kishoreCA
Champion Author
Ventura
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Message Posted: May 24, 2012 10:03:46 PM
hey Camp and Titanic...first of all thanks to you both especially for those tons of information and for sharing your knowledge.
before i ripped it out, I was mentally decisive of the need to buy a new one. Just matter of time before i could pony up enough to buy a new one.
Now on the "safety coating" stuff i mentioned, sorry to confuse you all, that was just out of my ignorance on the technical jargons.
Camp you are right, it is the "insulation" that I was talking when i said safety coating.
Camp-Thanks for the tip on battery soldering. I would sure try that out.
Titanic- yes I am not ready (nor can i afford) to spend more than 30-40 dollars to spend on this computer. I do have the option to replace the motherboard - but if i do that, then I failed in this attempt. (fighting and losing the battle is better than giving up without fighting).
The other day i responded to a CL ad by a college student asking for used computers for their study, for a minimal price. I replied to him to take it for whatever price he can afford (I also told him that the only reason i am asking a price is because, only when you "pay" for something, you give value to it. anything free will taken for granted). But he never bothered to reply to me. So i guess it was another spammer or may be he would have got it already.
If nothing happens, I would keep it as an antique piece. who knows, someday it might become a valuable piece.
[Edited by: kishoreCA at 5/24/2012 11:04:46 PM EST]
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CampKohler
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Sacramento
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Message Posted: May 24, 2012 1:42:23 PM
For most "computery" problems you guys are probably right. However, if the batt in the subject lapton is the only problem, it should be fixable by anyone with reasonable soldering skills using the technique I outlined.
I am sure there are plenty of techs in his area that would be willing to help out on such a minor problem. It's a ten-minute job.
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scoutmaster
Champion Author
Pittsburgh
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Message Posted: May 24, 2012 5:52:12 AM
I did successfully replace my son's display on his Dell laptop a number of years ago. The only problem I had was Dell kept sending me the wrong cable! Got another 5 years out of that laptop!
I don't normally repair laptops. They are tricky to work on and a new one is not that pricey!
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herbiepopnecker
Champion Author
British Columbia
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Message Posted: May 23, 2012 8:19:01 PM
Also trying self repair on a Toshiba laptop back around 2004. Me: over 10 years repairing desktops, helper Computer Degree fresh out of university.
Tiny black screws lost on tabletop, factory camouflage. Tweezers, magnifying glass and other guy holding a flashlight. Everything surface mounted, nothing removable. Plastic clips that snap off just touching them, tiny retainer clips that fall and scatter. Finally the screen connector - which was different than any of the screen connectors on the box of recovered screens we'd saved up.
Gave up.
Then we tried on my old Asus laptop. Same ordeal, looked all crooked and leftover screws when we were done. Still shut down for no reason at all.
So we both went out and bought new laptops. Identical P4 Toshibas with a known static fault we spent the next year returning to the store for service. He pitched his in the lake after 5 returns. After the 4th, I sold mine for $100 after warning the guy it rebooted if you touched the wrong spot.
He went Mac. I hobbled along with a Vista HP that blue screened over the video driver every ten minutes. Then I went Mac too....
you live, you learn.
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Titanic1985
Champion Author
South Carolina
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Message Posted: May 23, 2012 4:30:40 PM
Hello Camp. I'm not posting to inflate your head, but both you and I go back a lot of years. You must remember this is 2012 and the skill sets we have may not now be available. We are both saying some of he same things (e.g. placing the battery elsewhere via wire, what really is he original problem, I didn't address the battery coating issue as it is in question, and then the use of a volt-ohm meter). I know you like to tinker and experiment and you know I come from a more disciplined background regarding restoring a unit to factory standards (who will forget our UPS discussions). Tack soldering a battery is presuming that it is not providing power to a certain layer of the motherboard. What if the VOM has a 9 VDC battery and someone has it on Ohms x 1? I don't know kishoreCA's finances or immediate computer needs. I do know he "still loves that so much", but when is something deemed unreasonable or uneconomical to repair? We could supply websites for parts, but the real issue has yet to be determined, only the one created by the battery replacement. A motherboard's cost and six years of use would negate a replacement of that sub-assembly with the possibility of it being a non returnable item. That will be up to him to decide, won't it?
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CampKohler
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Sacramento
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Message Posted: May 23, 2012 1:24:03 PM
Before touching the keep-alive batt, you should have used a voltmeter to check the output. If it is a 3V batt, say, and it puts out 3V (or very close to it), then it is good no matter how old it is or whether maggots are crawling in and out. The amount of current drawn is so phenominally small, that whether it is actually drawn or not is almost irrelevant to the batt. As long as the voltage is there, that is all that is important. (Well, save this info for your NEXT laptop.)
And now to your current (no pun intended) predicament. Don't try to solder a new batt to the board. Get some mighty small (24-30 AWG) wires and solder them to the board with the minimum heat necessary. Then solder the other end of the wires to the batt, insulate the batt with a shrink tubing sleeve and tuck the batt into some unused corner.
If you don't have or are unsure of your soldering skills, look around locally for someone who can help. Search the 'Net for local computer clubs or amateur radio clubs, go to a meeting and ask for help. You shouldn't have any problem with this in a populated area like Ventura. You could even drive around and look for a ham antenna and then knock on the door.
With regards to the "safety coating," I have no idea what this is or how it is supposed to stop explosions. True, you don't want to heat a batt up to the point where some juices will turn to steam and... Well, you get the idea. But it should not take that much heat to get a small spot up to soldering temp and there are always ice cubes to keep the temps reasonable. But you could avoid the entire scenario by simply putting an inch or so of a coiled-up, bared wire against both sides of the batt and then using duct tape or epoxy glue to hold it there. At the small current involved, any physical contact whatsoever will be sufficient as long as it is maintained. Just make sure the wires don't cross over to the other side and short the batt out.
I would not be worried at all about ruining the mother board by tack soldering a couple of wires to it. Anyone who has been around a few years should be able to do it with ease. The worse that could happen is that he is TOO careful and the wire later falls off. Well, then put it back on again. It's always good idea to tack the wires to the board nearby with glue just to relieve the joints from any physical strain.
Then, of course, you might actually have to find out what the REAL problem is that was killing the laptop. Good luck with that.
[Edited by: CampKohler at 5/23/2012 2:27:19 PM EST]
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Titanic1985
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South Carolina
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Message Posted: May 23, 2012 9:37:53 AM
Good Morning kishorCA. I am sorry to hear about your trouble with the Toshiba laptop as well as not having the ability to repair it. You said, "all technicians out here refused telling that soldering it back might harm the motherboard and they are not ready to do it." There is a reason for their comments. I used to be quite involved in circuit board repair both in the military and at AT&T. In the military, our depot repair unit received a Pace soldering station. At that time it cost over $2,000 and required specialized training. It came with a temperature controlled soldering iron, a foot controlled vacuum pump, and drawers of accessories. Many of the circuit boards were multi-layered. The components were what is called surface mount technology. The components are physically attached to the board and the entire board is soldered via computer by a technique called wave formed soldering. The circuit boards have layers of four or more power circuits within the main board. A standard soldering iron, no matter how good the technician, will overheat the connection and effectively short out the board layers by flowing solder down the hole. I worked in Engineering at AT&T and batteries were always a problem as they were soldered to the motherboard (no "metal clips" or holders). Most batteries are now made overseas and we had quite a few that leaked. Not only did the soldering issue come up, but also corrosion from the leaked batteries. In some instances, a "Class A Change" was ordered regarding the batteries and they were either remotely located and connected by wires or the battery had a holder soldered to the board instead of the battery itself. I feel the only reasonable solution is to replace the six year old computer. A new motherboard, if available, would cost over 50% of a new computer. The computers of today are meant for sub-assembly repair only (e.g. power supply, motherboard, keyboard, video board, etc.). Yes, you could probably repair a power supply, but they are relatively inexpensive -- the motherboard is not. I might also remind you that by your own words that you "assumed" the BIOS battery is defective. It may not be the case or there are additional problems. You've gone about as far as you can go. Laptop prices are rock bottom and the computers are "better" than those of six years ago. I wish you well with your decision. Take care :-) .
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PopcornPirate
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New Jersey
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Message Posted: May 23, 2012 8:01:20 AM
With all the time & effort you put in...... Sorry
Time to buy a new one.
Those soldering in the factory are done by computer. You have a very little chance of getting the battery back in. I'm not saying it is impossible just impractical
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