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Thread ID: 60876	2005-08-16 08:00:00	How hard can you press on an LCD screen?	andrew93 (249)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
381740	2005-08-17 04:11:00	Here's my way of telling people how tightly to do up small brass screws, when they have to be tight: "Stop just before you hear the "CLICK' ".	Graham L (2)
381741	2005-08-17 04:35:00	LOL. This is and intersting thread. And a fair question.	mark c (247)
381742	2005-08-17 09:48:00	A fair question. I'm debating with my business partner as to how hard you can press on the screen when cleaning it. Seriously Andrew, how do you manage to get your screen that dirty that you need force to shift it? I haven't cleaned my computer screen or laptop screen more than twice in living memory and even then it only took a gentle wipe over with window cleaner and a tissue to get them sparkling. Are you smokers, is the environment full of oily fumes, do users have a desperate need to get touchy-feely with their screens or what? Pressure on an LCD screen at the levels you are suggesting is not a good idea, you can cause internal damage without breaking the outer glass face. Cheers Billy 8-{) :confused:	Billy T (70)
381743	2005-08-17 09:56:00	all this talk about cleaning monitors reminded me that my monitor at polytech is very dirty. I'll probably have to clean it myself if I want it done in my lifetime.	Greven (91)
381744	2005-08-17 10:38:00	And I thought it was only what I watched on my screen that was dirty..... :p	EX-WESTY (221)
381745	2005-08-17 12:21:00	Seriously Andrew, how do you manage to get your screen that dirty that you need force to shift it? I haven't cleaned my computer screen or laptop screen more than twice in living memory and even then it only took a gentle wipe over with window cleaner and a tissue to get them sparkling . Are you smokers, is the environment full of oily fumes, do users have a desperate need to get touchy-feely with their screens or what? Pressure on an LCD screen at the levels you are suggesting is not a good idea, you can cause internal damage without breaking the outer glass face . Cheers Billy 8-{) :confused: I was waiting for your input Billy :D These aren't my monitors . Last weekend we had a client with 250-300 computers to clean and over 95% of the PC's had LCD screens . We are talking about users splashing coffee onto the screen, grubby finger marks combined with a high dust content, some LCD's are located in factories / warehouses / workshops / store fronts - you name, we have to deal with it . Some of our client sites have 400+ computers with LCD screens and we are looking for a better way than cleaning the screens over and over again to get them streak free . Which brand of window cleaner are you referring to for your PC screen and what brand is your LCD? Are you sure you aren't getting streaks that are visible on certain angles? (turn the monitor off, and lift the base of the screen towards you while tipping the monitor back such that the overhead light is reflected off the screen) Different brands respond differently to different cleaning products - it's mostly the IBM and Dell brands that give us trouble (Philips & HP / Compaq are ok) . Greven makes a fair comment - this is exactly what we are dealing with . Plus where users have had a go at it themselves, it generally ends up looking like a dog's breakfast & requires a lot more effort on our part (but don't let me stop you trying Greven!) Exactly what will break behind the screen Billy? And what sort of force are you referring to? (keeping in mind the effect of the force is reduced by the bunched up cloth held in the hand, the fingers / hand is not pressing directly onto the screen) . Cheers, Andrew :) P . S . I also take on board Graham's comment that you don't know how much is too much until it is too late .	andrew93 (249)
381746	2005-08-19 08:36:00	No reply Billy?	andrew93 (249)
381747	2005-08-19 09:53:00	No reply Billy? Sorry Andrew, I didn't get back to the thread until now . My preferred cleaner is Spray 'n Wipe, and I use it for cleaning moderate amounts of second hand computer equipment, and many other items as well, but not the numbers you are seeing . I do favour it for LCD screens, and it should be streak free, though in difficult circumstances I would finish off with plain warm water . My preferred cleaning material is a soft paper towel, but for the muck you describe I'd start with a damp cloth that can be rinsed out afterwards to get rid of the worst marks . If you use a cloth for all cleaning you may be respreading the same muck, so disposable paper kitchen towels are a better option . Spray 'n wipe is particularly good on plastics too, if it dribbles down it leaves a clean streak without rubbing or wiping so you can see that it is an active cleaner . As for pressure, take a look at a clean working screen and see how little pressure is required to disturb the liquid crystal matrix behind the glass . I would not apply any localised pressure at all, because the real damage may not show up for some time . There is not much that you could spread on a screen that can't be cleaned off with S & W and minor streaking might be overcome with a little meths in warm water and the soft paper towel again . Maybe you need to clean in two stages, preliminary to get rid of the dog's breakfast, then a second stage to clean properly and produce the streak-free finish . Streaks are just left over cleaner and original contaminants, so they won't be a problem if your cleaning methods don't leave residues behind . I am fussy but lazy so I belong to the "do it once, do it right" brigade and have taken time to find methods that work for me . Your mileage may vary . Cheers Billy 8-{)	Billy T (70)
381748	2005-08-19 09:56:00	The 3M product I use is mostly white Vinegar, water and a bit of IsoPropyl Alcohol. It dries streak-free (there is a special disposable tear-off paper pad block that you spray the cleaner on, then use the pad, then when the pad gets dirty tear off a paper layer) But my office sounds positively sterile to what you face. The LCD is a "sandwich" of glass, with a non-reflective plastic layer on the front I believe, so the internal glass sandwich would be the most likely to break.	godfather (25)
381749	2005-08-19 10:28:00	Thanks for the comments BT and GF. Now that I understand there is a layer of glass behind the front screen, we shall be a little more circumspect as to how hard we press. Although, touch wood, out of the many thousands we have cleaned, we haven't broken a single LCD screen yet! (honestly, it was like that when I got there! :D) But now that I think about it, I have seen an LCD broken at another site where there was impact damage to the underlying glass but the screen was only 'stretched' or dented (the monitor was unusable). Given we don't want to spend too long on each PC (each PC takes between 8 and 15 minutes, depending on how bad it is), we can't spend all of that time on the screen. I think you are right in that streaks are the result of residual 'gunk' on the screen or on the cloth from previous monitors (yes we re-use the dry cloths). Lint free paper towels might be the way to go with the cleaning solutions we already use. We have found the AF Foamclene really good at removing the gunk, followed up by Ammonia-based window cleaner to get rid of the streaks (again, the best results are achieved with a very clean dry oversize Chux cloth). Thanks for the input everyone! A	andrew93 (249)
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