Laptop battery charges sporadically, got a fix?

Question

henchman 0 Newbie Poster

21 Years Ago

Hello all...

I have a problem with my laptop battery not wanting to charge all the time. I have one or two ideas and what to run them by some other folks and get their opinion.

Background info:
Toshiba Satellite 3005-S304 - (1 GHz machine with XP home installed)
I bought the machine new back around 2001. All equipment is original (including the battery) except for the power supply. The old power supply cord was kinked and caused the battery/laptop to flip between A/C power and battery power. After living with the problem for many months I purchased a "used OEM" power supply on eBay a few months ago. The laptop has been reliable with no major or minor problems until a few months go, right around the time of the used power supply, but I think it is coincidence.

Problem:
The battery does not consistently charge. It does not mater if the laptop is on or off. What happens when I plug in the A/C power the charging light on the laptop with quickly turn on then within 5 seconds (sometimes within 5 min) the light will turn off. Curiously I hear a faint buzz/zap noise from inside the laptop. This noise only last half a second and happens at the same time the charger light turns off. This little noise I believe is telling me something but I don’t have the expertise to know what it’s telling me. Do you know or have a fix? By the way, during this whole time the A/C light on the laptop is lighted. Therefore it’s still getting power.

I checked the power supply with a volt meter and looks to be good.

Here is what I think, what do you think?
I think the source of the problem is either the battery or the laptop, but I guess any idiot could have suggested to two most obvious possibilities but I have state it anyway.

I am leaning towards the battery. First the battery is about 5 years old. It’s been well used over that time. I think I have beaten up the battery (memory issue) with the failing A/C power supply by cycling the laptop to A/C and battery for many months. My guess is this strange little noise coming from inside the laptop is a sensor switch flipping from battery to A/C??? Does that sound reasonable to someone?

Is the sensor in the battery or the laptop? I hope it’s the battery, they cost a lot less then a new laptop.

BTW, the battery still holds a pretty good charge 1.5+hrs. I’ll probably try the memory trick by fully draining the battery and then recharging several times.

Anyone got another idea or suggestion???

Thanks for your help and reading this loooong post.

Henchman

laptop troubleshoot-hardware

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Latest Post 21 Years Ago Latest Post by JANINE

Dani AI

Generated 7 Months Ago

A concise, practical diagnostic flow to add to ’s report and to complement ’s suggestion. The aim is to narrow the fault—battery cells, the external adapter, the DC jack/soldering, or the laptop’s charging circuitry—using inexpensive, safe checks you can do at home before buying parts or paying for a bench repair.

Remove the battery and run the machine from AC only. If the laptop runs normally and the power indicator is steady, that points toward the battery or its smart-control electronics. If the same symptoms occur with the battery removed, suspect the adapter, DC jack, or charging circuit.
Borrow or try a known-good compatible adapter (same voltage, equal or higher amperage). Many secondhand bricks deliver marginal current even if idle voltage looks correct.
With a multimeter, measure DC at the barrel (center pin to shell) while plugged in and while wiggling the jack gently. Watch for voltage collapse or big fluctuations at the moment charging stops. Use the correct DC range and avoid shorting the terminals.
Visually inspect the DC jack area and nearby caps on the board (with power and battery removed). Look for loose jack, cracked solder joints, bulging or leaking electrolytic capacitors, burn marks, or corrosion. A wobbly jack or bad solder joint commonly causes intermittent charging and a transient noise when contact is made/lost.
Try a battery calibration cycle (full discharge then full charge, repeated once or twice) only as a gauge-reset step — it won’t revive failing cells but can correct misreported state-of-charge.
If a different adapter and a bench-tested replacement battery are both available, use them to isolate the part that fixes the fault. If the repair points to the onboard charging stage, expect a repair shop estimate; replacing a DC jack or reflowing solder is often cheaper than full board replacement.

Caution: if you smell burning, see smoke, or the noise is a sharp pop, stop immediately and disconnect power. Opening the chassis should be done only after removing both AC and battery and observing antistatic precautions.

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JANINE 33 Practically a Posting Shark · Answer 1 · 2005-05-17T00:44:48+00:00

Hello all...
I have a problem with my laptop battery not wanting to charge all the time. I have one or two ideas and what to run them by some other folks and get their opinion.
Background info:
Toshiba Satellite 3005-S304 - (1 GHz machine with XP home installed)
I bought the machine new back around 2001. All equipment is original (including the battery) except for the power supply. The old power supply cord was kinked and caused the battery/laptop to flip between A/C power and battery power. After living with the problem for many months I purchased a "used OEM" power supply on eBay a few months ago. The laptop has been reliable with no major or minor problems until a few months go, right around the time of the used power supply, but I think it is coincidence.
Problem:
The battery does not consistently charge. It does not mater if the laptop is on or off. What happens when I plug in the A/C power the charging light on the laptop with quickly turn on then within 5 seconds (sometimes within 5 min) the light will turn off. Curiously I hear a faint buzz/zap noise from inside the laptop. This noise only last half a second and happens at the same time the charger light turns off. This little noise I believe is telling me something but I don’t have the expertise to know what it’s telling me. Do you know or have a fix? By the way, during this whole time the A/C light on the laptop is lighted. Therefore it’s still getting power.
I checked the power supply with a volt meter and looks to be good.
Here is what I think, what do you think?
I think the source of the problem is either the battery or the laptop, but I guess any idiot could have suggested to two most obvious possibilities but I have state it anyway.
I am leaning towards the battery. First the battery is about 5 years old. It’s been well used over that time. I think I have beaten up the battery (memory issue) with the failing A/C power supply by cycling the laptop to A/C and battery for many months. My guess is this strange little noise coming from inside the laptop is a sensor switch flipping from battery to A/C??? Does that sound reasonable to someone?
Is the sensor in the battery or the laptop? I hope it’s the battery, they cost a lot less then a new laptop.
BTW, the battery still holds a pretty good charge 1.5+hrs. I’ll probably try the memory trick by fully draining the battery and then recharging several times.
Anyone got another idea or suggestion???
Thanks for your help and reading this loooong post.
Henchman

its not the longest i've seen. ok heres my suggestion. this looks to me like a power supply or motherboard problem. no computer should be making a zapping noise at all. secondly by all means get another battery. laptop batteries are not designed to last anymore then 3 years and are older type rechargables. the newer ones dont have a memory in them.:)