HP Mini 1101 battery problem?

[gelya]

I have a two year old HP Mini 1101 laptop. For the past couple of months, the battery has begun to seriously deteriorate in performance... If the laptop is switched off with full power, by the time I boot, only 5 minutes is now available before it turns off...
Hence, I am looking at replacing the battery. The following are my doubts
The laptop was purchased in the Italy. Will there be any difficulty getting replacement battery here? Should I contact HP or will local stores have replacements?
Will it be possible to go for 9 cell batteries for improved battery life?
Can power surges affect battery life? Is it necessary to connect the power through a surge
protector? More often than not I use the laptop when connected to power, but regularly I need to work without power. Hence, I cant remove the battery as recommended by many. Is it better to have the power always on or regularly discharge the batteries?
I am thinking of getting a cooling pad to improve battery heat dissipation. I want one that is cheap (less than 1000 preferably) and effective. Please suggest brand and model along with approximate cost.

[David (PassMark)]

Should be no problem to get a replacement, regardless of what country you are in.

Would be better to get a HP battery with the right spec unless the price is way higher than after market replacements.

As the laptop will be connected via a transformer I don't think power surges are an issue for the battery. I really doubt a cooling pad will significantly improve battery life. It shouldn't be getting all that hot. CPU and maybe GPU should be hotter.