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Repairing Lcd Monitors

LCD monitors like most consumer electronic products have very simple repair methods for every specific defect. If there’s a mechanical failure, the worn-out part is replaced with a new one.

Problems with any of the electronic parts require some investigation, to prevent the deterioration of other parts that may be affected by the defect, but usually whole circuit boards are changed and only specialized repair shops (or the manufacturer) take the time to diagnose and repair the specific fault on these boards, mostly for statistical information that will help the manufacturer to improve product durability over time.

Every LCD monitor has the same basic parts:

The LCD panel, connected with a wide cable to the logic board that analyses and displays the video signal from the computer (or any other device). A small circuit board with few components that controls the back lighting and a somewhat bigger board that hosts the buttons for the OSD and power switch. The power supply can’t really be considered to be a part of the LCD monitor, it’s more like an accessory that was recently incorporated in most monitors to be more practical. An interesting fact is that the first laptops had integrated power supplies that got externalized later, while desktop LCD monitors were first designed with external power supplies and later adopted the integrated solution. One possible explanation would be that power consumption (heat generation) has increased in laptops ~60Watt average, while LCD monitors require less energy every day as technologies evolve, today an average of only 20Watts are needed for a 24” FullHD LCD monitor, so it makes more sense to incorporate the power supply because it doesn’t cause any cooling problems. Repairing LCD monitors can be done by any computer technician that can “operate” a screwdriver and has a basic understanding of how LCD monitor enclosures are put together. If you have this basic knowledge the rest is easy. There are very simple ways of determining which component is defective, so the only thing you have to do is to order a replacement from the manufacturer. Replacing any of the main components can be done by removing a couple of screws and disconnecting 2-3 cables. The only problem that might require some additional expertise is when the LCD panel is damaged, because this is the only part that may cost more to replace than to buy a new LCD monitor.

Repairing LCD monitors with a scratched panel can be very frustrating, because most desktop monitors have an anti-glare coating that can be damaged very easily and there’s no simple way of reconstructing the same kind of surface. From this perspective laptop LCD screens with a smooth surface are much easier to fix with a piece of very fine sandpaper and some plastic polish or glass polish (sold as repair kits), depending on the specific material used by the manufacturer.

Ugly scratches (that don’t penetrate the protective plastic) on a desktop LCD monitor can be repaired at home only by sacrificing the anti-glare coating, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If you are careful not to touch the undamaged surface of the screen while rubbing the scratches, those disturbing optical effects created by relatively deep scratches can be eliminated. All you will be left with are highly polished areas that may be observed from specific angles, tolerable in most cases.

Of course there are a few companies that specialize in LCD repair. They usually charge astronomical fees (that make sense only for expensive screens), but when the job is done the LCD panel will have a perfect surface, just like new.