Compaq laptop battery charge problem

AndyA · 08-07-2004, 03:28 AM

Hi, I hope someone can throw some light on my problem. I recently repaired a laptop Presario 1200 (model 1215EA) (Broken screen). The battery had also come to the end of its life. I've purchased a new battery, however every time I try to charge it the battery LED pulses slowly six times, remains solid for about a minute (during which time the battery charges) then it just flashes until I remove the power supply and reinsert it. I've managed to charge the battery by removing & replacing the power supply, however, this took ages... I've updated the bios etc... Any suggestions??

Regards Andy.

johnwill · 08-07-2004, 09:43 AM

Well, you have two choices. Either the laptop charging circuit is defective, or the battery is bad. The battery may be requiring too much charging current and overloading the supply. If this were mine, I'd try to find another battery to try first...

CTSNKY · 08-07-2004, 09:53 AM

From the user guide for your model:

Calibrating the Battery
You may notice that the battery
gauge does not correctly display
the battery charge level when
you first receive your Notebook,
or if you have not used your
Notebook for a long period of
time. If the battery gauge
becomes inaccurate, you must
recalibrate your battery. Recalibrating
the battery simply
means recharging the battery
to its maximum capacity and
resetting the battery gauge to
display the level of charge
accurately.
To recalibrate the battery, complete the following steps:
1. Plug in the AC adapter:
a. Allow the battery to charge until the light above the
Battery Charge 7 icon turns off, indicating that the
battery is fully charged.
b. After the battery charge light turns off, unplug the
AC adapter.
2. Turn on or restart your Notebook.
Steps 3 through 6 prevent your Notebook from entering Sleep
mode. These steps also allow the battery to drain faster.
3. On the Windows taskbar, click Start, point to Settings,
and then click Control Panel.
4. Double-click the Power OptionsAicon on the
Control Panel. The Power Options Properties dialogue
box opens to the Power Schemes tab.
5. From Running on batteries column:
a. In the Turn off monitor drop-down list, select Never.
b. In the Turn off hard disks drop-down list, select
Never.
c. In the System stand by drop-down list, select Never.
6. Click OK to close the Power Options Properties box.
7. Let the battery drain until your Notebook reaches
Hibernation and turns off.
8. Plug in the AC adapter. Re-start your Notebook.
9. Return to the Power Options Properties dialogue box under
Control Panel and re-enter your Power Savings settings to
the desired level. The battery is now calibrated.

AndyA · 08-07-2004, 11:26 AM

Thanks JW I'll try a new battery.

CTSNKY, thanks. I've tried that. I should have mentioned in my first post, however it was starting to ramble on. I'd read that this sometimes happens with new batteries, however once I got it fully charged the problem repeated itself. I have noticed that once the battery gets to about 89/90% charged the problem disappears and the battery goes on to fully charge its self. I actually timed the sequence it lasted exactly 2 minutes 55 seconds each time it charged before it started blinking again. I hope it's something to do with the system thanking that the battery is charged. I'll try another battery then take it from there.

Once again, thanks people.

johnwill · 08-07-2004, 02:29 PM

Let us know how you make out.

Dologan · 08-12-2004, 12:43 PM

Hi, I am suffering the same symptoms with my new battery.

I have a Compaq Presario 900US and one day while working on battery, the computer suddenly entered on hibernation to save battery when it was supposed to be almost full. After this, the battery did not charge anymore and the LED just blinked red the whole time, with the meter stuck at 99%.
I was told it was the battery (even though it was barely one year old), and after a long time of using the laptop without battery, I decided to buy another one. I couldn't find one like the original of 14.8 V, but in many places 14.4V ones were listed as compatible with my model, so I tried one of them.
The symptoms were similar to AndyA's, except that after the minute of solid light and blinking, the LED turned off altogether. Unlike AndyA, I never got the battery to charge to the point where I could plug the computer off and not lose energy, although perhaps I wasn't patient enough.
Yesterday, I had the battery changed for another one (still 14.4 V), but less capacity (3.2 AHr, not 4 AHr as the original) and it still can't charge. If I try to charge it while the computer is off, the same thing as AndyA happens, but if the computer is on or on standby, the LED stays on with the solid red light, however, even after leaving it overnight, it still has no charge.
On the other hand, the laptop has no problem running with an already charged battery and I think it is even able to charge a partially charged one, since I saw the meter go up one percent or two after plugging it in for a while.
Is it more probable that my charging circuit is defective or that I just had the bad luck of getting two defective batteries in a row? If it's the former, does anybody know about how much would the repair cost?
Thank you.

johnwill · 08-12-2004, 02:26 PM

Without seeing it, it's impossible to say. I know I had a problem with an old Compaq laptop and a new battery, I fixed it by cleaning the contacts inside the battery compartment.

08-07-2004, 03:28 AM	#1 (permalink)
AndyA Registered User Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 2 OS: XP & ME	Compaq laptop battery charge problem Hi, I hope someone can throw some light on my problem. I recently repaired a laptop Presario 1200 (model 1215EA) (Broken screen). The battery had also come to the end of its life. I've purchased a new battery, however every time I try to charge it the battery LED pulses slowly six times, remains solid for about a minute (during which time the battery charges) then it just flashes until I remove the power supply and reinsert it. I've managed to charge the battery by removing & replacing the power supply, however, this took ages... I've updated the bios etc... Any suggestions?? Regards Andy.

08-07-2004, 09:43 AM	#2 (permalink)
johnwill Manager, Networking Forums Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania, US Posts: 32,933 OS: XP-Pro, Vista, Linux Blog Entries: 1	Well, you have two choices. Either the laptop charging circuit is defective, or the battery is bad. The battery may be requiring too much charging current and overloading the supply. If this were mine, I'd try to find another battery to try first... __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

08-07-2004, 02:29 PM	#5 (permalink)
johnwill Manager, Networking Forums Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania, US Posts: 32,933 OS: XP-Pro, Vista, Linux Blog Entries: 1	Let us know how you make out. __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

08-12-2004, 12:43 PM	#6 (permalink)
Dologan Registered User Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 1 OS: WinXP	Suffering the same symptoms Hi, I am suffering the same symptoms with my new battery. I have a Compaq Presario 900US and one day while working on battery, the computer suddenly entered on hibernation to save battery when it was supposed to be almost full. After this, the battery did not charge anymore and the LED just blinked red the whole time, with the meter stuck at 99%. I was told it was the battery (even though it was barely one year old), and after a long time of using the laptop without battery, I decided to buy another one. I couldn't find one like the original of 14.8 V, but in many places 14.4V ones were listed as compatible with my model, so I tried one of them. The symptoms were similar to AndyA's, except that after the minute of solid light and blinking, the LED turned off altogether. Unlike AndyA, I never got the battery to charge to the point where I could plug the computer off and not lose energy, although perhaps I wasn't patient enough. Yesterday, I had the battery changed for another one (still 14.4 V), but less capacity (3.2 AHr, not 4 AHr as the original) and it still can't charge. If I try to charge it while the computer is off, the same thing as AndyA happens, but if the computer is on or on standby, the LED stays on with the solid red light, however, even after leaving it overnight, it still has no charge. On the other hand, the laptop has no problem running with an already charged battery and I think it is even able to charge a partially charged one, since I saw the meter go up one percent or two after plugging it in for a while. Is it more probable that my charging circuit is defective or that I just had the bad luck of getting two defective batteries in a row? If it's the former, does anybody know about how much would the repair cost? Thank you.

08-12-2004, 02:26 PM	#7 (permalink)
johnwill Manager, Networking Forums Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania, US Posts: 32,933 OS: XP-Pro, Vista, Linux Blog Entries: 1	Without seeing it, it's impossible to say. I know I had a problem with an old Compaq laptop and a new battery, I fixed it by cleaning the contacts inside the battery compartment. __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

08-07-2004, 09:53 AM	#3 (permalink)
CTSNKY Knower of all that is MS Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 10,755 OS: (multiple machines) 95, 98, 2K & XP Home & Pro	From the user guide for your model: Calibrating the Battery You may notice that the battery gauge does not correctly display the battery charge level when you first receive your Notebook, or if you have not used your Notebook for a long period of time. If the battery gauge becomes inaccurate, you must recalibrate your battery. Recalibrating the battery simply means recharging the battery to its maximum capacity and resetting the battery gauge to display the level of charge accurately. To recalibrate the battery, complete the following steps: 1. Plug in the AC adapter: a. Allow the battery to charge until the light above the Battery Charge 7 icon turns off, indicating that the battery is fully charged. b. After the battery charge light turns off, unplug the AC adapter. 2. Turn on or restart your Notebook. Steps 3 through 6 prevent your Notebook from entering Sleep mode. These steps also allow the battery to drain faster. 3. On the Windows taskbar, click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel. 4. Double-click the Power OptionsAicon on the Control Panel. The Power Options Properties dialogue box opens to the Power Schemes tab. 5. From Running on batteries column: a. In the Turn off monitor drop-down list, select Never. b. In the Turn off hard disks drop-down list, select Never. c. In the System stand by drop-down list, select Never. 6. Click OK to close the Power Options Properties box. 7. Let the battery drain until your Notebook reaches Hibernation and turns off. 8. Plug in the AC adapter. Re-start your Notebook. 9. Return to the Power Options Properties dialogue box under Control Panel and re-enter your Power Savings settings to the desired level. The battery is now calibrated.

08-07-2004, 11:26 AM	#4 (permalink)
AndyA Registered User Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 2 OS: XP & ME	Thanks JW I'll try a new battery. CTSNKY, thanks. I've tried that. I should have mentioned in my first post, however it was starting to ramble on. I'd read that this sometimes happens with new batteries, however once I got it fully charged the problem repeated itself. I have noticed that once the battery gets to about 89/90% charged the problem disappears and the battery goes on to fully charge its self. I actually timed the sequence it lasted exactly 2 minutes 55 seconds each time it charged before it started blinking again. I hope it's something to do with the system thanking that the battery is charged. I'll try another battery then take it from there. Once again, thanks people.