The most common fault on a laptop charger power supply
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- čas přidán 22. 01. 2023
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This is great information and in fact this is the exact reason why I always leave the AC cable plugged into the block. The laptop I am using right now is a 2009 HP Pavilion DV7 and it's still using the original power adaptor and the AC cable has only been out of it maybe 3 times since it was brand new. I also always tell people to plug the power adaptor into the mains BEFORE they connect it to the laptop just in case. I've seen a few laptops die from power spikes due to a bad charger when plugging into the mains.
I've always done that, and still, my old laptop got shorted out from a bad power unit and I had to buy a new power circuit because I couldn't fix it.
I've seen many products with the same issue. One thing to consider is the carbon build up on the arcing pins. I normally will remove the connector from the pc board and check the board for carbon. It needs to be removed.
George B
I love your attitude and that you share your knowledge
Just searched for this issue (repair laptop power supply), and found your video. It has inspired me to crack open the charger and troubleshoot it.
Thank you for you passion to repair and not throw away. Pax. Steven.
Learning so much from you Sorin. Wishing you every happiness.
Thankyou very much. I love the common fault videos, they do so much good for people.
As always a great video, manny thanks for sharing your knowledge ❤
A fault that I find just as commonly is that the mains lead is kinked and and one or more of the conductors is broken because the device is pushed up against a wall by the user.
I love his attitude, if a charger isn't working, you think we just throw it in the bin? have a heart.
Great video. It's the first time l watch content like this in this channel, l think.
Yes, capacitor is nasty. Not only I got the shock, but I also burnt the IC that generates impulses and created a fireshow on plugging charger in, blew up the mosfet...
But yes, you'd be amazed how many good original chargers get thrown away because of cable or socket. In my university while we had recycle bin, i've been taking home laptop chargers each day, all of them are original and worked properly. Now I don't know what to do with 20 odd chargers lol.
Ebay at half price.
Laptop voltages are fairly universal (18-21 volts/4-5 amps)
even if the end connectors are not
@@MikinessAnalog yes all my latops operate at 19 volts and i have like 4 of em
Save them as power supply for various projects, I use 2 to power my 2 iMax B6 chargers, and converted one with a step down converter to charge batteries.
This is a great information,I so much love the lecture thanks allot ... from Nigeria ♥️♥️🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬
Great video! A brand name charger would catch a pretty penny... although then it would have been craaazy glued inside and welded together....
Thanks Sorin. Waiting for the laptop repair video next.
Just to add something to an already extremely useful video: I usually use cyanoacrylate glue so I don´t have to use duct tape. It´s extremely fast acting and the bond is strong. Use ONLY the necessary so you don´t seal it so much that you can´t open it anymore. It also burns plastic so try to avoid drops of it on the visible parts of the charger. A q tip always helps if you want to make it look as good as new.
Incredible ! the charger box was opened by miracle ! What the most hard thing. LoL. Thx Sorin
@@omarhamani2126 In the same way as to remove the battery stuck in a smartphone? I must try! thank you ! Nice !
How to open it? Very good trick is to apply petrol(gasoline) or diesel using syringe.
Put small amount in that hole-lines around the charger (it will spread out automatically by itself) and then wait 2-3minutes. Then you will open it very easily by hand.
(when you play with petrol/diesel - remember to open the window to provide fresh air)
its easy to open a copy charger
I hated opening them so much (to the exasperation of saying "nice words" in my native language) that I had to buy a dremel. Thank you very much for the tip. All the best.
@@carlosgarciaoropeza5480 people here keep saying they use a Dremel but high speed tools don't cut plastic too well. They just melt it. Most of those plastic cases you can open by just squeezing them in a vise. The plastic weld cracks then. If I can't get the case to just split apart as a last resort I'll use a hacksaw to cut it on the seam. Once I get a nice slot going I can get a little pry bar in there and get it to bust open then.
@@1pcfred Dremel SC476 SpeedClic
@@carlosgarciaoropeza5480 rotary tools really don't like running slowly. The cooling fan in them doesn't work so well when they don't turn at high speed. I blew a Dremel up once cutting plastic with it. It overheated and the magnet in it split. Damned thing flew out of my hand when it let go. It's really not easy to design variable speed electric motors.
lol like new with black tape great work sorin
I enjoy listening to you!
Right as usual! Also once you touch the charged 400V cap you will never do it again, trust me guys!
Did that last week, half an hour after unplugginga board to the mains I thought it was discharged, and zap. Then I checked, still had 120v.
so is the charger 3 phased, capacitor getting 400v from 2 phase. or is there a boost converter inside charger? how does it get to 400v if main supply, 1phase is 230v?
@@TomiBorchert multiply it by square root of 2. the most distant points of the sine wave. so the cap will be charged to this voltage after rectifier. cca 325V DC!
At my high school - a vocational technical school - it was a popular prank to charge a capacitor to a hundred volts or so and toss it to someone to catch. I learned from others' experience and refused the offer to catch anything. :)
@Tomi Borchert 230-240vac is the RMS voltage, not the peak voltage. Plus, the capacitor voltage needs to be rated higher than the applied normal working voltage. There will be a safety margin.
It was a short video but was very helpful 👌
Hi Sorin, thank you for sharing of your knowledge. What is the best way to crack open a charger?
One way is to use a vice and clamp it into the vise just below the seam and tighten. You should hear the glue crack as you squeeze it. If it fails to crack open, flip it upside down and re clamp it in the vise and tighten. It should crack. You have to understand that the case is designed where there is a reduced thickness section that fits into the other half. Squeezing the right half causes it to compress inwards ungluing the joint. If compressed from the wrong side you are forcing the two halves together. A thin steel putty knife also helps once you have split the case lengthwise. Ungluing the short ends is a bit harder. If you can see which half fits into the other half, use the putty knife to carefully force down into the end joints. Cheap aftermarket supplies are easier to open than the authentic supplies. Use care, if you slip you can get a nasty cut on your hands and or fingers.
Thanks for the videos sir
Great picture under microscope now 🤓 btw Sorin are you using paint thiner for chargers or some of your other methods ?
Thanks for this! I started by checking the voltage at the plug to the laptop, then the wire going to the wall (cheap off aliexpress so didn't trust it). I opened it up to check the caps like another video said, but mine were fine. It ended up being the same pin in my charger so soldered it up and good to go!
Butchered the Hell out of the plastic though. That case was NOT meant to be opened ever in its lifetime. The plastic was softer than the glue so it wouldn't pop open, just bend and rip the plastic. Ended up cutting it with a Dremel cause I didn't wanna screw around anymore
Excellent. Thank you.
Thanks you sorin
Thank you
I would have cleaned the carbon off prior to soldering with a fiberglass brush. And cleaned the flux and residual conductive carbon off with alcohol. Leaving the carbon there could result in yet another poor joint and also arcing through the carbon track pending the voltage involved.
great tips Sorin :)
Love to watch all the video’s
One main issue is the use of no lead solder. Do yourself a favor on all of the critical components, add a bit of lead solder to the joint to wet it and then extract the old solder and resolver with regular lead tin solder. It has some flex to it. As for those pins out of the socket I would mix up some epoxy and place the charger upright and add the epoxy to where the leads come out of the plastic. You are right, it is a very cheap copy of the real thing and the quality of that connector is not the best. That epoxy should add strength to the pins coming out of that connector housing.
Thanks boss for being there at all time....
What can you say to Dell chargers that says plugged in not charging?
I have tried to know the cause but I guess my effort isn't enough, as I can use your help...
Probably the battery gone if it still powers up using the charger
Good job mate 👍
You may also glue the connector for better strenght.
He also could clean this PCB ...
Right! Some hot glue does wonders in order to get the output cables steady and free from separating from the charger ♥
The Electric tape to hold the covers on is priceless comrade lol
How do you open those chargers and so neatly? They are pain in the ass to open the plastic casing...
My partner's laptop charger was playing up and I was convinced it was this exact problem. However, it actually turned out to be a break in the DC cable where it emerged from the unit.
Some chargers connect the socket to the main board using flexible wire to elevate mechanical stress a very nice solution
Excellent video, thanks. How did you split the case of the power supply? I've often found them to be welded together!
We use a Dremel
I crack the cases open by squeezing them in a vise.
When an enclosure can't be pried apart, I've sometimes been able to open the seams using a very sharp chisel and careful application of moderate hammer blows. It depends on the customer - if they are satisfied with functional but ugly it makes things much easier. Just crack it open any old way and tape it up when done. Some customers will be happier with a more expensive replacement unit than they are with a cheaper but more obvious repair.
Knowing how to repair things is sometimes less important than understanding customer expectations. Actually, way more than "sometimes".
@@Thankz4sharing I've done the chisel on the seam thing myself. Sawing can work too. If you're very careful. Usually they just split on the seam. The ultrasonically welded ones split apart. Some are tough though.
@@1pcfred Good point. A fine tooth bow saw is handy. Probably a good idea to wear a mask. Some of that plastic dust is nasty.
This is great 👍 👌
Ofcource and its much better for the invironment instead buying new trashy charger...Well done!
I agree, leaving in the same condition it was in when you got it. Only working.....I would do the same exact thing.
Frankly, if you do a bit of dumpster diving, you probably have more of those power bricks than you can shake a fist at.
Sorin, how did you open the case with no screws. What is the easiest way?
Am i Michael henry by I always enjoy your teacher on CZcams I join school team to learn motherboard repair
Hey Sorin, I was hoping you would shows us how did you open the charger in a non destructive way!!
Thanks a lot.
Maybe pop it open with flat screwdriver, some marks are visible.
with a knife and hammer. it's not a joke :). that's how I open them.
@@DarkGT i used screwdrivers before but yeah they are destructive lol.
@@Adrian_Buligadoes the knife needs to be sharp or not? how long is the knife should be?
@@Sht97 Sorin used a electrical tape, it's destroyed in some ways. You can cut it clean with a saw or try to pop it with something flat and thin. You can heat a knife red-hot and make your task easy.
Replaced 4 chargers till now!!
Ya I had a charger for something else that was a wall wart one no cord for the 120v and they were like just a spring steel or something for the line and neutral that were not making contact
Not only does your laptop not work, but you get a free fireworks display for free 🤣
I would better clean the flux after soldering, mainly at the primary side. The rosin residues tend to draw moisture in and then cause flashover as high voltage is there present over the small distances on the PCB. Mainly the transistor is a very weak spot (about 500..600V peak between the two legs with less than 1mm creep distance).
He uses nothing but colophonia - pine rosin with terpenes boiled -out. Notice how it looks like Baltic amber? It's hard. Then the soldering iron melts it, it is transferred to solder joint on the tip and cools and forms a shellac - like glass - like Ph balanced neutral protective shell. If it doesn't harden or if it turned black - it must be washed away, yes. Improper heat causes this. Black colophonia IS now caustic. But when done right: that protective glass shell protects the area from liquid damage, oxidization, etc. Sorin has one of our community's greatest videos - of truly great value - where he shares with us how to make our own liquid soldering flux.
@@skeggjoldgunnr3167 I know it is "just the resin", but believe me, it is highly hygroscopic and tends to form conductive paths. When still dry, it appears to be perfectly OK. But once it absorbs some moisture (it takes time, but it really does), it upsets high impedance circuits, but really does tend to form carbonized filaments when exposed to high voltage, resulting to nasty flashovers. It does not happen immediately after such repair, the problems start after a year or so when sometimes exposed to humidity (temperature changes are enough; the humidity has to diffuse towards the conductors, so it takes time after exposure as well)...
@@annaplojharova1400
So in high voltage, high impedance circuits I should take care! Thanks for further enlightening me! It makes sense., assuming it is so prone to absorb this moisture. Thanks for adding your expertise.
@@skeggjoldgunnr3167 The best practice is to automatically clean it after your work is done. First the "high impedance circuits" are present way more often than you would expect (e.g. crystal connection to a microcontroller is a high impedance circuit - biasing tends to use 10meg+ resistances, a feedback divider around an opamp or regulator usually is another one, where it tend to shift voltages or introduce quite a lot of noise).
Second aspect is, it block the view on the joint, so cleaning it allows you to inspect your work, whether it is really soldered as it should be.
But with cleaning you should be careful the dissolved flux residue does not contaminate connectors, sockets, switches or so. What works for me is scrape the bulk of it mechanically and only the rest clean out using a solvent (IPA,...) and a small brush or "earbud", so the washed off mess does not end up somewhere without my control.
@@annaplojharova1400 I used to use a freon vapor machine The vapors would rise as a gas onto board, drop to under flash point, turn back to liquid state and precipitate back down - it did perfect work. Then I am told that this process was found by the state of California to be too effective and you're racist if you use that method now. So now I use Acetone bath with acid brush then rinse in 50/50 Perchloroethylene / N-Hexane.
And what do you MEAN, insinuating that my soldering isn't perfect every time the first time?! Why, I NEVER! 😜 Cool info! Thanks. Will add that to making today a much better day, for having learned something! My MIT / US Navy electronics instructor back in the 1970's said "A day that you earn money is a good day. A day that you LEARN something is a GREAT day!"
You're right , i didn't throw my charger away after its not working properly unless i weggle it , after it's stopped working a put in the laptop bag , Never Throw it
"Cold" solder point producing intermittent contact.
I usually see this on the DC side of devices that are repeatedly plugged & unplugged.
Sorin I think you soldered the Live/Neutral and Earth but didn’t do the other Neutral/Live pin and it looked iffy as well
Actually for me he has soldered the middle and left pin, look at the tracks 03:32. The right one solder seems good.
you missed the third pin on the charger connector. you should have re-done that too, because it is likely also weak from the wear.
@6:09 you can already see a faint ring around the third pin as it is starting to fail also
Hardest part of that job is opening the charger, unless its a copy.
Some open easily some are more stubborn. You have to have the tools to do it. The main tool is a bench vise. That alone will open most. The ones that don't just crack open you have to get more aggressive with. I find that attacking a corner with a screwdriver usually does it. But it if doesn't then I'll hammer and chisel the seam. Just walk along the seam with the corner of the chisel.
Can you post a video on how to open a laptop charger plastic housing, i tried a few times and all end up damaged the housing badly. How did you do such a nice job?
You squeeze the case in a vise. You squeeze it until you hear a crack. But don't squeeze so tight you're squeezing what's inside the case. If you don't get the crack flip the case in the vise and squeeze the other side. If that doesn't work then you have to squeeze longways. If that doesn't work then you have to hammer a screwdriver into a corner and twist. If that doesn't work then you have to chisel the seam. If chiseling the seam doesn't work then you have to break out a hacksaw.
aww you didnt show us the hardest bit of opening those darn cases of the chargers
third leg of 220v socket need to solder.
Yeah, there was visible "rounded hollow" around the third pin also... Everytime I do all 3 pins even some of them look OK.
Yeah. Don't bother cleaning the burn residue before soldering, neither removing flux afterwards.
maybe you make a video on how to open these type of chargers... i mean how to take the housing apart. thanks
cu un cutit si ciocan merge cel mai bine....dupa parerea mea. le iei pe mijlic la ciocanit si se deslipesc. niste rabdare si gata. :)
Make videos about fixing laptop chargers
That reminds me one of my HP supplies makes an arcing sound, if not all - what a shockingly crap way of attaching the mains input to the board 🤦♂ Bit like crappy micro USB ports
I salvaged so many chargers from friends about to throw them away because they were "not working", most of the time it would have been just a wire short or something like this
When I'd offer to fix them they'd just say they'll buy a new one... so now I no longer carry changers on myself, I already have one laying around all the usual spots
Can you please make a video for diagnosing a charger
The real problem is mechanical stress. It lifts the PCB pad, overheats, burns out. Only happens on cheap PSUs without flexible cable from socket to PCB.
ASUS chargers are only good for 18 months then die. I have got through two!
Dell chargers are good for 17 years +. HP charger, 11 years old, still ok.
I have an ebay charger for the ASUS which now has a broken wire in the plug. Gerr!!!
I got a sony led chrger that had no octocoupler. And output 19v not stable. So what could be problem. I tried to repair it. But couldn't. Can you explain about that.
maybe clean with IPA alcohol after soldering, the residues of the spark vapes may be conductive and cause future trouble.
Hello...
Do you know why a battery charger green and red indicator is not working, i mean the indicator always red when its charge nothing... but when i use it to charge battery its still charging but it never get the green light on...
Cause of this charger problem started because some shortcircuit between positif and negatif of the dc current..
So i wonder what is brokenn is diode or the IC chip that control on off of the charger?
I'l be glad if you can give me a clue
Thanks
Don`t get me wrong,but most company IT admins will just throw this kind of not working chargers away.
First thing - even if some of them try to open charger - that casing will be FUBAR at the end,so none of these people will loosing time with it.
Or tell the user to reboot the system 🤣
Why not reflowing the third pin of the power plug? Seems beginning of solder crack from what I could see in camera.
How did you open this...? ?????????????????????
hello, i have a question
a colleague gave me a laptop acer m52287
the laptop is not working
he tried to charge the laptop with a trotinet charger, i think it has a 48 volt charger
is there any salvage laptop?
thank you
I love your videos. Just one thing, you cam is a little bit "froggy" expecially the microscope, when you zoom in the view is not Clear
✋ Sağlık iyi çalışmalar
I had one not OEM charger that would work for a while and they the laptop would shutdown and the light on the charger would start blinking. Nothing is burned inside it, won't bother trying to fix something cheap that could end up breaking something expensive.
De-solder the power skt and remove use two part epoxy glue and replace skt gluing it to pcb and resolder
What a timely vid giving the emergency on a United flight out San Diego today: laptop/charger fire forcing an emergency return!!
A fire onboard an airplane by a passenger’s electronics!! Today
Sir can u give me link for good power supply like u , so i can control amp and volt thanks
The question is how easy is to open a charger case without a kind of dremel? Thanks Sorin!
A lot of times you can split the case open cleanly by squeezing it in a vise. Put the split line right on top of the jaw. Then squeeze down. It if doesn't open then flip the case in the vise and squeeze the other half. Sometimes you have to rotate the case 90° and squeeze that way too. But then you need a big vise that can open wide.
The question is, how did you get the two pieces apart from the power supply?
Usually a flat headed screwdriver and light hits with a hammer or even any other lightweight tool.
How did you open the charger ?
And if there is hi volts on that capacitor how do you discharge it ?
The ez way is stick a screwdriver across the terminals, the safe way is to clip a bleed resistor across it
There are a awful lot of fake (HP) chargers around with really poor quality. I usually don't open them when they break, but could do I guess.
Opening the case is usually the trickiest part of these repairs. How do you do it?
Other common faults: The DC-Cable breaks inside and the thermal fuse in the charger might fail if you put it under a pillow or something...
i open it by (relatively) gently hammering a blade of knife (small camping knife) the slot / middle part (juste aviod the corner, you will break it). I guess there is a better solution
Place the adapter on its side and place a (butter) knife blade on the seam. Whack it with a rubber mallet harder and harder until it splits. Once you've cracked it open, you can use a spudger or even a large screwdriver to crack the rest of it. Use superglue or zip-ties to close it back up when you're done.
How to open it? Very good trick is to apply petrol(gasoline) or diesel using syringe.
Put small amount in that hole-lines around the charger (it will spread out automatically by itself) and then wait 2-3minutes. Then you will open it very easily by hand.
(when you play with petrol/diesel - remember to open the window to provide fresh air).
Thank you for sharing! I'll try
@@Radek__ I have tried this technique once with lighter fluid and it did not work. I may have to retry using "real" gasoline, thank you.
Why pull out that end of the cable? You put that end in once and then you never unplug it again. I always unplug the cable from the wall 😁
I thought sparking was relatively normal for a power supply, but if I understand this video correctly, it means there's a bad solder joint that should be fixed?
This is why i only have old trash. My PC is old, my microwave is old, TV and so on. Because i can't throw them out. I always keep repairing them. :(
It's a bless...and a curse :))
Help, i have analog controller Generic, work fine analog on battery usage laptop.
But when i plug ac/dc adaptor to laptop/pc. My analog controller behave unstable , all moving, and some digital button blinking.
I saw this on joy.cpl
What or any suggestion ?
Clean the board before and after soldeing!!
You missed a pin !!
Those mains connectors have 3 pins. You re-soldered 2 but missed number 3.
Number 3 also looked like a dry joint !!
I had one of these it shorted the earth leak relay on my switchboard. It went in the bin and I do repair electronics
It would be very helpfull, when you show, how to open the plastic cover, without destroying it. Thanks.
That's only common the the house knock offs because the OEM hp chargers don't use the same technology in their chargers
I'm more interested how opened the case of the charger.
You can crack them like they're a nut. Just squeeze it in a vise. Most of the time it'll split open cleanly. Sometimes I'll hold half in the vise and get in there with a flat blade screwdriver and give it a pry in a corner. Then there's the hold half and work a chisel with a hammer down the seam method. I love cracking welded plastic cases open. So satisfying.
@@1pcfred I always use a screwdriver and a hammer. I will try the vice method. Sounds less destructive than mine. Thank you.
@@ferna2294 some split real clean and easy and some don't. How it goes is on an individual basis really. I give them a squeeze with the seam at the top of the vise jaws half in and half out. Then if it doesn't go the one way I'll flip it over and squeeze the other side. Then rotate it and squeeze on the other axis. Because you can't squeeze them too much. Or you'll squeeze the parts inside. If it's going to go it'll go. Some do and some don't. A lot of them just split right open. The ones that don't you have to work those. I buy adapters at thrift stores. They'll usually have a cardboard box full of them somewhere. They usually cost maybe a buck a piece? So I look through what they got and if any look interesting I'll pick them up. Cracking them open is oddly satisfying.
i've found the 19v plug to go short because of people tripping over the 19v cable.
I don't throw power supplies away.
Most charger give voltage in output but no current what causes that or voltage is what mention on charger but not charging
yes, this is a copy .. the genuine HP psu has brass plates all around the brick from inside with yellow tape and insulation (for prolonged use and overheating) .. you didn't show the hardest part : opening the case ;))
Во-первых, разъём с тремя выводами, значит и пропаивать надо все три.
Во-вторых, нагар надо счищать потому что он проводит ток.