Well this is a new one for me and I hope one of my fellow Outlaws can help me out with it. I just finished watching Master and Commander tonight (great movie by the way) and changed my Mitsubishi vs-60111 RPTV back to regular programming when I noticed something in the right hand corner of my screen. From my viewing position it looked like a smudge on the screen. I always make a point of keeping all my electronics dust and smudge free so I went over to investigate. It turns out that a Spider has decided to make a home inside my HD ready TV!!! I can see his web and all 8 of his little legs quite clearly and I’m not sure what to do about it. Is it hard to take the back off one of these sets? This little fellow has to go!!! Any one ever have this happen to them? I’ll be the first to admit this is funny but it is also a real pain in the butt problem. Any advice would be of great help.

Thanks in advance
Lasher

Whatever you do, DON'T TOUCH THE MIRROR! I've read a few horror stories of guy's trying to clean the mirror with Windex and really screwing them up. Use a soft cotton cloth to wipe off the cobwebs. If your mirror is dusty, start with a can of compressed air so you don't have to touch it.

------------------
My HT v4.0

I worked for many years with a variant of RPTV units, and there is “always” a way to access the screen, either by sliding the framework holding the screen elements away from the cabinet or removing the electronics chassis from the cabinet. There may be other “ways in,” but I wouldn’t recommend one that changes the mirror’s alignment.

You may find some help from your manufacturer’s online or telephone tech support. When you start, just go slowly and carefully. Probably best to have another set of careful hands working with you.

If you can manage access that allows a vacuum cleaner hose inside without totally removing the screen, you might try that. If you are going to put a brush attachment on the end, make sure it’s really clean and dry. Sometimes one or more of the screen elements is a very finely textured Fresnel and/or diffusion lens. It’s good not to get dirt or finger oils into the grooves or texture. If you don’t use a soft brush, don’t “aim” the hose directly at the lens in order to prevent the lens suddenly being sucked to the hard plastic and being scratched.

If you remove most of the offending web, but the screen does need cleaning, you may need a special cleaner such as a Brillianize product and a lint-less soft cloth.. The standard Windex and some other household cleaners can either harm the plastic or leave residue in the fine texture. If there are fine grooves, work the cloth in the direction of the grooves, not across them.

There are likely better and more comprehensive directions than these somewhere, but I thought I’d offer a bit of what I remember.

Be careful about the can of compressed "air", such as Dust-off: many (most?) are not merely air compressed in a can. They are a chemical that is liquid at moderate pressures and, when used, under normal atmospheric pressure, become a gas. Many can leave a reidue and therefore should not be used on sensitive optical equipment.

If you want a better option, go to a camera store (a real one that has some repair ability/knowledge) and find out what they use to clean the CCD (or CMOS) sensors on digital SLRs.

That spider just wanted a front row seat to watch Charlotte's Web.

Paul

------------------
the 1derful1

Both on, and off topic:

1. Maybe I'm lucky, but here in Ottawa I found a top-notch tech who did a full ISF calibration (~3 hrs) on an RPV for $225C (~180US). I gotta think he'd charge less to clean out a cobweb!

2. The local Toshiba service tech only charged me $50C for a 45 minute housecall a year ago. Seems about right for a spider removal as well.

Bottom line: why risk screwing things up badly. In some cases do-it-yourself does not pay. At least call for a couple of quotes. It might even be worth it to pay extra for a tune-up / full calibration.

Regards.

Jeff Mackwood

Thanks for all the help!!! I checked the Mitsubishi web site and found 2 repair shops in my area. The first was Now Audio Video. They said that I should not do this on my own and wanted $120 to get rid of my little pest. I called the 2nd, a little mom and pop shop and spoke with a very nice lady she said just remove the back panel and wipe the offender away. I took her advise and now have no more spider. It was very easy to reach with the back panel off and saved me $120 beans. I've also just lost a lot of respect for Now Audio Video, (not that I had much to begin with) If anyone else ever has this problem don't be afraid to try it your self. It can save you some money.

Thanks Again
Lasher

yeah i had a spider or maybe a fly (a small insect for sure) in my one of my rptvs one time as well, however i saw him on the screen one day and then never saw him again. i have since changed tvs, but it did freak me out when i first spotted it.