Laptop always plugged in issue

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gnfb

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#280339 9-Dec-2020 16:59

Just recently had a problem with my hp envy 360 laptop the fan seem not to be working and the keypad mouse was not good. I took the punt and opened it up (thanks Youtube).

I had a duff fan and a swollen battery. Now I have a new flat battery and fan working fine even the touchpad!

So my question

I was told that the battery problem could have been caused by having it always plugged in. Is this true?

if so is there a solution? as i really wanted to just keep it plugged in

Thanx

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psychrn

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#2618824 9-Dec-2020 17:14

I know from experience not to leave a laptop plugged in.

I had a surface pro which I quite liked. It was most often plugged in to keep it powered.

It lasted less than 2 years.

I now power up the newer Laptop Lenovo Yoga c360 and when its fully charged take it off charge and let it run down to 20-30% before I recharge it.

Have a look at this report.

https://au.pcmag.com/windows-10-1/62556/how-to-check-your-laptop-battery-health-in-windows-10

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#2618825 9-Dec-2020 17:16

my fancy laptop you can tell it to charge up to whatever % and stop and tell it to let it drain until whatever % before it starts to charge

(your BIOS need to have been coded to do that)

Rust

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#2618828 9-Dec-2020 17:23

I have a 3+ year old Acer Aspire laptop that I keep plugged in all the time. No problems have arisen yet. Of course I have jinxed it now....

timmmay

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#2618839 9-Dec-2020 19:12

In most HP BIOS systems you can set it to charge to 80%, which may help. I've done that with my wife's probook and my work elitebook. Surface have a similar setting but I think it's 50%, which is good for running but not so good if you actually need the battery occasionally.

My desktop doesn't have a battery, so no issues ;)

hsvhel

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#2618845 9-Dec-2020 19:18

My Dell is set to 70% before charging when running on battery, it will charge properly but will use the battery to keep it all fresh.

Have had older laptops struggle with being on a charger a lot, it is a "thing"

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rugrat

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#2618851 9-Dec-2020 19:33

My Windows 7 HP laptop is over 10 years old. Plugged in most of the time.

Three to four times a year use battery, still getting well over an hour each charge.

Edit Found date on battery check program 18/11/2011. Full charge capacity 94%.

I'm using battery at moment, and temperature of battery is 29 C.

Second Edit: Maybe fan not working caused battery to over heat?

Technofreak

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#2618939 9-Dec-2020 20:36

Some manufacturers have a setting where you can set up how the battery is charged. My Dell can be plugged in but running on the battery depending on where the battery is in it's charging programme. This programme extends the life of your battery considerably. My laptop is over 7 years old and the battery still gives reasonable life for a battery of that age.

Try right clicking on the battery icon and you may see some battery power options.

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gnfb

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#2619029 9-Dec-2020 23:36

Geezguys! thanx for the response I will check out the percenatge thing tommorow thanx again

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Bung

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#2619043 10-Dec-2020 04:44

There's a request in for the feature to be added but that's as far as it's got. Older devices with plug in batteries were routinely run on chargers with battery ejected. Looks like your option is only to power cycle it manually.

https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Hardware-and-Upgrade-Questions/Add-quot-Battery-Care-Function-quot-battery-charge-limit-to/td-p/7647295

timmmay

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#2619056 10-Dec-2020 07:31

psychrn:

I now power up the newer Laptop Lenovo Yoga c360 and when its fully charged take it off charge and let it run down to 20-30% before I recharge it.

Optimal range for a lithium battery is charged to 80%, use to 40%. That's only 40% of the capacity, but it means it'll last a long time. Easier with phones than laptops.

Better yet see if the BIOS can limit maximum charge level and leave it plugged in. This article says you can, and it's easy.

Rikkitic

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#2619081 10-Dec-2020 08:34

I had a battery swell up in a Harmony remote I kept on the charging stand all the time. I now cycle it. This seems to be a common issue with lithium batteries.

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DonH

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#2619240 10-Dec-2020 10:37

Lenovo users: Older Thinkpads came with a utility that allowed setting the maximum charge level to any level less than full charge.

The current incarnation of the utility just allows setting to 56%.

Apparently around 50% is where there's a balance between competing chemical processes in the battery, maximising shelf life. It's why new devices / batteries arrive half charged.

People hear what they see. - Doris Day

alasta

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#2619249 10-Dec-2020 10:49

I think my Macbook Pro automatically cycles the battery between 80% - 100% when it is connected to the charger.