Battery swell on Dell laptop

828 Views | 8 Replies | Last: 4 yr ago by exitone
Proposition Joe
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Long story short, what was an acknowledged "factory defect" in older Dell laptop models where the battery will swell, pushing the trackpad up out of the chassis is still present in more recent models but Dell will not acknowledge it as a factory issue and so will not replace despite how dangerous it potentially could be.

I'm planning on replacing the battery myself, and if it were a normal, properly functioning battery I wouldn't have any reservations... but with the battery already becoming significantly swollen, could anyone chime in if they know how potentially dangerous it is removing it?

Is this a "this thing is likely to blowup in your face don't take it anywhere but a Dell certified repair facility" type situation, or simply one where as long as the battery is disconnected from power and handled gently it should remove with little issue?

Also, where does one dispose of something like this?
Wildmen03
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AG
Rule #1 of working with batteries, especially defective/swollen ones, is do not puncture it in any way. That's what will lead to the escape of noxious gasses and explosions/fire.

Typically, just moving it around and jostling it won't cause an issue, unless it is just so swollen that it's on the verge of busting. But if it's just a little swollen it should be ok.

If you remove it and want to dispose of it properly, call local recyclable centers and/or electronic stores. many will take it, or at least tell you where you can take it.
Pman17
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AG
Not hard to remove depending on if battery is designed to be removed. iFixit may help you there if not. Batteries arent too expensive just make sure you get the right one. Take the old one to Best Buy.
Foamcows
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AG
From someone who has had a battery explode on them. Go ahead and plan for the worst. Back everything up. Assume you will lose everything on that computer. When you do change the battery do it outside or in an area where it won't catch anything on fire. Other than that. Good luck
kb2001
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AG
Just keep in mind, even if you take it to a "Dell certified repair facility", they don't have any special tools or magic that will cause different results. As others have said, back all your stuff up first, because it's a definite possibility that the laptop will be wrecked.

The advantage of taking it to a Dell approved repair shop is that if it blows up they'll throw more money at you if their guys did it. This is also likely something that will be admitted to a few years later so keep your receipts. Apple is notorious for this, but all the major ones do it, including Dell. Deny it long enough and throw out a special warranty program that is too late for most people when they finally admit fault.
TMoney2007
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AG
Dell replaced the swollen battery pack on my laptop, it didn't have to be particularly swollen to push up on the track pad and make it not work.

Just be careful, its an easy job. The first one they replaced under my extended warranty, and then they sent me another one as part of a recall. Once the current battery started to go, I put the new one in and it was like a 10 minute job all together.
Proposition Joe
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Thanks for all the input everyone. Aside from one rogue screw (why do these units use multiple different screw types/sizes?? is the idea that if its harder to get into that you'll just refrain from doing it yourself?), it was an easy swap out.

Will keep all my receipts so if Dell finally does acknowledge that this issue that was prevalent and acknowledged in their last XPS model was still an issue that maybe I'll get my $85 back from Dell for the replacement battery. I'm just glad the touchpad and armrest/chassis still seem to be working fine now that the swell is gone.
TMoney2007
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AG
Proposition Joe said:

Thanks for all the input everyone. Aside from one rogue screw (why do these units use multiple different screw types/sizes?? is the idea that if its harder to get into that you'll just refrain from doing it yourself?), it was an easy swap out.

Will keep all my receipts so if Dell finally does acknowledge that this issue that was prevalent and acknowledged in their last XPS model was still an issue that maybe I'll get my $85 back from Dell for the replacement battery. I'm just glad the touchpad and armrest/chassis still seem to be working fine now that the swell is gone.
I have the 1st gen XPS15 and I guess my first battery swelled before they admitted the issue. When I called them to tell them that my track pad stopped clicking, they half tried to make it an accidental damage issue. I had them escalate it and they issued the order to repair pretty quickly after that.

I had paid for onsite service since it was a work laptop I used every day, but they still tried to have me ship it into them to do the repair. I had paid for next day on site repair so I made them do it.
Proposition Joe
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Yeah that was why I got so frustrated with the Dell techs (even though they aren't the ones that ultimately make the decision on what will be acknowledged as a factory defect and what won't).

Back in 2015 with my XPS 13 9333 I sent it in due to swollen battery pushing trackpad up and they fixed it because it was an acknowledged factory defect. A year and a half later the same issue occurred on the repaired unit and they said they would no longer cover it.

Now with this model the same thing happened and they claim it is/was not a factory defect... just happens to be the exact same problem and one many people are experiencing based on a google search, but as previous posts have said they'll just deny until they have to own up to it long after the fact.

One of the few times where stuff like this has happened and it's been enough for me to decide not to buy that manufacturer any longer.

exitone
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AG
This happened on my Dell work laptop a few months ago. It was a pretty simple switch out. I guess it depends on which model you have. But agree, be careful when doing so...
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