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A note about monitor discharging

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Xiaou2:


 As an arcade tech,  I had to 're-juvenate'  a tube with a special machine. 

 It was a real pain.. because it had to be done several times.  Thus removal and
discharge many times over to see if the thing was decent or not.

 On the final cycle... I had thought I was finished... and started to plug the game
back in... but realized I needed to do something else.. and pulled the cord out fast
as hell.  The cord may have been in there for less than 1/4 of a second.. and so I figured
there couldnt have been much of a charge in there to worry about...

 I was less cautious...  and "POW"  a bolt jumped to my hand!   I was about 1.5 ft away
from a wall.   My body was jolted backwards. My elbow hit the wall at warp speed... so hard,  it nearly broke my elbow.   My back hit the center mounted wall bumper.  I felt like
I had been hit by a car.  My whole body ached in pains from the intense zap as well
as the wall impact.  My fingers smelled like they were burnt.  There were internal pains
running inside my arm.

 I was Extremely overcautious from that day on.   Discharge a monitor and let it sit for 10 min after the first discharge... and it still may have enough charge left to bolt you across the room.

 Im probably lucky to be typing this stuff.

 It can be done.  But it can also be dangerous.  Be careful, and never take them
lightly.



Kevin Mullins:


--- Quote from: shardian on May 05, 2009, 04:17:58 pm ---
--- Quote from: Kevin Mullins on May 05, 2009, 03:24:57 pm ---And not all monitors are so anticlimatic .... so don't ever get "comfortable".
When you do get a hold of a good one, you'll greatly appreciate taking the precautions.


--- End quote ---

Precautions are fine. I observe all of the precautions necessary to ensure an uneventful discharge. I just think this procedure has been built up to epic proportions of difficulty. A level far above what it really demands.

--- End quote ---

Absolutely.
And the precautions are simple enough to follow that there shouldn't be such a dramatic fear placed upon it. IF you follow the precautions. If you don't, you're on your own and take your chances.

I personally have been promptly sat down on ---my bottom--- from a 25" tube. The wall behind me held me up long enough to slide down and take a seat for a bit. My kids who were not even in the same room heard the "crack" and the immediate "groan" (due to the fact that words would not physically come out) clearly enough that they came in to check what had happened.
It was totally my fault. I was in the process of repairing this chassis when I let myself get comfortable and out of sequence forgetting that it had just recently been turned on briefly after replacing the chassis to check for other issues.

Now I personally have a high tolerance for electric shocks, been bit many times from many sources, but still wouldn't recommend trying it.
All it takes is one time and it'll change someones respect for doing it properly and it's simple enough to do it safely.

Seems like a lot of people go "it didn't do much" or "it was just a little spark" .... but what they don't realize is the punch that can be behind that "little spark".

Fear it.... no. (heck, that usually causes the slipups)
Respect it and take the proper precautions.... yes.

Some monitors will bleed this voltage off to the chassis when powered down.
Some don't at all.
And the tube itself can be thought of as a very large capacitor...... it will hold that charge until something takes it away.


CheffoJeffo:

Fortunately, I've never been bit by anything worse than the big filter cap on a G07, but I still get out the scrap piece of drywall to stand on, put my left hand in my pocket and use my discharging tool every time I pull an anode cap.

I pull the anode cap (and then discharge again) every time that I pull a monitor that isn't immediately going back into a machine. You don't need to discharge to pull a monitor, but it only makes sense to discharge if you are going to leave it lying around.

Ummon:


--- Quote from: AndyWarne on May 06, 2009, 04:10:26 pm ---I will repeat my usual comment on monitor discharge threads:

Only discharge a CRT if you are going to disconnect the CRT anode cap for any reason, for example to replace the chassis board or the flyback transformer.

There is no other situation in which you need to discharge a CRT. Removing a monitor from a cabinet is definitely no reason to discharge the CRT.

Andy

--- End quote ---

I'm bumping Andy's response, in particular for those who are afraid of de-casing TVs or other monitors. I've moved my multisync around tons of times. It's not in a case. No worries.

CheffoJeffo:


--- Quote from: Ummon on May 06, 2009, 07:49:05 pm ---
--- Quote from: AndyWarne on May 06, 2009, 04:10:26 pm ---I will repeat my usual comment on monitor discharge threads:

Only discharge a CRT if you are going to disconnect the CRT anode cap for any reason, for example to replace the chassis board or the flyback transformer.

There is no other situation in which you need to discharge a CRT. Removing a monitor from a cabinet is definitely no reason to discharge the CRT.

Andy

--- End quote ---

I'm bumping Andy's response, in particular for those who are afraid of de-casing TVs or other monitors. I've moved my multisync around tons of times. It's not in a case. No worries.

--- End quote ---

While I agree in principal with what you and Andy are saying (and I virtually never discharge *before* removing a monitor from a case or cabinet because it is safer to do it after), I would never leave an undischarged monitor lying around ... partly because I have kids and a wife who aren't as aware as I am, but also because it just makes sense.


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