AC Adapter output

[lonewolf57]

Hello room.I'm a new member and thank you Administrator for allowing me to join this site.

I had my HP ze5300 Notebook plugged in and was on the Web yesterday.I accidentally tripped on the cord and unplugged it from the wall.When i plugged it back in,it would'nt power on.The blue -power on- light/symbol only briefly will flash on now for a second.

The AC Adapter is supposed to output 18.5 volts(according to its printed specs) but my digital multimeter is reading 17.2v to 18.2v.It jumps back and forth between these voltages.

Should I try replacing the AC Adapter first or is it possibly a short somewhere inside the notebook?

Thank you very much for any suggestions.

Kim

[Maverick223]

I would say you are good on the voltage (varies by location), im an electrician and regularly see 110v AC at 105-128v, depending on location, distance from panel, loads on the circuit, etc...however I believe you may have broke a connection loose in the laptop. This could be a "easy" fix or terminal. I would jiggle the connector in the laptop to see if it will power up. If it does at a certain position you likely broke the solder joint, you may be able to fix this by supergluing the connector socket in place (with it unpluged). Otherwise you can try disassembling the laptop (a time-consuming pain) and solder the connection back in place. Just be careful not to solder other connections/parts to the bad one causing a short. This may very well not work, so depending upon how much you like your laptop, you need a new motherboard or new laptop. Either way the prognosis is not good. Good luck, Mav.

[Maverick223]

Also, doubt its the adapter, but it is alot cheaper and easier if im wrong (I remember that happening once), so you may want to try it. There may be a computer store that will let you test that theory before you buy. Best Wishes, Mav.

[lonewolf57]

Thanks Maverick.
I got my brand new battery and AC adapter today.I put the new battery in,without the old or new AC Adapter connected,hit the power button,and if fired right up!Everything works normally except the screen was a little darker than normal and I noticed the battery indicator light was'nt on,so I did a battery check in the lWinXP control panel.The battery is only at 58% charged,which should be normal I guess without a full charge from the AC adapter.

Well,I shut down the computer and first plugged in the -new- AC Adapter.Again,no battery condition indicator light came on,on the front of my laptop,which SHOULD have occured.These lights tell the user what is going on.A steady green for charged,a steady amber for charging,a blinking amber for dead battery.
I immediately tested the -new- AC adapter at the plug with a digital multimeter and it reads a steady 19.2 volts.I again fired up the laptop with this -new- AC Adapter connected(with new battery still installed) and theres was no change,its as if the new Adapter was'nt even connected.

Frustrated,I decided to try the -old- AC Adapter.I shut down the laptop,connected the -old- AC Adapter with the laptop off.Again no battery indicator lights came on.I fired up the laptop again(with new battery still installed) and all went well except for the darker than normal screen and no battery indicator lights coming on.

Well,every 20 seconds or so,I started noticing the screen would momentarily flash brighter(with a normal looking screen) and the amber battery light would come on(charging) at the same time,for like 3 seconds or so,then go off,wait 20 seconds,then same thing again and again....etc.The laptop obviously has issues with the AC Adapter or a weak/leaking capacitor or diode on the motherboard??????????????

The -old- Ac Adapter is fluxuating between 17.2-18.4 volts output.But the the -new- one doe's NOTHING to the laptop at a steady 19.2 volts output.Why doe's the -old- one seem to work and the -new- one does NOTHING?

This laptop calls for 18.5volts so I think BOTH of these Adapters should be within the required + or - voltage range or am I wrong?

If I'm correct that these AC Adapters are working properly,then my only option is to tear down the laptop and find the bad component.The computer does'nt need the whole motherboard replaced,as its obviously got a minor part that is'nt functioning.

Maybe I should'nt have bought the cheapest AC Adapter?It seems to be working as its supposed to.

Thats where I'm at so far.Any more suggestions are appreciated.Its gonna be a rainy weekend up here in Michigan so I'll be working on this working on thing in any case.NOTHING NEW AROUND HERE THOUGH,it seems I'm always having to FIX something

lonewolf

[lonewolf57]

Also,the AC Adapter plug input on the laptop is tight.Nothing loose at all.

[sittas87]

according to my knowledge and what you have said,id say that there is some connectors not making firmly contact with one another. I read what you said that the AC is firm(it might seem so though),id recommend gently playing with the AC input-connection.you can also take of the laptop cover and see small pins wires etc. @ the AC input on laptop is in place. since you have the time
Good luck-post reply when done

[lonewolf57]

Hello again.I disassembled the laptop,a You Tube video from KastenTech helped tremendously in this procedure as it was almost indentical to my HP 5300,his was just a little older HP model of the HP 5300 series.
The power plug input was tight on the board with strong/clean solder joints,and I did a continuity test that tested OK, to be sure.I removed the fans/fan housing assembly(3 fans!) off the CPU,cleaned everything with clean compressed air,as they were somewhat dusty.I blew off the motherboard and unplugged/re-inserted all electrical connections.I applied new heat sink compound(Artic Silver) to the CPU/heatsink and reassembled the laptop.No Help.Its still running on battery OK,and when the AC Adapter is plugged in,the screen will brighten and the amber charging light will come on for 3 seconds,then go off for 20 seconds,repeatedly.AS I mentioned before,the voltages on the Old HP Adapter jump from 17.2v to 18.4v continously on my digital volt meter.The new Non-HP(cheapie) one puts out a constant 19.2
Well..... I decided to try a brand new Genuine HP AC Adapter after contacting HP support and will recieve it Friday 5/9/08.It costs substantially more than the new cheap Non-HP one I bought.They said most aftermarket AC Adapters would'nt work due over voltages and fluctuations in voltage.It must be a constant 18.5volts and this laptop has a "PFC" circuitry which will disable the AC functions if the voltage is too much below or above 18.5volts,according to them.
Anyway,this laptop is worth salvaging to me and if this don't work,then I'll just have to cut my losses and get rid of it.
I'll post the results on here Friday and hopefully I'l be a Happy Camper with my 1st laptop again!

lonewolf57:)

[sittas87]

hope it does the trick for you
Good luck

[lonewolf57]

Well,SUCCESS!The Genuine HP AC Adapter made the difference and I found out why.
The 1st cheapie replacement AC Adapter I used had the wrong size plug-in.**I've linked a picture to it below.**
It was somewhat shorter in length than what was called for.Thats why the cheapie one would'nt work.I took apart the cheapie replacement Adapter AND the defective Adapter that came with the laptop.I unsoldered the cords on both and soldered the plug-in cord from the defective adapter onto the cheapie replacement.Even though the cheapie one has a higher than required voltage,it seems to power my laptop just fine now.
Now I have 2 working AC Adapters!I'll use the Genuine HP Adapter and keep the cheapie as a back-up.
I went through alot of headache over this for a mostly easy solution.I guess the thing is to make sure the plug-ins are EXACT whenever replacing a AC Adapter.The old adage holds true."you get what you pay for" and that cheapie replacement had the wrong size plug.I should've noticed it right away instead of taking for granted that what I paid for was correct.Thanks for everyones help and support!
Heres a couple links to pictures:
http://img259.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cimg2831gs1.jpg

http://img255.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cimg2832xq7.jpg

Heres my laptop working again!Sorry about the blurry picture,I'm getting sleepy.:)

http://img140.imageshack.us/my.php?image=cimg2835gz7.jpg

[sittas87]

Well done
You're the hero here,but it was afterall what I had in mind.

according to my knowledge and what you have said,id say that there is some connectors not making firmly contact with one another.

[caperjack]

i suggtest you never use the cheaper one ,if it putting out more power than the laptop calls for !