Dead Elitebook 8440p - Battery Indicator Light blinks every 30 seconds

[Evariware]

Dear HP Support Forum,

     I am servicing a client's laptop.  As you can see from the subject it is an Elitebook 8440p.  On Xmas eve of this year he spilled 2 tiny drops of water on the keyboard, immediately shut the machine down removed the power and battery and let it dry out.  

     It has not powered on since.  The only response is the battery indicator lighting up blue once every 30 seconds wether or not the power button is pressed.  This only happens when the battery is installed, doesn't happen when the battery is removed and the power brick is connected.  I have checked the output of the power brick with a multimeter and it is definitely sending current.  I have checked the output of the battery while installed with a multimeter and it is sending current... 

     During tear-down I did notice that the ZIF connector from the power button board to the LED board under the switch cover was damaged and possibly not ensuring a reliable connection.  I checked with a multimeter and current was getting thru so I moved on when I was unable to stimulate a real deal POST.  And of course I tried holding the power button down for minutes with the battery and RTC battery and power brick disconnected. Having completed tear-down and visually inspecting with a magnifying glass EVERYTHING LOOKS PERFECT. 

     I've tried just about everything short of baking in the oven at 350 degrees for 9 minutes or until a crispy brown crust appears.

 I have checked HP's POST error codes pages and nothing applies here....

Would someone Please inform me precisely what the Blue Battery Indicator Light every 30 seconds means? Also I am open to suggestions.   

Sincerely, Sean

[y2ken]

You probably have already seen this:

Notebook Battery LED Blinks

[Evariware]

Yea I've been there and wanted to try other power bricks like it says to but I don't have any with the correct configuration.  An update tho... When i check the output from the power brick I read 19.91 volts from the inner side and outer sides of the ring and 15.41 volts from the outer side of the ring and the pin in the middle, which is ground i'm guessing. anyway the power brick says it's supposed to output 19.5 V @ 4.62 A. Is that difference of .41 volts acceptable or common with HP laptop adapters??

[y2ken]

I use a Universal A/C adapter to test power issues when working on laptops.

A problem with checking voltages directly from the adapter is that it is not drawing power/have a load on it. I've tested desktop power supplies using a "power supply tester" that showed it was putting out the correct voltage but when you actually put a load on it, it would fail. Now I always use a new power supply to the check for suspected desktop power issues.