This article has been modified due to the numbers of annoying comments (largely unpublished due to stupidty and trolling). Since nobody can agree on the best calibration method for Li-ion batteries (and since people clearly couldn’t read properly to see that the method I had provided was intended only for new batteries), I’ve removed that entire half of this post!
Sorry to those who genuinely want to know how to calibrate your batteries, but the information I’ve left here is (on its own) crucial.
How to properly MAINTAIN a Lithium-Ion (Laptop) Battery
Here’s how I do it (and I’ve only ever had to replace 1 laptop battery… that includes laptops I’ve had now for more than 5 years)
- NEVER (and I mean NEVER) store a laptop battery with less than 50% of its charge (in fact, 50% charge is ideal for storage… so try to ensure your battery is as close to 50% as possible, though slightly over isn’t so bad)
- NEVER store your laptop battery within the laptop itself for more than a few days! If you do, the battery will be slowly drained… this will (if left for too long, or done to frequently) de-condition your battery… perhaps drain it to the point where it can no longer be recharged (as I witnessed with a friend who stored his laptop battery inside the laptop, unused for 3 months)
- NEVER store a laptop battery in cold conditions (if the temperature is uncomfortably cold for you, it’s generally too cold for a laptop battery)… this will actually damage the Lithium-Ion battery irreparably, and the longer you leave it in such conditions, the less capacity the battery will hold… eventually holding nothing!
- NEVER short-circuit a battery (any battery)…. you’d be an idiot to do so, but it’s worth saying it again!
- NEVER disassemble a battery (any battery) unless you are certified to do so. REMEMBER, Lithium-Ion batteries are potentially explosive. They contain alkalies which are hazardous to the human body (ESPECIALLY if inhaled). A ruptured Lithium-Ion cell could potentially (spontaneously) catch fire! Don’t think that, just because you can work a soldering iron on a piece of stripboard, it makes you qualified or savvy enough to safely disassemble a battery pack! PEOPLE HAVE DIED TRYING TO DO SO!
- NEVER submerge a laptop battery in any liquid (goes without saying)
- AVOID shock of any kind… in-particular electric-shock, over-vaulting, under-vaulting, charging with an incorrect power block, power-surges… but also physical shock (dropping it)
- ALWAYS fully discharge your laptop battery at least once per month (run the laptop, under normal conditions, without being connected to the mains [AC])… immediately recharge the laptop at least to 50% when your laptop battery has died. The most common cause of battery depletion is that the laptop has been connected to the mains for weeks (sometimes months, even years) without being run on the battery. Keep in mind that your battery is not being charged when the Smart Chip (within the battery) believes it is charged. This means that a “fully charged” laptop battery being run inside a laptop connected to the mains is actually slowly discharging; because the mains is providing a sufficient current to the laptop, it never bothers to re-test the battery to see if it is in need of charging…. the end result is your battery becomes flat (0% charged) and will not accept much (if any) charge in the future.
- ALWAYS ensure that you recharge your laptop battery ASAP after running it on the battery beyond 50% of its available capacity.
- ALWAYS recondition your battery at least once per year (see the section above for steps on how to do that)
If you follow all of this advice, there’s no reason you should be replacing any Lithium-Ion battery within the first 2 or 3 years (perhaps even longer) of owning it. Remember, I have batteries that are more than 5 years old and still hold virtually the same amount of charge today as they did when they were new!
A piece of advice specifically for laptop batteries
Try to buy a spare battery ASAP (either with, or shortly after) buying your laptop! A common practice for manufactures is to discontinue laptop models, and purposefully use a different style of battery on the newer models. This means that it becomes difficult (sometimes impossible) to find a replacement battery when the time comes. One reason laptop manufacturers do this is to force you into buying a new laptop! I have a spare battery for every portable device I own… don’t forget to rotate between your primary and your spare frequently, and maintain both of them as outlined above. Too often people buy a spare, leave it in storage for as long as a year, come to use it only to find it doesn’t work… that’s your fault for not maintaining it properly.
So…. no more excuses, people! Look after your batteries and they will look after you!
May 12, 2012 at 2:19 pm
site, information and chance to comment
much much appreciated!
however nobody can quote you because
just saying “Never” without naming a decent
supporting source diminishes your efforts to
an opinion.
kindest regards
Damian
May 12, 2012 at 2:34 pm
I wasn’t aware that common sense required the direct quoting of other sources, which would in turn have to quote other sources in an infinite loop of people being told the same information from more sources than common sense requires.
But, whatever… if you wish to leave your batteries in cold conditions, allow them to sit dead for ages, charge them with an incorrectly-rated charger, short-circuit or otherwise abuse them, that’s up to you. Just be sure to quote sources when you post on the social networks how your batteries died.
May 12, 2012 at 3:41 pm
cheers Simon,
actually I supposed common sense
referring to those topics who do apply beyond
to the common sense
sorry for appearing as the wise guy now, no intention whatsoever:
“store or charge a laptop battery with less than 50%”
reason?
“store your laptop battery within the laptop for more than a few days”
normal BIOS drain of 1-2% makes less than 50% a month
“ALWAYS fully discharge your laptop battery at least once per month”
sorry mate, but at least this needs an official quote prior me wasting time for nothing
anyway, tried over the years several things you suggesting here either
and I can’t find that any of the suggestions I followed so far had a major impact.
either battery died at the time*** or I changed my device where usually the old
packs never fit the new slots. so I’ll never know how long they’d been going on
after ebayed.
maybe TV’s myth busters are interesting in the whole topic?
take care
Damian
***
opening the battery pack exchanging a dead cell saves you a fortune!
May 12, 2012 at 4:20 pm
Sorry if my previous reply seemed somewhat harsh… I responded during the daily process of filtering out lots of spam and abuse (which gets me in a mood sometimes).
With storing the battery in the laptop for multiple days, this follows standard industry regulations regarding ALL battery types, as batteries stored in a completed circuit when not under load can do one or more of the following (over time):
1) Heat up (possibly too much)
2) Leak (more an issue with Alkaline batteries, but I’ve heard stories of it happening with Li-ion too though much less frequently)
3) Cause degredation of the charged (non-discharging) cells (they can actually crystalize more rapidly when a circuit is completed but they’re under no-to-low load).
As regards a monthly full discharge of the battery (I.E. to the point where your device switches itself off), this follows similar logic to point 3 above. If you’re only using your device on battery for short periods (I.E. in such a way that the battery is never being fully recharged), certain cells may remain under constant charge while others do not. This can lead to “inequality” amongst the cells, which in turn degrades the battery more rapidly.
The most common reason why people don’t notice any improved performance from an already-used battery pack is that they begin concerning themselves with improving its longevity only when the battery pack is already degraded. It’s like administering CPR to a long-dead corpse: wasted effort. The key is to observe these very simple rules from day 1, so that the battery pack is never unduly degraded in the first place.
As for Mythbusters, not sure if this is something they’re interested in or not (I’m in the UK and they only seem to care about their US audience and their suggestions).
Yes, replacing dead cells in a battery pack CAN save you a fortune (if done properly), but for the sake of liability alone I simply CANNOT condone it (unless you’re qualified in the act).
May 14, 2012 at 8:56 pm
Thanks a bunch! Nice tips and explanation! Sorry to hear you get jerks feedback constantly. Please don’t let that discourage you from sharing your knowledge. I can not comment yet if your advice works since only time will tell but seems like legit great advice and I plan to follow your steps.
Just wondering if this applies to my Android battery as well? I had issues with it for months not holding a charge on any of the three batteries I own for it. I have several chargers and used them all with the phone for about 2 years with no issues. Then about 2 months ago it started only charging when I have it plugged into a wall using a charger that did not come with it. I took it to BestBuy since I have my warranty through them and they sent it away and my replacement is coming. Meanwhile I have the loaner phone they gave me that was working well. Yesterday it started the same problem. Only charges at home with one certain charger? I only use the charger they supply so it couldn’t be any of my other chargers that went to my droid? I have plugged both phones into my computer (MacBook Pro) and car on a daily basis. I am beginning to wonder if either my car or laptop is causing issues with these batteries? And if so why out of the blue? I am trying hard to find an answer to this since I pick up my replacement phone today or tomorrow and do not want to damage it or the new battery I ordered to go with it. Any advice or suggestions you may have would be greatly appreciated. I know this is sort of unrelated to your above article but since you seem knowledgable about batteries I thought maybe you’d have some insight into my issue. Thanks for reading
Sincerely
Ashley Anderson
May 14, 2012 at 9:06 pm
Hi Ashley…
I’m about to publish a comprehensive article on getting the most from the batteries of Android devices. This article (the one I’m commenting on here) is really about “general battery maintenance”, and the advice applies to pretty-much all battery-powered devices.
The upcoming Android article gets deep into battery optimization via Android OS. There’s so much mroe you can do to extend the run-time of your battery on Android than on a Windows laptop. I also provide visual comparrisons pre- and post-tuning to prove that my advice works, along with step-by-step instructions so that you can repeat my configuration for yourself! In a nut-shell: a substancially more detailed article than this one!