Troubleshoot HP Chromebook 14 that’s not charging

More often than not, we can only know that our laptop doesn’t charge when it’s battery falls below 10% because it’s when it starts to warn you that the battery is low. But when you connect the charger to it, it doesn’t charge and that’s when you begin looking for a solution. That’s the case with some of our readers who own the HP Chromebook 14. They contacted us because their laptops no longer responds to their respective chargers.

So, in this post, I will guide you on how to troubleshoot your Chromebook that doesn’t charge but we actually have two situations here; we will try to troubleshoot your laptop that doesn’t charge but still has battery left and one that already powered down as the battery has already been drained up. So, if you’re one of the owners of this laptop and are currently bugged by a similar concern, continue reading this post as we might be able to help you.

But before we go to our troubleshooting, if you are looking for a solution to a different issue, drop by our HP Chromebook 14 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most common problems with this laptop. Odds are that there are already existing solutions in our website, so try to find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions we suggested. If they don’t work or if you need further assistance, fill up our questionnaire and hit submit to contact us. We will be more than willing to help you with your problem.

HP Chromebook 14 won’t charge and not enough power

In this section we will be troubleshooting your chromebook that already turned off after draining all of its battery and not charging for some reason. The most common scenario is that you left your HP Chromebook with low battery overnight and when you wake up in the morning, it won’t turn on when you open the lid and won’t charge when you connect it to the charger. For this problem, here’s what you need to do:

Step 1: Make sure the charger is plugged to a functioning outlet

The first thing you have to check is the charger especially if it’s the first time that this problem occur. There are times when we think the AC adapter is plugged to a wall outlet when it’s not. Then there are also cases that it’s connected to a non-functioning outlet. Unless you have a tester to check if the outlet is actually providing electricity, it’s better that you plug the adapter to the outlet that works. For instance, you may use the outlet where your TV is plugged in just to make sure.

Also, the AC adapter is composed of two cables actually. The first cable is the one that you connect to the wall outlet, which also need to be properly plugged to the adapter itself. The second cable is the one that has the adapter on one end and the other end should be connected to your laptop. All of these should properly be plugged in.

Step 2: Find out if the battery indicator LED lights up when you connect the charger

Usually, the battery indicator LED should be lit when the charger is connected to it. When it charges, more often, you will see an amber light. If, however, you see a green light, wait for it to turn amber and leave the computer charge the battery before attempting to power it on.

If the indicator doesn’t light up, still leave it charging for ten minutes as there are times when the battery doesn’t respond immediately especially when it’s totally drained. But also be mindful if the bottom part of the laptop is heating up because if it does, disconnect it from the charger immediately to prevent further complications.

Step 3: Perform the Embedded Controller (EC) reset

There’s a chance that your chromebook is just frozen that’s why it’s not responding when the charger in connected. By doing the EC reset, you’re actually trying to unfreeze it but do so while the laptop is connected to its charger.

To do this, press and hold the refresh and power buttons for 3 seconds. If the laptop boots up, problem solved, otherwise, it’s time to bring it to a shop and let the tech handle the problem for you.

There’s only so much we can do about the laptop that won’t turn on and not charging, so let the professional fix it.

HP Chromebook 14 not charging but still has power

Now, we’ll try to troubleshoot your HP Chromebook 14 that won’t charge but still has some battery left and is working properly. I’ve encountered this kind of problem, too and was able to fix it by doing some things you might not believe work. But before that, make sure you follow the instructions in the first step above to make sure you connected the charger to a functioning outlet and that all the cables are fitted properly. After which, follow these steps as they worked for me a few times already:

Turn your HP Chromebook 14 off and then close the lid.
Unplug the charger from the wall outlet and disconnect your laptop from it.
Connect your Chromebook to its charger again and then plug the AC adapter to a functioning wall outlet.
Keep the lid closed.
The battery indicator light may not turn to amber, which means your Chromebook is charging.
Leave it charging for an hour without opening the lid and everything should be working after that.

If, however, your laptop still won’t charge after this, then it’s time to troubleshoot.

Step 1: Perform the EC reset on your Chromebook

Press and hold the refresh and power buttons for 3 seconds and your laptop will then boot up (of course, this is only applicable if there’s still enough battery left to power it up) normally. Unlike the hard reset which causes a complete data loss, EC reset will only refresh your Chromebook’s system. After which, try to charge it again and if it still not charging, then move on to the next step.

Step 2: Verify the AC adapter is actually charging the battery

The charging process in chromebook is pretty straightforward and Chrome only plays a little role when it comes to charging but it can tell you if the AC adapter actually pushes current to your laptop’s battery. Here’s how to know…

Plug the adapter to wall or power outlet and connect the other end to your laptop.
Turn the laptop on if it’s still turned off.
Press the ctrl + alt + t keys to open crosh.
Type battery_test 1 into crosh, and then hit enter.
Check the result to confirm the battery is charging.

It should say “Battery is charging” when it actually does. If it show it, then the power adapter isn’t charging the battery of your laptop. Unplug the adapter from the wall outlet and physically inspect for breaks. If everything looks good, try a different charger only if there’s one available, if there’s none then it’s time to bring it to the shop and let the tech check it for you but I would also suggest doing the next step just to be thorough in our troubleshooting.

Step 3: Check the discharge rate of the battery

We’re actually checking the health of the battery here and the test we have to undergo may have the following results:

If the Battery health percentage is greater than 50%, the battery is within the expected wear limits.
If the Battery health percentage is equal to or less than 50% and the battery is less than a year old, the battery is outside expected wear limits and might need to be replaced.
If the test results show Battery is Unknown, the battery might need to be replaced.

Now, here’s how you check the health of the battery in your HP Chromebook 14…

Disconnect the charging cable from the Chromebook.
Press the power button on the Chromebook and sign in to your account.
Close any open apps or tabs and reduce the screen brightness to the lowest level.
Open the Chrome browser and type chrome://extensions/ in the omnibox (browser address bar), and then press enter.
Remove the check marks next to Enabled to disable all of the extensions.
Press the ctrl + alt + t keys to open crosh.
Type battery_test 1 into crosh, and then press enter.
A screen displays the current battery health and discharge rate.

Depending on the result, you may need to have the battery replaced as it might be the reason why it doesn’t charge anymore.

I hope that this troubleshooting guide can help you deal the not charging problem with your HP Chromebook 14. Good luck!

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Troubleshoot HP Chromebook 14 that’s not charging | Chromebook not charging