How to replace the internal battery in an iMac
If your clock resets itself to 01/01/1970 every time you restart your iMac then you need to replace the internal battery. I rang Apple when my battery died and they said it would cost about £40 to replace the battery and I’d have to lug my iMac to an approved apple dealer. The battery costs next to nothing and it’s fairly simple, although a bit fiddly, to do yourself.
First you need to buy a battery try Farnell in One (UK) or Zbattery (US). The battery is a 3.6v half AA Lithiumionyl Chloride Cell. Farnell Part Number: 206520 Price: £4.33. Zbattery Item Number: LS14250 Price: $8.97.
Now you need to switch off your iMac and then unplug all the cables connected to it. Then put your iMac upside down somewhere it won’t fall off. Next get a coin and open the hatch on the bottom of the iMac. This is where you can put in the airport card and RAM. If you have an airport card you will need to remove it as you can’t get to the battery with it in.
Once removed you can clearly see the battery.
Be sure to remember which way round it goes (positive points to the monitor, it’s marked on the circuit board too). Now you need to remove it, if you have good dexterity and long fingers then you may be able to remove it with your fingers. For the rest of us though I would suggest using a pair of needle-nosed pliers. Just grab the battery, grip it and pull. If it pings out and rolls off in the mac don’t panic, just gently tilt the mac so it rolls back toward the hatch and grab it (obviously it’s better if you can get it out without dropping it but I dropped mine the second time I had to change it and it still works fine).
Putting the new battery in is thankfully a bit easier. Just gently balance the battery on the holder then push down on it untill it snaps in. Now replace the airport card if you have one, close the hatch and plug the machine back in. You will have to set the date again but it will remember it now.
February 28th, 2004 at 1:44 am
I love you. I replaced my battery today and if it weren’t for you, I’d have been out some cash. Thanks for posting this page!!!
March 5th, 2004 at 12:36 am
Ian, Do you know the spec of an imac internal battery?
Thanks,
Martin
March 25th, 2004 at 1:21 am
funny directions — and very well done — but i might add that you should discharge the static electricity from your body by touching a lamp base (or something else grounded) before you dig in. that way you won’t inadvertently fry anything.
cheers!
May 19th, 2004 at 5:38 am
After you have replaced the battery, look for the the little grey ‘button’ on the logic board.
Then use a ballpoint pen to press the button down for about 10 seconds to reset the logic board.
Otherwise, your computer may not restart, even with the new battery.
May 19th, 2004 at 9:37 am
Really? I’ve never had any problems with just replacing the battery. I would have thought removing the battery would reset the logic board but then I know absolutely nothing about electronics. Thanks.
October 22nd, 2004 at 11:55 am
Thanks so much for putting up this page. Why isn’t this info published elsewhere? It keeps computer technicians in work I suppose.
October 24th, 2004 at 11:57 pm
Thank you for making what looked like a complex issue into an easy one
November 19th, 2004 at 2:10 pm
nice one - I hunted all over the Apple site for this!
December 4th, 2004 at 5:15 am
Thanks.
December 20th, 2004 at 9:30 pm
You wont find this on the Apple site……do you want them to lay off their technicians??? : )
December 25th, 2004 at 8:34 pm
I tried replacing the battery both ways, pushing the button and not pushing the button, it worked the same either way. Of course the rules say to push the button, they just don’t say what it does???
January 10th, 2005 at 2:11 pm
Thanks for this. It’s the second time I’ve used your instrux. My last replacement battery has only lasted 2 years. This seems a short time. Batteries in my old Mac Quadra (once a IICX) last for 5-7 years.
January 17th, 2005 at 6:00 pm
cheers for good clear instructions and usefoll link
January 27th, 2005 at 5:58 pm
Thank you so much Ian! I used your instructions to change my battery. I have a later model iMac so opening the hatch on the bottom was easy, but it was tough reaching up to get that battery out- but I did it. You saved me a lot of time and trouble. Thanks again so much. I’ve also posted your website on the Apple discussion boards so you will get a lot more visitors seeking help and guidance!
January 27th, 2005 at 6:00 pm
Oh yes- I forgot to mention this in my post above. Here is a US site that has excellent pricing on batteries, and they also include instructions if you request them:
http://www.macbattery.com/36voltbattery.html
January 28th, 2005 at 10:01 pm
I found the LS14250 battery at batteries plus. They had 800 in stock for $8.99 each. It was like an amazing circus act balancing the battery on my fingers to get it out. Lots of fun! Thanks for posting this info. It’s getting tough to find info on the imac dv version.
February 5th, 2005 at 6:24 pm
Good instructions, thanks.
Didn’t stop me making an arse of it, mind. Here’s what NOT to do: don’t try to lever the battery out with your finger while pulling back the side of the black plastic holder, because … you’ll snap the holder. Yes.
Luckily the battery’s still staying in place. And luckily the bit of plastic now rattling round inside my iMac doesn’t appear to be doing any damage
February 6th, 2005 at 4:21 pm
thank you! i spent hours looking for a tutorial
cheers from Spain.
February 20th, 2005 at 3:24 am
Nice instructions,
Some of us like to do our own repairs just to have the satisfaction of knowing it was done and done right. I thank you,
David
May 29th, 2005 at 11:00 pm
Thank you so much for a clear explanation! Now my old iMac, serving as my network’s web server will restart after a power failure, even if I’m not around!
I wish Apple had posted this somewhere — at least I found your link in the Apple discussion forums.
June 18th, 2005 at 3:42 pm
yet, one more satisfied customer. thank you, thank you, thank you!