Common Laptop Issues and Solutions - Liquid Spills, Cooling, Power, and LCD Display Screen

 

Troubleshooting Common Laptop Issues

Spilled liquid on the Laptop

I've fixed several laptops that had been spilled by accident. In most circumstances, this is a treatable ailment. It is critical to clean up immediately (before corrosion or internal soakage occurs)! Liquid ingress can result in the following laptop damage: To read the HP Envy 14 Laptop Review, click here

• Due to the conductive nature of the moist liquid, a short circuit occurs. (problem may clear as the liquid dries)
• Dried liquid residue causes a short course.
• Corrosion happens. (particularly volatile with some acidic soft drinks - Coke)
• Above short circuits have harmed electronic components.

Possible solutions include: Turning off the Laptop immediately after a spill, inverting the Laptop, and leaving the machine upside down (drainage) for at least 20-30 minutes. Then, disconnect any associated lines, disconnect the power unit and battery, and let the unit air dry overnight.

To remove any remaining liquid: Request someone remove the keyboard unit and clean it well. To eliminate any contaminants, use cotton buds and distilled water. If you suspect corrosive side effects (from coke), gently touch any questionable areas with a cotton bud moistened with CRC or WD-40. Dry the treated surfaces thoroughly, leaving a light film of the WD-40 anti-corrosive solution. While removing the keyboard, check the regions where the liquid made contact with intense light and magnifying lenses.

The laptop randomly shuts down.

This is frequently due to the following:

• The AC power adapter detects a power drain excess.
• Processor overheating as a result of internal dust buildup (clogged fan)
• The AC power adapter is unable to provide standard power requirements. (faulty power adaptor)
• Battery overheating as a result of an internal battery issue or low charge levels
• Intermittent short circuit or open circuit (check the condition of power leads)

Poor cooling is the most prevalent cause of failure in older laptops. See if visiting somewhere with air conditioning helps. Examine the regions surrounding the internal cooling fan for dust fiber accumulation. Simple test: when the unit is running, feel the airflow from the cooling outlet(s) - is it shallow? If yes, and the team is operating normally, this might suggest that the internal cooling system is partially blocked.

Troubleshoot LCD Video Display Issues on a Laptop

Here are some troubleshooting and repair tips for laptop video difficulties. Video difficulties are widespread in portable computers, and the following methods should help you recognize and resolve typical laptop video issues.

The image on the laptop LCD screen is blurry or very dim.

Examine the Laptop's LCD screen intently to see if you can spot a faint picture. If you can, the LCD lid closure switch on the Laptop may be stuck in the closed position. The backlight remains off in this mode even with the LCD lid open. This saves electricity while the Laptop is turned on but the LID is closed. Next, examine the LCD lid closure switch. It is a little plastic pin at the back LCD hinges. Tap the lid switch several times to see whether the screen backlight comes on. If it doesn't work, I'd recommend replacing the FL inverter board.

The color of the laptop LCD screen is either plain white or garbled.

Connect the Laptop to an external computer monitor. If the external monitor display is good, the problem is with the LCD screen on the Laptop or the cable connection. If the image on the external display matches the image on the Laptop LCD, the problem is likely a malfunctioning integrated onboard video, which requires replacing the Laptop's motherboard.

A typical LCD assembly for a laptop

The following is a simplified explanation of the essential components involved in a Laptop LCD video display problem:

• LCD Connector: This connector delivers video data from the motherboard to the LCD screen. A video wire also supplies power to the LCD panel's FL inverter board.
• PCB for FL inverter: This part transforms the low-voltage DC supply into the high-voltage AC necessary to power the backlight bulb. If the FL inverter PCB fails, the LCD screen on the Laptop displays a highly faint image.
• CCFL (compact fluorescent light bulb): When the backlight bulb is turned on, the image on the LCD screen appears. In particular laptops, the backlight bulb is a component of the LCD screen assembly and must be changed with the entire LCD screen assembly. A specialized Laptop repair shop must replace the backlight bulb.
• Laptop Switch for closing the lid: This is a little (mechanical or magnetic) switch placed near the back display hinges. When the LCD is completed, most computers hibernate or go into standby mode. This is accomplished by interacting with the BIOS power management software on the Laptop. This, in turn, is related to the Windows operating system.

The Laptop is sluggish and constantly displays Internet popups.

The Laptop is almost certainly infested with spyware. Spyware is software that lurks on your computer and seeks to collect data about your online usage. Spyware is occasionally installed on your computer when you download 'unknown' free software or connect to free music Internet apps. (KaZaA, Limewire, BearShare, etc.). Spybot is the most excellent tool for removing and preventing malware. Please visit my Spyware Software Support Page.

The Laptop is frozen, and there is no reaction from the keyboard or mouse. Shutdown

This happens regularly with most laptops I've seen! The simple solution to this problem is:

• Remove the Laptop's power cable.
• Remove the Laptop's battery.
• Wait a few moments. (10 seconds)
• Put the laptop battery back into the device.
• Reconnect the power cord to the Laptop.
• Turn on the Laptop.

The Laptop will boot up normally and will be completely functional. However, if you were working on a Microsoft Word or Excel document during the incident, the data might have been automatically retrieved for you. When you open the Microsoft software in this situation, you will be invited to see the most recent document you worked on.

How to Troubleshoot Laptop Hibernate and Standby Issues

Laptop power management choices can occasionally create issues. For example, hibernate and Standby modes are power-saving modes of operation for laptops that run on batteries.

Hibernation is a method that saves the working state (contents) of your work to disk before the machine enters Hibernation or standby mode. When you wake up the Laptop, you are returned to your previous location. Standby and Hibernation employ a low power consumption mode that retains the contents of such memory. This implies that the laptop computer may be restarted without losing any work.

The Laptop does not wake up from sleep or Hibernation.

Here are some tried-and-true recommendations:

• Allow time - some older laptops may take up to 30 seconds to start up completely.
• Read the instructions if your Laptop has specific 'Wake Up' keys or buttons.
• Hold down the power button on your Laptop for at least five seconds. Some laptops are set to Suspend or Hibernate when the power button is pressed. Holding the power button for 5 seconds or more generally results in a reset and reboot of the Laptop.

Remove the laptop battery and power cable as a last option, wait 30 seconds, replace the batteries, and reconnect the power cord.
You should investigate the root problem now that the Laptop is operating. Typically, such issues develop due to a conflict between the power management functions of the Laptop's BIOS and Windows.

The most typical reason for such wake-up failure is a disagreement between the Laptop's BIOS power management and Windows power management. To see if it helps, experiment with alternative BIOS settings. Check to verify if the Laptop's BIOS is set to suspend the machine and how it compares to the setting specified in Windows. Then, allow Windows to govern power management in most circumstances.