Battery Not Charging

[DeltaMac]

T... I think a battery should last much longer than that. Especially as it's had so little use. Pretty disgraceful.

Ah, yes - sometimes batteries may die too soon, because they have not been used enough (that is, to operate on the battery)
It's a portable, so use it as a portable every few months, if it's not usually unplugged from power.

[iggz]

Just a question for my wife's macbook.

If we unplug it from the mains, it switches off automatically. battery's not charging! seems to be a similar problems

On the slimbatterymonitor if we mouseover it, it says charging at -214783648% capacity! is this a glitch!?

we went overseas for a month and didnt use the computer - would that be why there's a problem now? is the only fix a new battery?

sorry if the question is a bit dumb haha. thx for help guys

[DeltaMac]

You need to check the battery and charging circuit.
Start with an SMC reset: Unplug your power adapter, and remove the main battery completely. Press and hold your power button for 5 seconds. Nothing will happen at that time, but your power manager will now be reset. Insert the battery again, and plug in your power adapter. Watch the LED on that magsafe connector. It should be green shortly after plugging it in and attaching to the MacBook. Do you get any lights on the battery when you press the battery test button? If all lights don't come on, the LED on the Magsafe connector should turn orange/amber, indicating that the battery is charging.
Wait 30 seconds or so before you try to turn on the MacBook.
Then, press and release the power button.
When startup is complete, go to your Apple menu, and About This Mac.
Click on the More Info... button.
That will open your System Profiler.
Click the Power tab from the column on the left side.
What number is showing next to Full Charge Capacity?
How many Charge Cycles?
Are you getting an orange LED on the Magsafe connector? Or, does the battery icon in your menubar have the charging indicator (looks like a lightning bolt)

[iggz]

thanks for mega quick and detailed reply Deltamac!

no lights on the battery after battery test button

on the magsafe, it turns green shortly after plugging it in - but then there is no light at all!

anyway i can still turn on the mac and i went into the power info

charge remaining: 0
fully charges: No
Charging: No

full charge capacity = 0
cycle count = 250

battery health = poor

no orange led, or charging indicator

looks pretty grim!

[DeltaMac]

If you remove the main battery while the power adapter is attached, does the green LED come back on?

You might get a recovery like this:
Remove battery and disconnect Magsafe (be sure that's also unplugged from the wall)
Press and hold that power button again for 5 seconds. Leave the power adapter completely unplugged for at least 10 minutes. (be patient today!)
Leave the battery out for now.
Plug the Magsafe back in (no battery, and don't turn on yet). Wait for 5 minutes. Does the Magsafe LED remain on and green? Press and release the power button. Let it start, and wait another 5 minutes or so. Does the green light remain on all that time?
Now - insert the battery. And - shut down your MacBook. Wait 10-15 minutes with the MacBook completely off.
Does the Magsafe LED ever change to amber/orange?
Finally - turn your MacBook back on, and let it set for another 10 minutes or so fully powered on.
Return to the System Profiler. Is there any change to the battery listing now? You would be looking for any change to the Full Charge Capacity - like an actual number - or any other indication of battery charging.
If you still get nothing, then the battery should be toast (and not in a good way )

[iggz]

the magsafe led remained green for the whole time. it never changed to orange

no change in system profiler info either! sigh. looks like time to get a new battery

just for future reference, could this have been caused by not using the macbook for an entire month? (not sure if it was plugged in or not)

[DeltaMac]

I suspect the battery was already 'on the edge', and leaving it when the battery could completely run down hastened the death of the battery. If the MacBook was left plugged in, then the battery may have still been working now - maybe...

[contactharish]

Hi there,

According to the post I have tried resetting the SMC i.e. after unplugging the MagSafe both from MacBook & power supply, I removed the battery & finally pressed the power button for 5 seconds. No effect.

Have also tried to plug the MagSafe without the battery but again no affect.

With or without the battery when I plug the MagSafe & switch on the power the LED gives a very very feeble green (it's hardly visible at all but when I switch power off it is black as in no light at all).

My mac is 2 yes old. Could not boot so not able to share system profiler info about the battery. Even after 2 yrs, it would retain charge for more than 90%. I still get close to 3 hrs on full charge.

Can you help?

Really appreciate it.

Cheers,
Harish