Be safe and take battery out of notebook

[telos2000]

Be safe and take the battery out of your notebook if you spend long periods of time with it plugged in. The battery can overheat and blow, at least that is what I was told by our IT professional. Seems the big deal over the exploding batteries this Summer got people looking at other situations where batteries could explode. I have mine out when I am plugged in for extended periods of time.

[verwon]

Hmm, and to think we just bought this laptop and there was nothing about that in the warnings for safety. Go figure.

Anyway, ours is supposed to shut off and bypass the battery once it is fully charged and you are on AC power, you can tell because once it is 100% charged, the batter that is warm while charging, suddenly gets cool.

I should probably remove it anyway when I am not going to be using it for hours and hours. Thanks for the tip.

[tlspiegel]

Get a cooling pad and use it always when on the laptop. Mine has 2 fans, is slim and very inexpensive. Even if nothing happens to the battery, you want to keep the notebook as cool as possible just because it will perform better.

Here is mine - I didn't buy it at the site listed, but it's a great cooler.
[Only registered and activated users can see links. Either login above or Register Now]

[matchbox]

right, i also got the information form a IT professioner, and i always take it out when using extension time.

[katlnhats]

Ack, thanks!
I never take mine out! LOL

Kat (who'd better start!)

[firetiger888]

To make every laptop owner scared, here are some pictures:



Next might be your computers turn.

[june72]

thats scary

[verwon]

Ack, though I did read that the problem is only with certain brands and types of batteries, which have all been recalled by the manufacturers.


Thanks for the link Toby, I am definitely looking into that one.

[tlspiegel]

YW Ver! Definitely worth the small investment.

[telos2000]

Someone had to be the first in the current exploding battery fiasco and I ain't going to be the first if there is a second round a coming!

[WhaddaDeal006]

I'm very skeptical of that. Like with the cell phone batteries...it was determined that they were not the correct type of battery for the specific cell phone. So, I would keep that in mind for anything that requires a battery, including laptops.

And if you do choose to take out your battery while using your laptop, save often, because if you lose power (electric goes out, plug gets unplugged, etc) your computer will immediately shut off and you may lose everything you have done since your last save! (Some software do have tried to put safeguards in place to retrieve your data, but I wouldn't want to risk it.)

[telos2000]

That risk is no different than the one you run with your desktop when the power goes off or it gets unplugged, etc.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

[verwon]

I have to agree with you Whadda, I do a lot of work on here and because of the firehall being next door, we often have a brownout when the siren goes off, since it draws power from the rest of our grid, my TV and desktop computer have already blinked off because of it, since it sets off their power surge sensors so they shut off the protect themselves, so removing my batter would mean a lot of interruptions and data loss.

I would rather just leave the battery in, since I already checked with Toshiba and made sure it wasn't involved in the recall and is the correct batter for this laptop, and just make sure the air vent is clear so it doesn't overheat and I am thinking of buying one of those cooling pads that Toby posted about. It will just make it a lot easier and make more sense.

There were actually very few that caught fire and those mainly were on for hours and hours, even days on end, with the battery and computer given no break to cool off. We always shut this one off when we are going to be done using it for hours, never leave it on and plugged in when leaving the house, plus it came with one of those new AC adapater plus charger plugs, the chord is actually 2 pieces that plug into each other, then the outlet and the computer, so it has its own internal surge protector, then batter charger unit, which shuts off and bypasses when the battery is full. When you aren't using the batter and it isn't charging, the batter doesn't even get warm.

I think if you are sure you have a good battery, the correct one for your laptop or notebook, and it isn't one of the recalled ones, you will really have to use your own rationale for this, if you are worried about the issue, then by all means, remove your battery when you aren't using it, otherwise, leave it in.

[katlnhats]

Whadda and Ver,
I have the correct battery and such and I'm leaving mine in. I also have too many things that I work on or write for places that I don't want lost.

Kat

[tlspiegel]

I will always leave mine in, use a cooling pad, and make sure there is adequate air circulationg around the machine (not sitting on my lap).

If the mfg of your laptop/notebook has a recall going on, then definitely comply with the recall. You'll be sent a new battery and be able to send the old one back for proper disposal.