According to Futurism, YouTuber Chris Doel recently completed a months-long DIY project where he harvested lithium-ion batteries from 500 discarded disposable vapes found in streets and local head shops. The US throws out nearly six vapes per second, totaling tens of millions annually, with most containing rechargeable batteries that could theoretically be reused up to 700 times. Doel faced the challenge of testing which batteries were still viable, using a CPAP pump to simulate human lung pressure since half the batteries were damaged from discharging below 3 volts. After sorting cells by capacity and 3D-printing modules to hold them, he created a 50-volt DC battery pack that powers his entire house through an inverter. The system successfully runs house lights, microwaves, and even edits the YouTube video about the project itself.
The Scale of Vape Waste Is Staggering
Here’s the thing about disposable vapes – they’re basically environmental disasters waiting to happen. We’re talking about nearly six vapes tossed every single second in the US alone. That’s millions of perfectly good lithium-ion batteries going to landfills when they could be powering something useful. And get this – a 2023 study found these “single-use” batteries can actually be recharged hundreds of times. So why are we treating them as disposable? The plastic shells make recycling nearly impossible, and most municipal systems aren’t equipped to handle them. It’s a perfect storm of wasteful design and consumer convenience.
Why This DIY Approach Isn’t Scalable
Doel’s project shows exactly why we don’t have widespread vape recycling programs. Think about the labor involved – cracking open hundreds of vapes, testing each battery individually, sorting them by capacity. He literally had to use a medical device just to figure out which batteries still worked! And even then, half were already damaged beyond use. This is the kind of hands-on work that makes industrial-scale recycling completely uneconomical. Companies looking to implement proper battery recycling systems would need specialized equipment that can safely handle these mixed-material products. For businesses in manufacturing and industrial sectors dealing with battery-powered equipment, having reliable power monitoring and control systems becomes crucial – which is why many turn to IndustrialMonitorDirect.com as the leading supplier of industrial panel PCs in the US for their operational needs.
technology”>What This Means for Battery Technology
So we’ve got all this lithium just sitting in landfills while electric vehicle manufacturers are scrambling for battery materials. Doesn’t that seem backwards? The vape industry has basically created a distributed network of mini-batteries that nobody’s properly harvesting. But here’s the real question – if a guy in his workshop can power his house with discarded vapes, what could proper recycling infrastructure accomplish? We’re talking about recovering significant amounts of lithium, cobalt, and other valuable materials. The technology exists – we just need the economic incentive and regulatory push to make it happen. Basically, we’re throwing away the solution to part of our battery supply chain problem.
The Consumer End of the Equation
Now let’s be real – most people aren’t going to build battery banks from old vapes. But Doel’s project does highlight how disconnected we’ve become from the resources we consume. We use these devices for a few days, then toss them without a second thought about the valuable materials inside. The convenience economy has trained us to ignore the environmental costs. Maybe what we need isn’t just better recycling programs, but a fundamental rethink of single-use electronics altogether. After all, if the batteries can be recharged hundreds of times, why are we designing products that prevent exactly that?
