Monday, December 03, 2007

Fix a Sony Trinitron TV for 75 cents

Even one week after the TV is fixed, I still cannot believe that I did it: fixed my TV for 75 cents. Of course, I have to do it myself.

My TV experienced a sudden death this summer. It was working perfectly. Then one day, it is just dead. Does not respond to anything, and there are no lights blinking.

After 6 months, and feeling the urge to watch some TV programs over the holiday season, I decided to try to replace the fuse and see if it works. So, I opened the back-cover, and found a fuse right behind the point where the power cord enters the box. I found the fuse is indeed blown. According to the markings on the fuse, it is 6.3A, 250V, slow-blow type. I went to RadioShack, where the sales person found a replacement within 30 seconds. Yes! Just like that, he squinted at the fuse I brought in, and walk right to a drawer to extract a package. It's a package of 4 fuses costing $2.99. I went home and put one new fuse (75¢) into the fuse holder, and you know the rest of the story.

Warning:
Residual charges in the TV can cause serious injury to you.
Static charge on your body can also cause serious injury to your TV.
A blown fuse can be caused by fault in the TV's circuit. In which case, installing a new fuse can cause additional damages.
If the new fuse blows shortly after installation. Stop! And find a professional to look at your TV (if you think it is worth the effort and $$$$).
This article does not in anyway suggest you should open the back-cover of a TV by yourself.

More for those who are interested:
The fuse listed on RadioShack's website:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2102764&cp=&sr=1&origkw=slow+blow+fuse&kw=slow+blow+fuse&parentPage=search

The original fuse is a "BUSS GCD", "T6.3AL250V", 5×20 mm, slow-blow, glass fuse (see the picture below).
Sony Fuse T6.3AL250V BUSS GCD