Help Me Stop Blow-Drying My TV

September 8, 2012 10:13 AM

How can I keep my unusually moisture-sensitive TV dry in high humidity?

My Samsung LCD television is part of their LNT series. One of several quirks with these models is that when humidity rises above a certain point, its backlighting won't go on at start-up. You just get a black screen with sound.

The workaround is to either dry the room (e.g. with air conditioning) or to blow hot air through the air grating in the back using a blow dryer for a couple of minutes.

Both are a bit of a hassle, and I'm trying to think of alternatives. I'm figuring the best approaches would be to either 1. put some sort of desiccant material inside the casing or 2. find a way to keep the back case of the TV warm. I need to be careful not to heat the room, since humidity is mostly a problem during summer months. Also, unless it was very mild heat, very closely applied, electricity consumption would be expensive and wasteful.

Any suggestions for either route? Or a different option?

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There is a lot of theorizing online about technical solutions, but no clear answer. And this is, fwiw, separate from the capacitor issue with these models.

posted by Quisp Lover to technology (9 answers total)

What about strategically placing some DampRid near the TV?
posted by radioamy at 1:10 PM on September 8, 2012

If there's enough room inside the case, you could try using a DampRid sachet. It's a cheap option to try, anyway.
posted by pont at 1:17 PM on September 8, 2012

Didn't know this product, doesn't seem designed for this sort of usage, but might work. Thanks!

what about those little desiccant packages some manufacturers throw in with their products? That'd have to be more suited, I'd think.....?

I'm hoping someone knowledgable could tell me if this is ballpark viable. I don't need bone dryness....the tv works fine on normal days. Rainy days, or palpably "damp" days are the problem.
posted by Quisp Lover at 1:34 PM on September 8, 2012

Dessicants only work for a little while, and then they need to be replaced or refreshed. And you would need a LOT of it to counteract an entire roomful of humidity.

Why not just a dehumidifier?

You know that's a broken TV, right? If it's still under warranty, you should insist that it gets fixed.
posted by gjc at 3:12 PM on September 8, 2012

If you can't get it replaced or fixed under wty, what about a small fan blowing across it all the time or a small blowing heater fan on a timer?
posted by tilde at 3:47 PM on September 8, 2012

Yeah, I've learned this afternoon that desiccant would need to be endlessly replaced (or baked in an oven).

There's nowhere in this room to vent a dehumidifier, and constantly emptying a water tray would be a bigger drag than blow drying the tv.

It's not under warranty

A small fan would blow in humidity as well as dryness. Zero sum.

A small blowing heater fan on a timer would make sense only if I had a precise idea of when I'm going to watch TV every day.

Nothing else? There's no sort of very low voltage circa 2' by 2' pad I could keep strapped onto the back to raise the temp a dozen degrees?
posted by Quisp Lover at 4:14 PM on September 8, 2012

When you are finished watching the TV and it is "dry" why not cover the vents on the TV? And when you want to watch it again remove the coverings. One would imagine that with restricted airflow the humidity inside the TV would not change considerably...

Downside is that you might overheat the TV by forgetting to remove the cover...

Also, desiccants do not last forever but they do "recharge" if the humidity drops (and the water trapped by the desiccant evaporates). If you only need to drop the humidity a small amount every once and a while it is possible the desiccants will lose enough moisture on the low humidity days to be effective.
posted by NoDef at 5:42 PM on September 8, 2012

Thanks, NoDef.

Maybe I'll try a cover to go over the whole tv (it's flat screen). That might keep humidity out, plus I'd need to remember to remove it in order to view!

I have to think about what sort of material. Cotton might be too breathable.....
posted by Quisp Lover at 5:49 PM on September 8, 2012

I think I've found the solution. Heating pads are too hot, too small, and too wasteful. But this....
posted by Quisp Lover at 8:15 PM on September 9, 2012