Lithium-ion batteries are now in almost everything we own, and the safety data has been catching up with that reality. Australia's consumer regulator has logged hundreds of product safety reports and dozens of fire-related recalls tied to these batteries, and a national survey it commissioned found that many people charge devices unattended and are unsure how to dispose of old batteries safely (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission [ACCC], 2023). Fire services are seeing the same trend on the ground, with Fire and Rescue NSW recording a steady year-on-year rise in lithium-ion battery fires, reaching several call-outs every week (Fire and Rescue NSW [FRNSW], 2024).

Against that backdrop, a containment bag is one of the few pieces of safety equipment that works before anything goes wrong. Here is the honest case for one, including its limits.

The threat isn't only the flames

When a lithium-ion cell fails, it enters thermal runaway: a self-heating reaction that vents flammable and toxic gas and can spread from cell to cell. Importantly, research shows the gas can be a greater hazard than the heat itself. A widely cited study measured large quantities of hydrogen fluoride, a highly toxic gas, released during battery fires, on the order of tens to hundreds of milligrams per watt-hour of battery capacity (Larsson et al., 2017). That is why a small battery failure in an enclosed space, a hallway, a garage or a spare room, is so dangerous, and why containing the event early matters so much.

What a containment bag actually does

A containment bag gives a battery a fire-resistant place to live. If a cell inside enters thermal runaway, the bag is built to resist the heat, hold the event inside, and slow it from spreading to everything around it. Our bags use fire-resistant materials, with the premium bag adding a heat-reflective inner lining, and are rated to withstand extreme instantaneous temperatures.

Three everyday uses

Charging. The regulator's survey found many people leave devices charging unattended (ACCC, 2023). If you charge an e-bike, tool or laptop battery indoors, a bag adds a layer between that battery and the room.

Storing damaged or recalled batteries. Recalls are common; the ACCC has recorded dozens tied to fire risk (ACCC, 2023). A swollen, damaged or recalled battery is exactly the kind you want isolated in a fire-resistant bag while you arrange safe disposal.

Transport. Moving batteries loose in a car or van is a quiet risk. A bag contains a failure, and with carry handles it lets you move a battery clear if it is safe to do so.

Choosing a size

Our range covers the two most common needs. The Laptop and Device Bag (40 x 28 cm) suits laptops, tablets, power banks and smaller tool packs, the everyday items most of us charge on a desk. The Premium Containment Bag (42 x 38 x 22 cm) is a larger, dual-layer bag for e-bike and e-scooter batteries, bigger tool packs and mixed storage. Both are reusable for everyday storage and transport; replace either after any real thermal event.

A containment bag is not a complete fire strategy on its own. It works alongside smoke alarms, safe charging habits, and, where appropriate, a lithium-ion extinguisher or fire blanket. But as a single, low-cost step that addresses the risk before it starts, it is one of the most sensible things you can add to a home or workplace.