Charger gives green light but battery is running low

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AlwynSmit Author

Level 1

0 points

Charger gives green light but battery is running low

I experience a number of issues:

Charger not wanting to charge at all.
Charger showing a bright lit green light but the battery is not fully charged.
Charger showing a bright lit green light but the battery is not charging. Battery icon has the little lightning strike through it and is solid showing a X percentage of charge. But as soon as the power adapter is removed the percentage charge drops dramatically.
Charger shows a dim green light with the same results as described above.
It seems the battery takes longer than normal to charge.

I tried the following:

Clean the adapter and macbook power connection with alcohol.
Used a different charger but results are inconclusive. Sometimes it would charge perfectly for a day or two and then the same issue occurs.
Condition of the battery is normal when using Alt + clicking the battery icon.

My macbook is a:

Mid 2010 Macbook Pro 15 inch
running Yosemite 10.10.3

MacBook Pro (15-inch Mid 2010), OS X Yosemite (10.10.3)

Posted on Jun 15, 2015 5:23 AM

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Answer 1

OGELTHORPE

Level 9

57,329 points

Jun 15, 2015 5:45 AM in response to AlwynSmit

Try a SMC reset:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295

If no success, post this from System Information>Power:

(make certain that the charger is connected)

Ciao.

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Answer 2

AlwynSmit Author

Level 1

0 points

Jun 15, 2015 9:41 PM in response to OGELTHORPE

Hi OGELTHORPE,

I first need to get the right tool for the screws connected to the battery.

Here is the other information requested.

Battery Information:

Model Information:

Serial Number: W0033Q1Y3BWZA

Manufacturer: SMP

Device Name: bq20z451

Pack Lot Code: 0

PCB Lot Code: 0

Firmware Version: 201

Hardware Revision: 000a

Cell Revision: 158

Charge Information:

Charge Remaining (mAh): 5846

Fully Charged: No

Charging: No

Full Charge Capacity (mAh): 5995

Health Information:

Cycle Count: 1019

Condition: Normal

Battery Installed: Yes

Amperage (mA): -1345

Voltage (mV): 11981

System Power Settings:

AC Power:

System Sleep Timer (Minutes): 0

Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes): 0

Display Sleep Timer (Minutes): 5

Wake on AC Change: No

Wake on Clamshell Open: Yes

Wake on LAN: Yes

Display Sleep Uses Dim: Yes

GPUSwitch: 2

Hibernate Mode: 3

PrioritizeNetworkReachabilityOverSleep: 0

Battery Power:

System Sleep Timer (Minutes): 15

Disk Sleep Timer (Minutes): 10

Display Sleep Timer (Minutes): 15

Wake on AC Change: No

Wake on Clamshell Open: Yes

Current Power Source: Yes

Display Sleep Uses Dim: Yes

GPUSwitch: 2

Hibernate Mode: 3

Reduce Brightness: Yes

Hardware Configuration:

UPS Installed: No

AC Charger Information:

Connected: No

Charging: No

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Answer 3

OGELTHORPE

Level 9

57,329 points

Jun 16, 2015 2:32 AM in response to AlwynSmit

AlwynSmit wrote:

Hi OGELTHORPE,

I first need to get the right tool for the screws connected to the battery.

Battery Information:

Model Information:

Serial Number: W0033Q1Y3BWZA

Manufacturer: SMP

Device Name: bq20z451

Pack Lot Code: 0

PCB Lot Code: 0

Firmware Version: 201

Hardware Revision: 000a

Cell Revision: 158

Charge Information:

Charge Remaining (mAh): 5846

Fully Charged: No

Charging: No

Full Charge Capacity (mAh): 5995

Health Information:

Cycle Count: 1019

Condition: Normal

Battery Installed: Yes

Amperage (mA): -1345

Voltage (mV): 11981

AC Charger Information:

Connected: No

Charging: No

You do not need the #0 Triwing driver to disconnect the battery. Please read the SMC reset directions again, specifically for batteries that you should NOT remove.

Did you have the charger connected when you took this information. If so, it is not being recognized. Either the charger is faulty or there is a break in the charging circuit, usually a problem with the DC input board. If available, try another chrager or test the charger on another Mac.

Run an Apple Hardware Test:

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201257

Note an error free AHT is not definitive.

Consider replacing the battery. It is still serviceable, but getting near the end of its useful life. Old batteries can die and then expand, damaging the MBP.

Ciao.

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Answer 4

AlwynSmit Author

Level 1

0 points

Jun 16, 2015 12:20 PM in response to OGELTHORPE

OGELTHORPE,

My MBP is a 15" Mid 2010 model. I have checked as thoroughly as possible and everything indicate the battery is removable. And for the life of me can I not get the MBP to boot into AHT mode.

The charger was connected when the information was taken. The charger does not work on my other 13' MBP. When I plug the 13" charger into the 15" it works and charges the battery. Then it can possibly be the charger? Is it possible to diagnose and fix or should I replace?

Thanks for the help thus far.

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Answer 5

OGELTHORPE

Level 9

57,329 points

Jun 16, 2015 12:58 PM in response to AlwynSmit

AlwynSmit wrote:

My MBP is a 15" Mid 2010 model. I have checked as thoroughly as possible and everything indicate the battery is removable.

Technically you are correct. The battery can be removed, but Apple considers these batteries non-removable by USERS, but to be removed only by Apple technicians. I have removed these batteries but there are risks associated with doing so if you are not careful. These are the proper SMC reset instructions for your MBP:

And for the life of me can I not get the MBP to boot into AHT mode.

Use the original installation disk that has the AHT instructions written on it.

The charger was connected when the information was taken. The charger does not work on my other 13' MBP. When I plug the 13" charger into the 15" it works and charges the battery. Then it can possibly be the charger? Is it possible to diagnose and fix or should I replace?

That indicates a faulty charger. It cannot be repaired, only replaced. You will need an 85w charger for the 15" MBP, the 13" MBP charger is 60w. Get one at an Apple store or purchase one here:

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Apple/MC556LLA/

Do yourself a favor, avoid the 'bargain' chargers on ebay and Amazon. They are counterfeits.

Ciao.

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