ViewSonic TV suddenly won't start at all

[smitty156]

I see that many people who have their tv die on them have a clicking symptom, but mine doesn't. It literally was fine for 4 years and then suddenly I tried to turn it on in the afternoon (after it worked that morning) and got nothing. It's now silent and gives no indication that it is receiving electricity.

Up until this the tv had never had any problems with the picture or turning on. I've unplugged it for a couple days and plugged it back in but it still doesn't work. Nothing unusual happened to the tv or in our house between the last time we watched it and the time it would not turn on.

I've taken the back off of it and identified a few bulging caps which I plan to replace. My question is does it seem like just replacing a few caps will be enough given the symptoms described?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated as I have very little experience with electronics in my life but am eager to learn to solve this problem.

Thanks!

[PlainBill]

Re: ViewSonic TV suddenly won't start at all

I see that many people who have their tv die on them have a clicking symptom, but mine doesn't. It literally was fine for 4 years and then suddenly I tried to turn it on in the afternoon (after it worked that morning) and got nothing. It's now silent and gives no indication that it is receiving electricity.

Up until this the tv had never had any problems with the picture or turning on. I've unplugged it for a couple days and plugged it back in but it still doesn't work. Nothing unusual happened to the tv or in our house between the last time we watched it and the time it would not turn on.

I've taken the back off of it and identified a few bulging caps which I plan to replace. My question is does it seem like just replacing a few caps will be enough given the symptoms described?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated as I have very little experience with electronics in my life but am eager to learn to solve this problem.

Thanks!

I can't promise that replacing the caps will fix the problem, but that's the place to start. I can promise that if you don't replace them the TV is not going to magically heal itself.

The typical symptom of failing caps is the device (monitor, TV) will get progressively harder to turn on. However, the deterioration is exponential. As the ESR increases the heat generated increases, increasing the rate of deterioration, creating more heat, etc. until the cap vents. Then deterioration really accelerates.

Depending on your location, you could be looking at $10 in parts. I suggest attaching pictures of the power supply (see the links in my signature for instructions). Identify the important parameters of all obviously bad caps (value, voltage, diameter, and maximum height), then select replacements (again, see the links) and ask us to verify your choices are valid before ordering them. If you decide not to repair it, I'm sure someone here will be happy to take it off your hands for the cost of shipping.

PlainBill

[smitty156]

Re: ViewSonic TV suddenly won't start at all

Thanks Bill. Are there regular stores that have capacitors that I can purchase or is the internet the best way to go?

I've identified 5 caps that are bulging:

(2) - 16V - 1500uF
(2) - 25V 220uF
(1) - 25V 1000uF

[Wrog]

Re: ViewSonic TV suddenly won't start at all

Thanks Bill. Are there regular stores that have capacitors that I can purchase or is the internet the best way to go?

I've identified 5 caps that are bulging:

(2) - 16V - 1500uF
(2) - 25V 220uF
(1) - 25V 1000uF

Depends on where you live (hint: put that information in your profile for others to see, and read the FAQ on where to buy caps). If you live in the U.S., then I would venture to guess that most prefer to buy from Digikey. I also see that all three caps are available here from Badcaps.net (and he does ship internationally for a reasonable cost).

Also, you left out some information that PB asked for: diameter and height (they may not seem important, but you will find out it is critical!). Other information that may be useful are the make and series (usually 2 or 3 characters) so that specs can be matched or exceeded.