As many of you know, the missus and I have recently moved. When we finally got the TV setup in the bedroom, we found an error on the screen.
So I found myself in a predicament: I didn’t want to buy a new TV, but I’ve also never repaired a television. I figured, what’s the worst that I could do? Break the TV?
I did a little searching on the webs for this error on Samsung TV’s and found that this is related to either a) a bad PCB or b) a bØrked fan.
Before I go any further I need to say this: If you are not confident in working with electronics, take your TV to a qualified repair center. There are things in a TV (specifically capacitors) that can kill you. This is not a joke. There’s enough electrical power in there to stop your heart.
I started by opening the back of the television. On my model there were around 80 screws holding the back on. I may be exaggerating, but it certainly didn’t feel like it. It actually wasn’t that bad. I just needed to make sure that I kept a few containers around to keep the screws separated by length.
Do not use a screw gun to install or remove any of the screws. Use a hand screwdriver. If you strip any of these screws, you would be screwed. You see what I did there?
Then I carefully pulled off the back of the TV.
I removed each of the fans and verified that they were all the same model number. Armed with the fan part number, it’s time to check on the cost of replacement parts.
If the PCB was shot, it’s about $150 and it will take a few weeks to get. The fans are around $10 each (need 3) and I can get them in a few days. So I ordered them.
I put the fans back in their original location until the parts arrived. This way I was guaranteed not to install them in the reverse direction or something else boneheaded.
Yesterday the fans arrived.
Swapped them in making sure to route and tape the wires back the same way as before.
I reassembled everything, prayed, and powered on the television.
