iBook battery fails after HD replacerment

I have a white iBook 600 14 inches. I recently had to replace the HD… what a wild job on these toys. It took me 4 hours!!!

After rebuilding it, I started it on the battery: nothing.
Next, I tried on the AC adapter. It works. Woawww!

Now, the battery seems absolutely dead (one flashy led). This is quite strange as it was fully charged seconds before I removed it to fix my HD. Since rebuilt, it has been charging more than a day, but I don’t see any changes: the battery remains dead. There is even not enough energy to keep running the clock when I unplug the AC while the computer is OFF!

It seems the contacts between the computer and the battery are OK; the battery icon, next to the clock changes when I remove the battery. I have re-opened the bottom of the iBook to check if the connectors are OK. Obviously, there is energy getting to the battery (between 14 and 15 volts, depending on the contacts).

When checking the voltage on the battery connectors, I get between 0 and 4 volts.
I opened the battery “box” with a cutter. All the elements show 4.11 volts.

Could anyone tell me if this is a symptom that my battery is really dead? Is there a fuse? Could the electronic inside the battery case be out?
And has anyone experienced a case of sudden death of a year and a half old battery? I have used it very little as it has always been on the computer connected to AC?

Of course, I plan to try with another battery, but I have to find one for the test… before thinking to buy a new one…

Thank you. -Yves.

I had a similar problem, but it was not related to a hardware install. About a week ago my iBook did the same thing. I always leave it plugged to wall power, but occasionally take it around the house. Well, when I tried to do that recently, it died when unplugged from the wall. Strange, because it has a battery less than three months old. I tried my old battery (original, holds about a ten-minute charge) to no avail. my iBook no longer seems to receive power from the battery, but it recognizes it. That is, the menu bar shows the percentage of charge, time remaining, whatever, and goes to the black X when the battery is removed. I wish I could help. Somebody help me!

What kind of disk did you replace the original with? Check the spec on the disk, and make sure the power requirement is within the range of the original. If the power requirement is high enough, your battery won't be able to supply enough current and it may die like that.