What to do when your LCD/LED/OLED/QLED/Smart TV gets wet?

One of the worst (if not the worst) things that can happen to your beloved big, flat screen LCD/LED/OLED/QLED Smart TV is getting wet and water damaged! But if, by some unfortunate twist of fortune, this does happen, you need to take absolutely immediate action to TRY and save your TV. Below are a few tips on how to do this.

Tools needed to help save your TV:

• Common handyman tools like screwdrivers, etc., to dismount/disassemble the TV (so you can get the the wet parts).
• Drying agent/desiccant like silica gel (packets), etc. Lots of it! Make sure the desiccant/silica gel are brand new and not already saturated.
• Micro-fiber cloth or something similarly absorbent to help absorb the excess water (e.g., clean rags).
• Vacuum cleaner, blow dryer or compressed air to also help clean away excess water.
• Containers or bags (e.g., Ziploc)
• Isopropyl alcohol (home variety)

Immediate Action Needed!

One of the very most important things we learn about taking care of our electronic gadgetry is that water and electronic circuitry do not mix. Well at least they do not mix very well because they are simply a recipe for short circuits, corrosion, fire and/or explosions. Hence, when you see your TV gets doused, you need to take prompt action to prevent (further) damage.

1. Turn off and UNPLUG your TV IMMEDIATELY. As in do it 1 nanosecond ago! Cutting off the electricity quickly is essential to preventing severe damage or stopping further water damage to your TV. The circuit boards inside your TV have some leeway when it comes to getting wet in that they can get wet for short periods of time and should still work properly if they are totally dry before the electrons start flowing through the circuits again. Note that unplugging very quickly is key here because electricity is flowing into the TV regardless of its ON/OFF status.

2. Get those handyman tools and quickly open up or disassemble the TV to get to the affected components. When in doubt, refer to reference manual for any specific details on how to go about this step.

3. Disconnect and remove the circuit boards (e.g., T-Con, main board, power supply board, LED inverters, etc.) and carefully use a micro-fibre cloth to remove excess water. Take every measures you can to make sure you will be able to put the parts back together correctly again afterwards (i.e., take pictures of the connections, properly store the screws so that you know which goes where, etc.).

4. Get the containers or bags of adequate sizes which you can fill with the desiccant packets and literally bury the circuit boards in them. This is an most important step right here. If this works and you get your circuits totally dry in time to prevent permanent damage, then you should have a higher chance of success. Leave the boards in there overnight or up to 24 hours (or even longer).

5. Check the nooks and crannies of the TV’s casing and be sure any excess water or removed (either by tilting the casing to pour out excess water inside or blow them out using the blow dryer (not set to hot setting), compressed air or vacuum cleaner, and microfiber cloths/rags. I would also suggest to place silica packets directly on any part of the TV (e.g., LCD panel, or any circuit boards that cannot be disconnected) that needs to be perfectly dried out.

6. Bring out the boards from the bags/containers and visually check for any water damage like signs of corrosion. If you see some, use Isopropyl alcohol to rub off the corrosion. Be careful not to damage the components when you do this while at the same time, making sure the corrosion is cleaned.

7. Dry off the boards and the TV one last time using your microfiber cloth and compressed air/blow dryer. Make every effort to confirm everything is dry.

8. Re-assemble the TV and test.

While there is no guarantee that these steps will help save your TV from water damage, immediately performing them when your LCD/LED/OLED/QLED/Smart TV gets wet will afford you some chance to do so.

As always, please be careful and always follow safety precautions. Electrocution is a real danger in these situations.

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