WTF just happened, my laptop charger turned into a sparkler? :O

I'm getting my replacement through a computer shot that builds computers and does repairs for us.

 

Well, f*ck.

I'm using it right now, and it really is unusually hot, as in, quite painful (but just bareble) to press fingers against it. I'm pretty sure that's a lot hotter than the original one was just after it's death... The battery has gotten discharged since the incident (the battery is really shitty and loses whatever charge it had if left unplugged for a while). I'll charge up the battery and see if it gets cooler when that's done. I'll probably get an original thing from HP, can't be bothered unplugging this thing all the time or worring about it all the time...

 

Damn, that doesn't sound enjoyable at all! :suspicion:
I personally only use proper adapters with my laptop, no point frying a laptop (or my foot) over a cheap adapter.
That said, poorly made adapters can be quite scary when they don't work as they should (read: fire!).
Then again, I've come across some really well built third party adapters before.
It all depends on how badly the manufacturer cost cuts in the end!

 

I Always protect these AC cables. So now there are no replacement cables in my house.

 

Try to run your laptop without battery. If PSU will run without much heat, then it's not a bad PSU but faulty battery.

Also if you'll need to order a replacement, check if there's a more powerful compatible original one. I had a 45W HP laptop PSU that ran quite hot, especially when CPU was under heavy load and failed after two years. I bought 100W one with same connector, pinout and voltage, it was for newer, more powerful laptop. Runs cool all the time and just a bit bigger and heavier.

 

It does sound like the battery needs replacing anyway, so that may be worth a try. And yes, just because a charger says its compatible, doesn't mean it always is. Do check the voltage and current outputs and the rated wattage.

 

Thanks everyone for your input!

The new charger cooled down quite a bit after the battery was charged, during normal use its about the same as the old one. (I really don't remember how hot the old one used to be during charging).

I have tried to get a new charger from HP but it costs €61 and it's not in stock so the delivery date is unspecified (Fun fact: Many of the spare parts, like the CPU, literally cost more than the entire machine did when it was new, five years ago). So then I thought it was more reasonable getting another used/broken laptop just to get the charger, but then it felt more reasonable just to get a new laptop altogether.

Yeah the battery needs replacing, but there are no new ones to get (it's only compatible with like 2 models). I've already tried som "new original" one on ebay (damn it why don't I ever learn) some years ago, that battery died after a single discharge, and I noticed that it was BULGED, which I believed in no way could be a good sign in any way so I haven't used in since. I can't be bothered with finding other ones, I just keep the old battery in it to keep the computer steady on the table

Long story short, I think I'll just keep this one until it or something else breaks.

 

A new laptop charger will be better for this case. Good luck to you!