Power Supply Cutting Out Acer A515-56G.

GraemeJ
GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
edited October 2021 in Aspire Laptops
I have an Acer A515-56G.  It is almost permanently connected to the mains PSU, with the battery charge limited to 80%.  On three occasions the power supply has simply cut out - something which I don't notice until I get a message saying the battery is low.  Turning off the mains supply to the charger appears to reset it and all is then fine for quite a long period.

My question is, is this normal, or is there a fault in the mains PSU?

Thread was edited to add model name to the title


Answers

  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,880 Trailblazer
    Yes normal. When the machine is under heavy CPU & GPU load, both the charger and the battery must kick in to meet the power demand. During those times the battery is not charging but draining to help the charger meet the power demand. So BEFORE starting any heavy loads like gaming or playing videos, the battery should be near 100% charged and plugged in for maximum gaming or video playing time.

    Jack E/NJ

  • GraemeJ
    GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
    edited October 2021
    JackE said:
    " the battery should be near 100% charged and plugged in for maximum gaming or video playing time."
    I don't use this computer for gaming at all and very little video (just the occasional YouTube clip).  Although over-specced for such, it's mainly used for net surfing and emails, etc., so it's hardly "heavy" use.

    I would have thought - even under "heavy" use - it would be able to work continuously under mains power and not cut out in this way.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,880 Trailblazer
    Heavy loads can also mean multiple browser windows open, multiple apps running, non-M icrosoft virus scanners running in the background. Not just gaming. Open Task Manager to see how many processes are being used and the extent to which the  CPU/GPU, GPU memory RAM performance capabilities are being utilized.

    Your laptop is not considered as a workstation or gaming machine that is designed for 'heavy use'. So it has some tradeoffs due to space limitations inside, heat management and battery size. You probably only have a 65watt charger. From your use description,  you'd probably be better off modifying your default power plan if you haven't done so already..

    Open Control Panel. Search 'power'. Click 'choose a power plan' in the left pane. Click 'create a power plan' in next left pane. First try the standard power saver plan. If not suited, we can create custom plans that might be better. 

    Jack E/NJ

  • GraemeJ
    GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
    I'm computer savvy enough to know what a 'heavy load' might be caused by.  My point is that I do not use this machine as a workstation or for gaming - only for very light use.  Rarely more than one browser window/tab, maybe a couple on rare occasions.  No multiple apps, mainly used for email and the odd YouTube video.  As you can see the task manager shows a low load (and that was taken with six browser tabs open). I see no reason for the PSU to collapse   (yes, it is a 65w one).
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,880 Trailblazer
    OK. Go to the elevated command prompt.  Enter 'powercfg /batteryreport'. Then return to the desktop. Open file explorer. Then search for' battery-report.html' in the c:\windows\system32\ sub-folder. Double-click to open it in the browser. Post screenshot of the first part of the report if possible that compares design full charge capacity with its remaining full charge capacity. Jack E/NJ

    Jack E/NJ

  • GraemeJ
    GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
    Here you go


  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,880 Trailblazer
    >>>I have an Acer A515-56G.  It is almost permanently connected to the mains PSU, with the battery charge limited to 80%. >>>

    To help rule out a software incompatiblility between the normal Win10 limiter and 80% limiter, have you tried setting it back to normal  full charge limit for a while to see what happens?

    Jack E/NJ

  • GraemeJ
    GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
    I can try that.  Will have to be later today, as need to go out for a few hours first.
  • GraemeJ
    GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
    OK - been on full charge for a couple of days now, but no discernible difference.  Of course, the problem has only occurred three times since I bought the computer (in February of this year) and it was replaced (or repaired, not certain which it was) by Acer after about six weeks of use, for a totally unrelated problem.

    Being so intermittent, it's a difficult fault to trace.  I was hoping my original question would prompt others who had seen something similar, but it seems I'm on my own. 

    I have decided I will buy a spare PSU and be prepared to junk the existing one if it fails completely.  Having a spare is probably a good thing anyway.   
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,880 Trailblazer
    The 80% charge limiter is mainly to make folks feel better, not make the battery last longer despite the anecdotal claims otherwise that have flooded the internet. I suggest that you leave it off.

    Jack E/NJ

  • GraemeJ
    GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
    edited November 2021
    First of all, thanks for your help.

    I'm not really concerned about battery life.  Although this is a portable device, it is only used in the home and is always mains powered and I could happily throw the battery away ;) .  I am more concerned with the reliability of the mains PSU and that is why I have decided to purchase a spare one.

    Again, many thanks, but I think we are done here.

    Regards


  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,880 Trailblazer
    OK. Good luck. Please let us know anyway whether or not the intermittent issue seems to resolve with the 80% limiter disabled. Another piece of anecdotal evidence that it works or doesn't. =)

    Jack E/NJ

  • Chandashoka123
    Chandashoka123 Member Posts: 45 Troubleshooter
    edited November 2021
    GraemeJ said:
    I have an Acer A515-56G.  It is almost permanently connected to the mains PSU, with the battery charge limited to 80%.  On three occasions the power supply has simply cut out - something which I don't notice until I get a message saying the battery is low.  Turning off the mains supply to the charger appears to reset it and all is then fine for quite a long period.

    My question is, is this normal, or is there a fault in the mains PSU?

    Thread was edited to add model name to the title


    I have also Acer A515-56G . I think you have enabled this feature in acer care center app. Go to search bar and type Acer Care Center and then go to Checkup and then go to Battery and then go to Battery Charge Limit then disable it after then check. 
            Acer Care Center>Checkup>Battery Charge Limit>Off
      

    Accept my answer is correct If my answer is true. Thankyou
  • GraemeJ
    GraemeJ Member Posts: 19 Troubleshooter
    The 80% was deliberately set following advice from Acer.   Following the discussion above, with JackE, I have disabled it to see if it was the cause of the PSU cutting out.

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