Computer monitor went black. Fixable?

[Oh Haha]

So last night I was in the middle of typing a reply on Pelican when the monitor went black and I cannot get it to turn back on. It's like there is absolutely no power coming in. I ran to Crapmart and bought a new one but I wouldn't mind keeping the old one for a spare or for the kids to use.

It's just a flat screen Dell but is there a way to fix these without costing a ton?

Thanks,

[looneybin]

I had the same thing happen to me.
mine was a Dell also, it's most likely done.
it's cheaper to replace it than to fix it.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Throwaway society.

[Oh Haha]

So I suppose I won't hurt it any further by taking it apart.

[HardDrive]

Originally Posted by Oh Haha

So I suppose I won't hurt it any further by taking it apart.

If you happen to own a firearm, I have a fun activity in mind that will certainly 'take it apart'.

[tcar]

Check your connections?

I had one do that, took the case off and the power connection inside had pulled apart.

(Be VERY careful inside there, touch nothing else - there is huge voltage in there).

Fixed.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

True - if you feel the need to tinker (not recommended - waste of time IMHO), discharge the caps first.

[Zeke]

I recently found out that there is one extended warranty that comes in handy....Dell's.

[Oh Haha]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

True - if you feel the need to tinker (not recommended - waste of time IMHO), discharge the caps first.

Uh, discharge the whooywhatey?



I planned on not having it plugged in while tinkering. Am I missing something?

[island911]

I had the same happen back in the 90's . . .it was a fuse on the PCB (labeled "F1") I replaced it with a car-radio/ inline type of fuse holder. kind of getto, (fuse hanging out the back) but is still going strong today.


btw, big caps in an LCD ?

[old man neri]

Originally Posted by Oh Haha

I planned on not having it plugged in while tinkering. Am I missing something?

Yes, certain electrical components keep their charge even when unplugged and can seriously hurt you. I don't know what they are or what they look like but I do know they are out there and to be careful.

[robs944]

Had this happen once, it was a bad capacitor.

If you do crack it open and if there is a bad capacitor you will need a soldering iron to remove the old one and install the new one.
You should be able to tell by looking at the top of them, they should be flat, typically when a cap is about to go bad or has gone bad they will be "bulging" or "raised".


If you find a bad cap it will have the capacity and voltage rating written on it (1000uf 16V ) stores like radio shack will carry a replacement for around a $1.

Other than the power supply I don't believe there are any big caps(voltage wise) on the board.

Discharging a cap just means releasing the stored up voltage in it, the smaller voltage ones can be discharged with a small screwdriver (touching the two leads)
The larger ones I try to stay away from but there are proper ways to discharge them.

Go for it, hell it's not working any who, just be careful!

[Oh Haha]

Too late, I already opened her up. I found a fuse that was burnt as well as some other small bits that look like they got hot. It's in the junk now.

My son grabbed some of the bits and pieces so that he can put them on his robot.

[slodave]

There is an inverter that powers both laptop screens and flat panels. They run very hot and usually fail first.

When I repaired Toshiba laptops, the inverter usually cost around $150.00. You can buy a smaller WS flat panel for about that these days.

[Oh Haha]

Yup, I bought one a Dell at Clownmart that night for 128.00. It's a WS 18 inch.

[wcc]

Hook up a capacitor backwards and see what happens. Actually, don't do this. But next time I see you I'll tell you a story...