Lightening Killed My TV

[Midniteoyl]

Or, easy way to find out if its the fuse (if you dont have a VOM that is ) is to alligator clip around it..

 

[MossRoad]

Called around. No TV repair places within about 20 miles.

Tell me about it. I have a degree in TV and radio repair. Unless you owned your own repair shop back in the 80's you had to work for someone else and there wasn't a lot of money in TV and radio repair then. Worse now as things have become non-repairable due to manufacturing efficiencies. You can't even get parts for a lot of things these days. Once you factor in labor its almost always more appealing to a consumer to replace the defective TV with a newer model VS repairing it as repairs (if they can even be done) will cost half as much as a new one. Who would have thought TV and radio as we knew it would go the way of the dinosaurs. Glad I got a job at a newspaper. They'll be around fo......................................

:laughing:

 

[hr3]

Or, easy way to find out if its the fuse (if you dont have a VOM that is ) is to alligator clip around it..

Was thinking the same thing,, Ooo and a word of caution.. My visio did the same thing about a year ago.... I changed the fuse and smoke came out from somewhere ??? Went in the trash..

 

[tallyho8]

Go to Harbor Freight and buy a $3 meter so you can check your fuse without taking it out. Very easy. Get the meter then we will walk you through it.

Once you learn how to use the meter you will find all kinds of uses for it.

 

[tallyho8]

Duplicate

 

[N80]

I do need a meter.......

 

[k0ua]

Would this be a good time to tell a TV vs lightning story? A friend of mine (who by the way was a TV repairman) back in the 70's saw a rather severe lightning storm coming up, and decided to unplug his 19 inch portable TV. He not only unplugged it from the AC and the antenna, he was being super cautious to get it away from these outlets. He sat the TV in the middle of the living room floor. Lightning then struck the house. and blew out of every AC outlet in the place. The least of his worries was the TV, but when it was examined later, it was found that the picture tube was facing the AC outlet when he set it in the middle of the room and a piece of metal from the outlet blew out from the strike and had pieced the picture tube. When your TV is going to die, it is going to die and there is nothing you are going to do about it. Old Carl is not around anymore to back this story up, but he told it as the truth.

James K0UA

 

[wyeguy]

Truth is often stranger than fiction.. I believe it!

 

[jinman]

I have a Philips 37" CRT type HDTV. Sam's was closing them out in 2002/3 when I built my house and I bought this beast. It is a monster at around 200 lb. It's so heavy that I had to use my tractor's loader to hoist it up to the 2nd floor deck and into my living room on a hydraulic lift dolly so I could lift it up and put it on the special TV stand that can hold 200 lb. This HDTV was pre-HDMI or USB adapters. Also, it's interlaced, so the resolution is 1080i instead of 1080p. I have a very nice Samsung 46" LCD TV in my basement game room and I'd like to go up to 52" there. I've been hoping that lightning or something would turn this old CRT weight lifter's dream into junk so I could justify buying a new TV for my game room and move the larger 46" TV up to my main living area. Of course, since I want something to happen, this beast just keeps on working perfectly. Maybe if I put in on craigslist under "free stuff" I can get somebody with more muscles than brains to come get it.:thumbsup:

 

[MossRoad]

I have a Philips 37" CRT type HDTV. Sam's was closing them out in 2002/3 when I built my house and I bought this beast. It is a monster at around 200 lb. It's so heavy that I had to use my tractor's loader to hoist it up to the 2nd floor deck and into my living room on a hydraulic lift dolly so I could lift it up and put it on the special TV stand that can hold 200 lb. This HDTV was pre-HDMI or USB adapters. Also, it's interlaced, so the resolution is 1080i instead of 1080p. I have a very nice Samsung 46" LCD TV in my basement game room and I'd like to go up to 52" there. I've been hoping that lightning or something would turn this old CRT weight lifter's dream into junk so I could justify buying a new TV for my game room and move the larger 46" TV up to my main living area. Of course, since I want something to happen, this beast just keeps on working perfectly. Maybe if I put in on craigslist under "free stuff" I can get somebody with more muscles than brains to come get it.:thumbsup:

If you would build it into a custom entertainment center and build your entire A/V experience around it investing thousands of dollars in installation, I can pretty much gaurantee that it will die soon thereafter! :laughing:

 

[aczlan]

Every four or five years we have been getting a bigger TV. The old eyes are not what they used to be. Each time, the bigger TV was as cheap or cheaper than the old one. We paid about $800 for a 55" Sanyo a couple of years ago. I saw it in Walmart last week for $650. Eleven years ago when we built our house, we had two entertainment centers built. One has a 32" space, the other 36". Back then that was as big a TV as we dreamed we could afford. Now our big TV is sitting on top of the one in the living room and our next biggest TV, a 42" Sanyo, is sitting on the credenza here in my home office. If we upgrade again in a few years, we will have to get rid of the entertainment center in the bedroom, or leave the 36" there and take the 42" to my office at work.

Hence the reason why when I build ours it will be a built in corner cabinet that the TV goes on top of. No problems with getting a bigger TV in the future that way.

Aaron Z

 

[N80]

Warning, semi-related and probably rationally unsound rant to follow:

I give up on fried Sony. Do a little research and find the TV I want to replace it with. Target web site says it is in stock in local store. Go to Target. Look at the one on the wall and I'm satisfied with the picture quality etc. After looking around for a while we finally find a sales person. She pulls out a little thing that looks like a cell phone, punches something in and says there is one on the shelf were we are standing and that there is not one in back. There is not one on the shelf. She tells us that in that case they do not have one. Since her little machine is wrong about there being one out front maybe it is wrong about there not being one in back. She says that is not possible and as we are walking away she calls someone to tell them she is going on break.

Seems odd to us so we ask for a manager. Manager says their little scanner is never wrong and no need to look in back. We show her the Target web site on our iPhone. She says web site is often wrong about inventory and takes a long time to update. We tell her the scanner is wrong about there being one out front. No, she says that refers to the one on display and that is probably why the web site says there is one in stock. We ask if we can buy it. She says no. We ask why the web site says there is one in stock when there isn't. She shrugs.

We asks if she might just look in back to see if there is one there. She indicates that she will but that it will be a major undertaking. We walk away.

(Please note, during this entire encounter my wife, who is always patient and always very pleasant does all the talking. Not grumpy old me.)

And go to BestBuy which is in the same building. The selection there is horrible and we find nothing with the specs we are looking for (40-42", 1080p, 120hz, 3 hdmi ports).

Drive across the road to Walmart. They have the TV on display.....but not in stock. Walk over to Sears in same building.....it looks like a yard sale. TV's not working, poor selection, stuff all over the floors.

So here in Rock Hill (pop. ~ 60k) I can't find anyone to take $500 from me. Makes me kind of tired of hearing concrete and mortar stores whine about the impact of the internet on sales. They aren't even trying. I'll buy the TV I want from B&H Photo Video......in New York.

 

[grsthegreat]

Ya, i feel for you.

Best buy gave me such a run around when i wanted to purchase my Sony Bravia a few years back. I ended up buying everything online (tv, surround sound system, etc) and saved over $600 off of best buys prices.

been real happy.

 

[joshuabardwell]

... and then they say, "Well, sir, we don't have it in stock, but we can order it for you!" And I'm like, "If I want to wait a week to get it, I can ORDER it for myself, and have it come straight to my door, and for cheaper than you! The reason I came in was because I wanted to take it home TODAY."

 

[aczlan]

So here in Rock Hill (pop. ~ 60k) I can't find anyone to take $500 from me. Makes me kind of tired of hearing concrete and mortar stores whine about the impact of the internet on sales. They aren't even trying. I'll buy the TV I want from B&H Photo Video......in New York.

They do good work over at B&H...

Aaron Z

 

[crazyal]

Take a look on ebay or do a search. Sometimes you can find a replacement board for cheap. Plug and play.

 

[Midniteoyl]

Warning, semi-related and probably rationally unsound rant to follow:

I give up on fried Sony. Do a little research and find the TV I want to replace it with. Target web site says it is in stock in local store. Go to Target. Look at the one on the wall and I'm satisfied with the picture quality etc. After looking around for a while we finally find a sales person. She pulls out a little thing that looks like a cell phone, punches something in and says there is one on the shelf were we are standing and that there is not one in back. There is not one on the shelf. She tells us that in that case they do not have one. Since her little machine is wrong about there being one out front maybe it is wrong about there not being one in back. She says that is not possible and as we are walking away she calls someone to tell them she is going on break.

Seems odd to us so we ask for a manager. Manager says their little scanner is never wrong and no need to look in back. We show her the Target web site on our iPhone. She says web site is often wrong about inventory and takes a long time to update. We tell her the scanner is wrong about there being one out front. No, she says that refers to the one on display and that is probably why the web site says there is one in stock. We ask if we can buy it. She says no. We ask why the web site says there is one in stock when there isn't. She shrugs.

We asks if she might just look in back to see if there is one there. She indicates that she will but that it will be a major undertaking. We walk away.

(Please note, during this entire encounter my wife, who is always patient and always very pleasant does all the talking. Not grumpy old me.)

And go to BestBuy which is in the same building. The selection there is horrible and we find nothing with the specs we are looking for (40-42", 1080p, 120hz, 3 hdmi ports).

Drive across the road to Walmart. They have the TV on display.....but not in stock. Walk over to Sears in same building.....it looks like a yard sale. TV's not working, poor selection, stuff all over the floors.

So here in Rock Hill (pop. ~ 60k) I can't find anyone to take $500 from me. Makes me kind of tired of hearing concrete and mortar stores whine about the impact of the internet on sales. They aren't even trying. I'll buy the TV I want from B&H Photo Video......in New York.

So what are you looking for? Brand/Model?

I cant believe BB didnt have a 40" 120hz tv with at least 3 hdmi. I have a Dynex (their brand) 42" and 55" both with 4.. Of course, I only use one since my 7.1 amp has 4 too with auto switching.. Something to look into if you cant find a tv to your liking with 3+ HDMI.

 

[CliffordK]

Over the years I've dealt with a few printers that have died after power surges. Perhaps a computer or two... Anyway, it most commonly is the power supply.

Just start typing any numbers you can find on the power board that look like they are describing the board into an internet search, and see what you come up with. It probably won't be cheap, but perhaps you can replace the power supply for $100 or so. I assume it is a separate circuit board from the rest of the TV.

An electrical tester should tell you if the fuse is blown. HF testers are cheap, but I've had lots of troubles with them. I'd much prefer going to a "reputable" store, and buying at least a $20 tester.

 

[jinman]

I was in Sam's yesterday and could not believe all the TVs they had. If I can't buy it at Sam's, I just order it online. However, I'm not sure anything as big and bulky as a TV will be the best thing to order online. Even inside a box that is relatively undamaged, you don't know how far or how hard it may have been dropped. You may find after unpacking and installation that it does not work. Then it's a super pain to return, etc., etc.. Your online purchase from B&H will probably be fine, but I always worry about big items.

Recently I bought a queen size memory foam mattress that was shipped. They sucked all the air out of it and rolled it up into bag and put it into a box that was 2'x2'x66" and weighed over 90 lb. When FedEx arrived, the box had a double fist-sized hole in the side. I put my hand in and felt around to discover that there was no damage to the bag holding the mattress. Had that been an appliance or furniture inside that wasn't soft, it might have been a different story. You do take a bit more of a risk when you buy big items online that get shipped. I bought a window type heat pump from AJ Madison and had it shipped to my house two months before the room addition started. I opened the box, but never took the unit out. When we went to install the unit, I found the plastic front cover of the unit had been smashed and broken inside the box. Luckily, I was able to glue and tape it until the glue dried so that you can't see the damage, but it was a pain in the patoot to have to do a repair since I didn't want to hassle with ordering a new part.

 

[joshuabardwell]

Even inside a box that is relatively undamaged, you don't know how far or how hard it may have been dropped. You may find after unpacking and installation that it does not work. Then it's a super pain to return, etc., etc.. Your online purchase from B&H will probably be fine, but I always worry about big items.

I ordered a large TV off of Amazon once. It came via cargo truck, not by UPS or other carrier.