Battery Icon Stuck ???

[gorinw13]

Hello... Sorry for posting here as I did not see any hardware section....

My problem is, when charging the battery, sometimes it stucks at a certain % and stays there -- no longer appears to be charged.... I do not know if it is related to battery life but I have been using the laptop for 2 years and I used it more than 95% of the times plugged in (of course sometimes there can be power failure that activates the battery)..... Fo more than a year my laptop is 24/5 open except for the weekends.... But I still do not believe the life of the battery is ended because when it is charged 100%, then it works for nearly 2 hours without plug --- as it is in its first day.....

When the battery icon is stuck, I remove the battery, and try to clean the metal parts (I do not know if it is necessary or not) restart the computer and sometimes the problem is solved... Removing the battery and putting it back I guess is what solves the problem (no longer  stuck and charges).....

What can be done to solve the problem?.... Is it related to to the connector parts of the batter or notebook?... Or any solution you can provide?..

[Darwin]

Try this: put the battery in a plastic bag (ziploc would be preferable) and toss it in the freezer for about 24 hours and then try charging it again. It's worked for me in the past (nod to Ralf Maximus for the original tip!).

FWIW, this is likely a battery charge "memory" issue.

[gorinw13]

Thank you Darwin for the reply... Actually a few hours ago I cleaned the battery metals with alcohol and it appeared to solve the problem.... But this would be a temporary solution as in the past it showed indications that it is solved and problem reappeared again..... So tomorrow or very soon I will apply your suggestion..... Thank you one more time.....

[Darwin]

No problem! I've been plaqued by battery issues with every laptop I've had (six or seven at this point). One controversial tip is to charge it and then discharge it to about 50% and then remove it for storage if you are going to run off AC...

Glad you got the battery working for now and hope that you have some luck with the freezer trick.

[gorinw13]

well the problem reappeared again and I used your freezer tactic Darwin - kept in the freezer for a day.... Fantastic..... I do not know if the battery indicator will stuck at a certain percentage again after some time when I recharge it but I can say that it charged 5 times or more faster than before, the time after the battery became problematic... This is just an update for the members who would have battery problems.... It really seems to work !!!! really fast charge and no stuck battery icon !!!

[f0dder]

Definitely remove the battery when you're running off AC, unless you live in an area with unstable power grid. Does wonders for battery lifetime

[jgpaiva]

Definitely remove the battery when you're running off AC, unless you live in an area with unstable power grid. Does wonders for battery lifetime

-f0dder (September 02, 2008, 12:01 PM)

Have you tested that?
I really really really would like to see a test side by side of 2 laptops running with/without battery, to check if the battery life is improved.

[f0dder]

Definitely remove the battery when you're running off AC, unless you live in an area with unstable power grid. Does wonders for battery lifetime

-f0dder (September 02, 2008, 12:01 PM)

Have you tested that?
I really really really would like to see a test side by side of 2 laptops running with/without battery, to check if the battery life is improved.

-jgpaiva (September 02, 2008, 02:02 PM)

Well, to be honest I've only had experience with two laptops with this kind of thing - both mainly ran on AC power, with battery inserted. After a few years, both batteries were dead. One to the point where to laptop can't even be powered on with the battery inserted.

So I guess it's more a "removing the battery while on AC means you don't kill it" rather than "increases battery life" . Also, it's possible that laptops have gotten smarter and don't route AC power through the battery if it's fully charged, which would probably solve the problem.

[jgpaiva]

So I guess it's more a "removing the battery while on AC means you don't kill it" rather than "increases battery life" . Also, it's possible that laptops have gotten smarter and don't route AC power through the battery if it's fully charged, which would probably solve the problem.

-f0dder (September 02, 2008, 02:07 PM)

Well, my guess was that laptops try not to damage the battery, but I may be wrong, that's why I was asking, I really would like to know if it does any good.
It's just that removing the battery can be VERY anoying (Also, it's just one more place for the dust to creep in - that's what I say to myself as an excuse for lazyness)

[gorinw13]

Definitely remove the battery when you're running off AC, unless you live in an area with unstable power grid. Does wonders for battery lifetime

-f0dder (September 02, 2008, 12:01 PM)

Have you tested that?
I really really really would like to see a test side by side of 2 laptops running with/without battery, to check if the battery life is improved.

-jgpaiva (September 02, 2008, 02:02 PM)

well you did not ask me but my personal experience with a guess is that running on AC might not change a lot..... This is just a guess but based on the fact that I have been using my notebook for a bit more than 2 years nearly 24/5 and until last month there were no problems and when not connected to AC, it was having 2 hours activity as it was in the first day.... Considering that a life of battery is 2-3 years (is that correct?) 2 years with the same performance as the first day means it did not loose too much power.... According to the notebook hardware control software, its wear level is only 26% (I guess it is a good level?...)

These are only humble opinions of mine, but I guess I will do the same with a new battery that I will purchase because my experience was not too bad (with AC on).... May be I am wrong --- some of you would know better considering the technical knowledge..... Fodder would be correct..

[jgpaiva]

I guess the problem is that it's really hard to test this kind of stuff as it takes a lot of testing time. It's really a shame, I'd love to know it this is just a myth or not.

[f0dder]

I guess the problem is that it's really hard to test this kind of stuff as it takes a lot of testing time. It's really a shame, I'd love to know it this is just a myth or not.

-jgpaiva (September 02, 2008, 02:23 PM)

Me too

[Darwin]

What I *try* to remember to do, and what was recommended to me at some point in the past, is to run the notebook off battery occasionally so that the battery discharges to at least 50% and then let it charge again. I no longer remember where this tip comes from, but following it has kept my batteries more or less optimized for a year now (vs. having, say, 3 hours of battery drop to 1 hour after a year).