MB loses charge after shutdown

[skwij]

I did do a search, but didn't find anything on the first page of search results.

What happens is this:

I use the MB from the couch, plugged in, battery fine, for a few days. Due to security issues where I live, I shut her down and hide her. Sometimes it's a couple of days before I feel like surfing from the couch again, as I have the desktop to work from.

Most of the time, I plug her back in, fire her up, and have a depleted battery! Sure, it's only about 30 mins depleted, but still? All updates are installed, and I've let her run down at least a couple of times to recalibrate the battery. I do get good mileage when I don't have her plugged in, but I find it strange that I shut her down fully charged, and when I fire her up again the battery is slightly depleted.

And no, she's not sleeping when I shut her down.

The Magsafe is fine. It glows orange when she's been plugged in after a couple of days of shutdown, but does glow green when the battery is supposedly fully charged.

 

[ab2650]

From your attachment, it shows 99% capacity, which I suppose is a few minutes... How long had you left it uncharged?

I personally don't think there's an issue here. Batteries will deplete over time without any draw on them; They have a shelf-life, charged or uncharged. If you were seeing something much more dramatic, like a 50% draw from being off for only 24 hours, then I'd worry something is shorting or causing a power draw.

If you're committed that something is not right, I'd suggest the following experiments for our scientific knowledge:

Experiment A) Charge up, remove the battery and leave it next to (but not touching) the computer. See if there is a correlation between the distance it is apart from the Macbook to how much power is drained. For starters put the Macbook in the kitchen and the battery somewhere in Newfoundland.

Experiment B) Is there a correlation between the time you've had the computer hidden under your mattress and how much drain has occurred? For instance, try leaving the computer off for 24 hours, then a weekend, then go for a full year. Did it drain 256.25 times as much?

 

[skwij]

Interesting reply, and I'm not quite sure how to take it.........hmmmm....

I guess I should take a screenshot of the battery depletion when it happens next time, rather than when it's fully charged.

Oh, and I did grow up in Newfoundland, but there's no way I'm shipping the battery there for the sake of an experiment

 

[ab2650]

Interesting reply, and I'm not quite sure how to take it.........hmmmm....

I guess I should take a screenshot of the battery depletion when it happens next time, rather than when it's fully charged.

Please don't take it badly; I was in one of those moods when I made the post, so it's really meant to be funny. (If I insulted, my apologies).

I suppose what I'm getting at is have you noticed a correlation from the length of time the battery goes unused to how much it has been depleted? I don't know much about batteries, but I'd assume that they lose charge by themselves over time - Much like regular rechargeable batteries won't be full power if they were allowed to sit on the shelf for extended periods of time... In other words, this may be the norm and you are the only one noticing it.

My other thought may be battery depletion caused by a short. I'd suggest seeing if there were a difference in charge loss if the battery was left unconnected to the macbook, as opposed to attached.

For what it's worth, I haven't really left my MBP for more than a few days unused, and don't recall seeing a significantly low charge when starting it up again. I'll keep an eye out though...

Oh, and I did grow up in Newfoundland, but there's no way I'm shipping the battery there for the sake of an experiment

But I hear that cold weather extends battery life! One of the perks of the north, I suppose?

 

[skwij]

The MB hasn't been used for about 2 days, unplugged from the adapter, and shut down, not slept.

So there is definitely a small drain when the MB has been shut down and disconnected from the charger. Nothing major I'm sure, but I'll be keeping an eye on it.