This section will try to answer the most often asked questions I get.

This question gets asked quite often. In an older system the battery may be weak, and the cells have died which would require a new battery.

If your system has a loose jack, this would also cause your battery to power poorly. Simply unplug your battery, and try powering it on on straight DC power. If your power cable does not require handling to power on, your battery is bad or an internal fuse.

If you have a bad 2.5mm jack, I sell wiring harnesses to convert your 2.5mm or 1.65mm jack to a wired 2.5mm that mounts to the case lowering the risk of any future DC jack breaks.

Some systems also have internal ceramic fuses that are 10A, 12A, and 15A that may blow. These fuses are soldered directly to the motherboard.

This section will try to answer the most often asked questions I get.

Follow the links below for an indepth answer to each question.

I run into this more and more these days. Generally, you have two issues. First being your video cable. You can check that simply by seeing if it is connected, and if so connecting it to another system.

If your monitor works fine, then your next issue is the video chipset. More and more I find the newer HP, Dell, and Acer desktop systems use the same Nvidia chipsets as the laptop systems for the HP DV and TX series.

I also find that the add-on video cards, both ATI and Nvidia, have poor circulation fans if any at all, and the chipsets on those need to be reflowed also.

I also find the system may have a capacitor issue. It would display the same signs as a reflow.

To check, just take your cover off, and look at the capacitors. If they are bulging, leaking, or domed, you have a capacitor issue.

Systems that have this issue on a regular basis are Dell SX, GX, OptiPlex, and Dimension systems. I am seeing newer OptiPlex 740, which are AMD based systems, and OptiPlex 745, which are Intel based systems, with capacitor issues.

Your issue with the onboard BGA chipset is heat related. HP DV2000, DV6000, DV9000, TX1000, Dell D620, D630, D630, D820, D830 systems with Nvidia chipsets have the known BGA issues that I can fix by reflowing them.

Now, the question above is asked to me constantly. I personally do not use copper shims. Copper shims and pennies before 1981 do not fix your issue, but do more to hamper it.

You will have three things that can happen. These are an electrical arc, an overload, or a soldering issue.

Your chipsets on your laptop 9 out of 10 times are fine if that have not been worked with in anyway and can be reflowed properly. The chipsets have capacitors located on the top and these capacitors are actually made of ferrite. When you apply Artic Silver and the copper shim in direct contact with your chipset you have stress fractures or arcing. Heat will cause the chipset to move up and down, by design, and will cause the copper to flex causing the capacitor to complete a circuit arcing between the chipset, the shim, and the heatsink which has copper in it. Placing a plastic spacer does not help any since the heat will melt, deform, or damage the chipset in its own right.

Now your chipset may get an overload and burn it out internally with no outer signs. Usually on a DV6000 system you will see a three capacitor cluster on the motherboard overload, and burn the planing of the motherboard. Overloading will cuase the chipset to pull more power in the board causing stress on other chipsets such as the MAX8774, Max8724E, and MAX8734A.

The simplest issue is that your chipset will heat and the shim causes the solder to glob or puddle on the underside of the chipset. There is a reason the CPU is 5mm and the GPU is 3mm with no need to place a shim in to damage that design no matter how poor it may be now or before.

For more details on helping your system not overheat please check this question:

My laptop turns on, but I see no video?

I have been asked this question in the past few days quite a few times. I read what was posted by Precision Division on their eBay ads stating the BIOS files do not fix the issue, and how they modify the fan.

You have to be aware of what causes your system to fail, and what needs to be done to fix it. You have to do four main things such as update the BIOS and video drivers, exit the heat, reapply thermal paste, and change the handling.

As a repair outlet I can only do so much during the repair. Thermal compound helps greatly. Updating the BIOS and video drivers do much more for a system than hardware mods can alone. Handling has to be changed though.

I can modify the fan easily enough by clipping one wire. I suggest purchasing a laptop cooler because when it breaks and the fans die on that system it is easier to change than the weaker CPU fan that is internally in the system. As many already know, the heatsink on a DV6000, DV9000, F500, and F700 are L-shaped. Heat travels through the L-shaped heatsink to exit the system. With a weak fan exiting heat, the heat spreads through the system making the fan work harder to exit the heat. This heat remelts solder, heats your components, wears the bearings in your fan, and weakens your battery cells. Laptop cooling mats do more to move heat than the CPU fan can do on its own.

Thermal compound is key to thermal recovery. The compound absorbs the heat and causes the transfer to happen quicker. In conjunction with a chill mat, this is key to moving heat so it does not spread through the system.

BIOS and video drivers are important because they both handle how the video and system work to displace heat. The Nvidia drivers add support for games and DirectX applications, but also do more important things like bug fixes. Bug fixes can be simple problems as what the new drivers do as of 2009 which is cause the GPU to run at 10 to 20 percent power when idle. I cannot do that to as system, and neither can any other reapir outlet unless they install the drivers. The BIOS update runs the fan at 5v for the complete time the system is on, but it also does another important duty: It runs the CPU at a lower GHz when it is idle the same as the video driver. This cannot be changed in the BIOS without a BIOS update.

Finally, handling is probably the single most important task. As a user you have to know your system, know the reason for the failure, and change your handling. I get calls to ask about reballing and restenciling with leaded solder. That will not help with anything. Heat causes solder to weaken and crack so you have to handle that issue. So handling as a user is key to continued working of a new or repaired system. As a user you have to take simple no nonsense precauations to extend the life.

Here are just a few:

Do not let your system sit on a cloth surface.

Do not block the vents.

Do not hibernate or Stand-By your system.

Turn your system off when you are not using it.

If you are considering using copper shims or pennies please read this question:

Do you add copper shims or pennies?