Before I start, I'd better say that I build and service desktops and laptops for a living. So please understand that this question may be best handled by those with a reasonable amount of experience. The answer is certainly NOT, "insert the battery, turn on the laptop and let it run down".
OK, here's my query: Over the years I've been handed a few frozen laptops that resisted all of the usual fixes but finally responded after the battery was completely drained to zero outside the system.
After the battery was reinserted and the machine rebooted, recharging would begin and I'd be able to service the machine normally. I'm not sure why this worked; perhaps the charging circuit can lock the entire system under some circumstances?
The method I employed to drain the battery on those occasions was kinda Heath Robinson (hokey), so I'm posting here to see if there's anyone out there with a better method.
What I did was this: First I identified which slot terminals of the battery were current and ground, then inserted a thin strip of light-gauge metal into each of those two active slots.
I attached two alligator-clipped leads to the metal strips and connected the other ends to the positive and negative terminals of a 24v auto headlight bulb, figuring that the bulb had sufficient capacity to avoid being overstressed by almost any laptop battery.
The system seemed to work well and the several batteries I processed were stripped of all charge within a few hours.
But I've also had a few glitches and this is why I'm asking for informed response. The last time I tried this method I couldn't get the 24v bulb to light at all. I tried again with a 12v bulb with the same results. Neither bulb was faulty and my multi-tester showed that the battery was holding around 10volts. Now maybe there's something obvious that I'm missing, but I would have thought that I would have got at least a glimmer from either bulb.
Comments would be appreciated.
OK, here's my query: Over the years I've been handed a few frozen laptops that resisted all of the usual fixes but finally responded after the battery was completely drained to zero outside the system.
After the battery was reinserted and the machine rebooted, recharging would begin and I'd be able to service the machine normally. I'm not sure why this worked; perhaps the charging circuit can lock the entire system under some circumstances?
The method I employed to drain the battery on those occasions was kinda Heath Robinson (hokey), so I'm posting here to see if there's anyone out there with a better method.
What I did was this: First I identified which slot terminals of the battery were current and ground, then inserted a thin strip of light-gauge metal into each of those two active slots.
I attached two alligator-clipped leads to the metal strips and connected the other ends to the positive and negative terminals of a 24v auto headlight bulb, figuring that the bulb had sufficient capacity to avoid being overstressed by almost any laptop battery.
The system seemed to work well and the several batteries I processed were stripped of all charge within a few hours.
But I've also had a few glitches and this is why I'm asking for informed response. The last time I tried this method I couldn't get the 24v bulb to light at all. I tried again with a 12v bulb with the same results. Neither bulb was faulty and my multi-tester showed that the battery was holding around 10volts. Now maybe there's something obvious that I'm missing, but I would have thought that I would have got at least a glimmer from either bulb.
Comments would be appreciated.
