries that are found in cell phones and laptops, normal alkaline batteries are very unlikely to explode no matter how much physical abuse they get. About the worst that can happen is if you short-circuit them, in which case they can (briefly) heat up enough to cause burns.
Alkaline batteries don't contain "battery acid" like a car battery does. The electrolyte is made up of potassium hydroxide. In concentrated form it's caustic, but no more so than many household cleaners. In small quantities, it's even legal as a food additive. If handling the battery didn't expose you to enough concentrated alkali to cause skin irritation, then you don't have to worry about getting poisoned (either yourself or your cat). (Fun fact: if you touch a very small amount, it will immediately react with your skin oils to form soap!)
Also, aside from the metal case and plastic wrapper, pretty much everything inside that battery is water-soluble. Even if it did leak small amounts of its contents onto your laundry during the wash cycle, they would have been washed away along with all the rest of the dirt.
Check out Duracell's instructions for what to do if you encounter a leaky battery. Basically, unless you get it into your eyes, just wash your hands and you'll be fine.
posted by teraflop at 11:17 PM on December 4, 2019 [27 favorites]
Alkaline batteries don't contain "battery acid" like a car battery does. The electrolyte is made up of potassium hydroxide. In concentrated form it's caustic, but no more so than many household cleaners. In small quantities, it's even legal as a food additive. If handling the battery didn't expose you to enough concentrated alkali to cause skin irritation, then you don't have to worry about getting poisoned (either yourself or your cat). (Fun fact: if you touch a very small amount, it will immediately react with your skin oils to form soap!)
Also, aside from the metal case and plastic wrapper, pretty much everything inside that battery is water-soluble. Even if it did leak small amounts of its contents onto your laundry during the wash cycle, they would have been washed away along with all the rest of the dirt.
Check out Duracell's instructions for what to do if you encounter a leaky battery. Basically, unless you get it into your eyes, just wash your hands and you'll be fine.
posted by teraflop at 11:17 PM on December 4, 2019 [27 favorites]
Oh hi, fellow anxiety sufferer! I totally support this question. Given the news that the contents are water soluble, it sounds like you could rewash everything and call it good.
If that isn't enough action-taking to give you peace of mind, I found this part of that Duracell link interesting "clean any leakage of the following battery types, Alkaline, NiCAD and NiMH batteries, use either one tablespoon of boric acid in one gallon of water or a mixture of equal amounts of diluted vinegar or lemon juice with water (50/50 ratio)." If you wanted to dunk your duvet cover in a vinegar-water mix before rewashing it, that would be the next level of caution. I think the therapy advice is to confront one's anxiety because deferring to it makes it stronger. But in a one-off case like this, depending on how your anxious mind works and whether you have a gallon jug of cheap white vinegar easily available to you, you might be able to do the cleaning in less time than it takes to calm down on your own. Plus, a vinegar wash could soften your duvet cover if you have hard water.
But if you can just shrug it off, definitely go for that.
posted by salvia at 2:12 AM on December 5, 2019 [3 favorites]
If that isn't enough action-taking to give you peace of mind, I found this part of that Duracell link interesting "clean any leakage of the following battery types, Alkaline, NiCAD and NiMH batteries, use either one tablespoon of boric acid in one gallon of water or a mixture of equal amounts of diluted vinegar or lemon juice with water (50/50 ratio)." If you wanted to dunk your duvet cover in a vinegar-water mix before rewashing it, that would be the next level of caution. I think the therapy advice is to confront one's anxiety because deferring to it makes it stronger. But in a one-off case like this, depending on how your anxious mind works and whether you have a gallon jug of cheap white vinegar easily available to you, you might be able to do the cleaning in less time than it takes to calm down on your own. Plus, a vinegar wash could soften your duvet cover if you have hard water.
But if you can just shrug it off, definitely go for that.
posted by salvia at 2:12 AM on December 5, 2019 [3 favorites]
Here is a rundown of the dangers of batteries to cats & dogs, from a vet.
The main danger is if the pet ingests the battery, and if ingested, it is far more dangerous if the battery is lithium.
Your battery is alkaline rather than lithium.
So even if your cat ATE this entire battery, you'd still be in pretty good shape.
And, your pet did not eat the battery.
In short, you're in the clear.
posted by flug at 2:17 AM on December 5, 2019 [15 favorites]
The main danger is if the pet ingests the battery, and if ingested, it is far more dangerous if the battery is lithium.
Your battery is alkaline rather than lithium.
So even if your cat ATE this entire battery, you'd still be in pretty good shape.
And, your pet did not eat the battery.
In short, you're in the clear.
posted by flug at 2:17 AM on December 5, 2019 [15 favorites]
Toss the battery in the trash, re-wash your laundry, and everything will be 100% fine.
posted by Slinga at 5:44 AM on December 5, 2019
posted by Slinga at 5:44 AM on December 5, 2019
A battery dried in someone else's laundry, no signs of leakage, and functioning, will not harm you or your pet. Wear seatbelts, check the smoke detector battery, but don't worry about the battery or your laundry.
posted by theora55 at 7:04 AM on December 5, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by theora55 at 7:04 AM on December 5, 2019 [2 favorites]
Nothing to do with the battery, but kitty shouldn't be anywhere near the washer or dryer anyway.
posted by bink at 1:06 PM on December 5, 2019
posted by bink at 1:06 PM on December 5, 2019
Both manganese and zinc are required for human health and naturally occurring in water and food. Your cat drinks water with both in it every day.
Manganese stains fabric at levels that are still safe to drink. Zinc is only soluble in acidic water, and all washing powders are basic (i.e. the opposite of acidic), and tastes terrible if the levels get too high.
posted by kjs4 at 6:17 PM on December 5, 2019
Manganese stains fabric at levels that are still safe to drink. Zinc is only soluble in acidic water, and all washing powders are basic (i.e. the opposite of acidic), and tastes terrible if the levels get too high.
posted by kjs4 at 6:17 PM on December 5, 2019
Having it "work" in series with three other batteries is no indicator of its condition. So long as it acts as a conductor, the other batteries will power the flashlight even if the washed one is completely dead. Battery testers are cheap, by the way.
You say you found it when putting your laundry into the washer. I assume you took it out then. So it was completely washed and rinsed before you put your clothes in. Any nasty stuff that would come out in the wash would have already done so, and been washed away. You and your cat are safe from this battery.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:28 AM on December 6, 2019
You say you found it when putting your laundry into the washer. I assume you took it out then. So it was completely washed and rinsed before you put your clothes in. Any nasty stuff that would come out in the wash would have already done so, and been washed away. You and your cat are safe from this battery.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:28 AM on December 6, 2019
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by ceramicspaniel at 10:42 PM on December 4, 2019