How to Handle Old Batteries Safely

Why old batteries need careful handling

A battery does not have to be new to be dangerous. The EPA warns that even used batteries can have enough energy to injure someone or start a fire. When a lithium-ion battery, or a device that contains one, is thrown in the trash or a recycling bin, it can be crushed or damaged in a truck or at a sorting facility and become a fire hazard.

Most problems start at home with simple things: loose batteries rattling around a drawer with keys and coins, a puffy phone left on a charger, or a box of old tool batteries sitting in a hot garage.

Know which battery you have

The right handling depends on the chemistry. Check the label before you decide where a battery goes.

• Single-use alkaline (AA, AAA, C, D, 9-volt): the everyday batteries in remotes and flashlights.
• Single-use lithium metal: found in cameras, watches, remote controls, handheld games, and smoke detectors. The EPA notes these can look like ordinary alkaline sizes or come as coin and button cells — look for the word lithium on the label.
• Rechargeable lithium-ion: in phones, laptops, tablets, power tools, children's toys, e-cigarettes, power banks, and many small appliances. Some come out easily; others are built in.
• Lead-acid: car and truck batteries, plus the sealed batteries inside many UPS battery backups.

How to store batteries until you drop them off

Most people collect batteries for a while before making a trip. A few habits make that much safer:

• Put non-conductive tape, such as electrical tape, over the terminals of lithium batteries and 9-volts, as the EPA recommends.
• Place each battery, or each device containing a battery, in its own plastic bag so terminals cannot touch.
• Keep the collection in a sturdy non-metal container with a lid, away from heat, direct sun, and anything flammable.
• Never store batteries loose with coins, keys, or tools that can bridge the terminals.
• Keep coin and button batteries well out of reach of children and pets.
• Do not wait years — the bigger the pile, the bigger the risk.

Swollen, damaged, or leaking batteries

Signs of a damaged lithium-ion battery include a bulging case, a phone screen or laptop trackpad being pushed up, cracks, leaking fluid, a chemical smell, or a battery that gets hot when it is not in use. If you see any of these:

• Stop using and stop charging the device right away.
• Do not puncture, squeeze, bend, or try to flatten the battery.
• Move it, if it is safe to do so, to a cool spot away from anything that can burn.
• Never put it in household trash or a curbside recycling bin.
• Contact the battery or device manufacturer for specific handling instructions, as the EPA advises, and check with your local household hazardous waste program.

Zoiris does not accept damaged batteries

We cannot pick up swollen, damaged, or leaking batteries, or devices that contain them — including laptops, phones, and tablets with puffy batteries. That fire risk needs a specialized drop-off or collection program, not a junk-removal truck. Our restricted items page lists other things we do not take.

Where to take old batteries in Mobile

The right destination depends on the type of battery and whether it is intact.

City of Mobile Household Hazardous Waste events

The City of Mobile has hosted Household Hazardous Waste collection events since 2022. Its HHW page lists batteries — automotive and household, including rechargeable — among the accepted items. The events are open to Mobile residents and individuals only, not businesses or contractors. Dates are announced on the City's HHW page (opens in a new tab), and the City's Environmental Engineering Department answers questions (contact details are on the HHW page).

Retail and mail-in programs

For rechargeable batteries and devices containing them, the EPA recommends battery recyclers, participating retailers with take-back programs, or your local solid waste or household hazardous waste program. It lists Call2Recycle (opens in a new tab) and Earth911 as places to search for drop-off locations. Call ahead to confirm a location accepts your battery type.

Car and other large batteries

Many auto parts retailers take back car batteries; call ahead to confirm. For large lithium-ion batteries, such as those in electric vehicles or home energy storage, the EPA says to contact the dealer, manufacturer, or installer.

What Zoiris can and cannot take

If you are booking a pickup, here is how batteries fit in:

• Devices with intact batteries — laptops, phones, tablets, and game consoles — are part of our regular phone and tablet pickup and electronics service.
• Loose household batteries and power banks are never mixed into a junk load. Call first; we will confirm whether we can handle them or point you to a drop-off option. Tape lithium terminals either way.
• UPS battery backups need special handling — call first so we can confirm.
• Car and lead-acid batteries: call to check before including them.
• Swollen, damaged, or leaking batteries: not accepted.

Common questions