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Is it possible to get a TV to work after a flood? Interior cleaning, repair, photos

p.kaczmarek2 7404 39

TL;DR

  • A flooded Samsung LE32A330J1N TV was dismantled and cleaned after half a day under water to see whether flood-damaged electronics could still be revived.
  • Cleaning focused on silt inside the PCB area, connector legs, ribbons, polarising films, and fluorescent-tube backlight sections, using isopropanol and careful drying.
  • The set was first handled 3 weeks after it was flooded, and the worst trapped moisture was still in the screen grooves and behind the films.
  • A premature test eventually succeeded: VGA produced an image, the satellite tuner gave picture and sound, and the side keypad still worked.
  • The repair remained an experiment, and long-term reliability stayed uncertain because this older model uses a CCFL backlight, not LEDs.
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  • #31 21260791
    skaktus
    Level 37  
    Posts: 5385
    Help: 89
    Rate: 315
    I'll also brag - Nysa, basement flooded with sewage that has erupted from a sewer. Sewage level ~1m. The phone floated in this wonderful cesspit for over a week before it was pumped out and could be accessed normally. Then a wash under normal water with washing up liquid. Then a rinse in IPA and heating on an aluminium plate for 3 hours (~45 deg C - I put a simple ceramic resistor under the plate and heated it up). Where the motherboard was heated, sprayed several times with IPA and left to dry. Further left unheated until the next day. Then assembly and the result we have is this. Nokia 3310 phone with a blue backlit screen in a dark setting. .
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  • #32 21260913
    szeryf3
    Level 30  
    Posts: 2046
    Help: 12
    Rate: 671
    It's good that you got it up and running, but that sewage saves a phone like this?
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  • #33 21261040
    kris8888
    Level 40  
    Posts: 6755
    Help: 530
    Rate: 1862
    szeryf3 wrote:
    such a phone?
    .
    After all, this is the iconic Nokia 3310 😀 How dare you question the point of saving it....
    Modern smartphones wouldn't be worth saving but this is so much more than a phone...😀
    9bbf7e1f6 A terribly tedious job and time consuming. But we had to help. The appliances were rescued, without too much trouble, as the power had been cut off before flooding. A colleague managed to salvage two TVs with LED matrices. I am waiting for some information on how the supply of these TVs went after the flooding. Respect to all those who are helping the flood victims.

    Yes, I also think great respect is due. Especially for those who are able to do something completely selfless, who do not convert every hour of their work into zlotys.
    A long time ago, after a lightning strike on a transformer station in my street, my neighbours had their TV sets damaged (it was still the CRT era) and some other expensive equipment, including the controllers for ovens, washing machines and so on. I repaired what I could, I didn't take any money for the work, only for the parts. Some people were probably surprised that I was a loser, because I could earn a lot of money, others perhaps were annoyed that I was taking bread from the repair shops, but I didn't care, what mattered to me was the satisfaction that I had helped.
  • #34 21261101
    tatanka
    Level 21  
    Posts: 575
    Help: 5
    Rate: 116
    If someone fixes it for science/ fun/ help then ok, but if you count 4-10h( x150PLN ) of work + materials ( 50PLN ) + transport = unknown result and warranty to the well. ( I can see the well from my window )
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  • #35 21267539
    Erbit
    Level 39  
    Posts: 5392
    Help: 478
    Rate: 1310
    gulson wrote:
    Who would risk firing up a CT scanner and continuing to use it on a human being? Well just....
    .

    You measure others by your yardstick - that's quite natural. I think, however, that there will be some who will do this without a second thought and without scruples.
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  • #36 21267583
    sq3evp
    Level 39  
    Posts: 6368
    Help: 211
    Rate: 836
    Erbit wrote:
    You measure others by your yardstick - it's quite natural. However, I think that there will be some who will do this without a second thought and without scruples.

    There you go - it will always be an opportunity to make money.
    What do you call those who raised the price of building materials in flooded areas? Businessmen of ability or leeches?
  • #37 21268549
    Anonymous
    Level 1  
  • #38 21268986
    tatanka
    Level 21  
    Posts: 575
    Help: 5
    Rate: 116
    It doesn't take much to cause a war.
  • #39 21269060
    cirrostrato
    Level 38  
    Posts: 4843
    Help: 283
    Rate: 941
    skaktus wrote:
    I'll brag too - Nysa, basement flooded with sewage that spewed out of a sewer. Sewage level ~1m. The phone floated in this wonderful cesspit for over a week before it was pumped out and could be entered normally. Then a wash under normal water with washing up liquid. Then a rinse in IPA and heating on an aluminium plate for 3 hours (~45 deg C - I put a simple ceramic resistor under the plate and heated it up). Where the motherboard was heated, sprayed several times with IPA and left to dry. Further left unheated until the next day. Then assembly and the result we have is this. Nokia 3310 phone with a blue backlit screen in a dark setting.
    You could have put the phone in your pocket beforehand and that's it, I don't think you were swimming in sewage so why did you leave the phone in it???.
  • #40 21273473
    skaktus
    Level 37  
    Posts: 5385
    Help: 89
    Rate: 315
    >>21269060 .

    The phone had been lying in the basement for years, nobody remembered it. And since it flooded the neighbourhood and basements on the estate in about 30 minutes, the essentials were saved, no one took care of the small stuff. Of course I could have blown it in the bucket, but just for fun I tried the rescue and it went 😊.
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    Topic summary

    ✨ Dyskusja dotyczy możliwości uruchomienia telewizora Samsung model LE32A330J1N po zalaniu wodą. Użytkownik przedstawia zdjęcia wnętrza telewizora, które było zanurzone w wodzie przez około pół dnia. Wiele odpowiedzi koncentruje się na problemach związanych z penetracją wody do elektroniki, zanieczyszczeniami oraz metodami czyszczenia. Uczestnicy dzielą się doświadczeniami w naprawie sprzętu po zalaniach, podkreślając, że czasami możliwe jest przywrócenie do życia uszkodzonych urządzeń, ale często wiąże się to z ryzykiem korozji i długotrwałymi problemami. Wskazują na znaczenie odłączenia zasilania przed zalaniem oraz na różne metody czyszczenia, takie jak użycie izopropanolu i suszenie na ciepło. Wiele osób wyraża szacunek dla wysiłków w ratowaniu sprzętu, mimo że nie zawsze jest to opłacalne.
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    FAQ

    TL;DR: After 3 weeks of drying, one flood-soaked Samsung LE32A330J1N still worked because the owner fully stripped it and found that "there was literally still water in the grooves" behind the panel films. This FAQ helps repairers judge whether a flooded LCD TV is salvageable, how to clean it safely, and where hidden moisture remains longest. [#21254476]

    Why it matters: Floodwater reaches far beyond the visible waterline, so a TV that looks dry outside can still hide conductive sludge, trapped moisture, and delayed corrosion.

    Option What the thread shows Main risk Best use case
    Plain water + distilled/deionized rinse Good for flushing heavy mud, sewage residue, and detergent remnants Residual water stays trapped in crevices Very dirty, sludge-covered boards and connectors
    IPA + compressed air Good final-stage drying and contact cleaning Can miss hidden pockets under films or BGAs Final rinse, connectors, ribbon sockets, spot cleaning
    Do nothing beyond surface drying Outer parts may look dry after weeks Hidden water remains behind films and in grooves Never sufficient after flood immersion

    Key insight: The hardest part is not the main PCB. The real danger is moisture and silt trapped behind the LCD matrix, diffuser stack, connectors, and grooves near the CCFL tubes, where water can remain for weeks after the cabinet looks dry.

    Quick Facts

    • The TV sat flooded to roughly half its height for about half a day, with power already disconnected before immersion. [#21254476]
    • The successful repair attempt began 3 weeks after flooding, yet water still remained behind the panel films and in the upper and lower screen grooves. [#21254476]
    • One forum estimate put flood-repair labor at 4–10 hours × 150 PLN, plus about 50 PLN in materials, before transport and with no warranty certainty. [#21261101]
    • A projector salvage case required washing, IPA cleaning, drying, and heating to 150°C; the repair was judged viable only because the projector was expensive at the time. [#21255577]
    • A phone recovered from sewage was dried on a heated aluminum plate at about 45°C for 3 hours, then left until the next day before reassembly. [#21260791]

    How do you clean and dry a flood-damaged Samsung LE32A330J1N TV step by step without destroying the LCD matrix or diffuser films?

    You must fully strip it, clean every contaminated layer, and reassemble carefully. 1. Remove the back, boards, ribbons, front bezel, and metal frame, then clean PCB legs and sockets with IPA. 2. Lift the LCD matrix carefully, remove the diffuser and polarizing films, and dry both the films and the grooves near the CCFL tubes. 3. Test only after every board and film stack is dry, then flush any bad-contact connectors again. The thread’s successful repair started 3 weeks after flooding and still found trapped water behind the films. [#21254476]

    Why does moisture stay trapped under the LCD diffuser and polarizing films for weeks after a TV has already dried on the outside?

    Moisture stays trapped because the film stack and panel grooves hold water by capillary action and block airflow. In the Samsung case, the cabinet had dried for 3 weeks, yet the owner still saw moisture patterns under the films and found literal water in the top and bottom grooves behind them. Those layers dry far slower than exposed boards or the outer housing. Once water reaches that stack, surface dryness tells you almost nothing about the internal state of the display assembly. [#21254476]

    What is CCFL backlighting, and how does it change the repair risks compared with newer LED-backlit TVs after flooding?

    "CCFL backlighting is a display-lighting system that uses cold-cathode fluorescent tubes behind the LCD panel, with high-voltage drive parts and deeper mechanical layers than many LED sets." In this thread, the repaired Samsung was explicitly noted as a CCFL-based model, not LED. That matters because the repair reached the fluorescent tube area and the grooves around it, where water still remained after weeks. A later comment also noted that a colleague had separately salvaged two LED-matrix TVs, showing the risk pattern is different, not absent. [#21254476]

    What is a ballast or inverter transformer in a CCFL TV, and why are these high-voltage parts a concern after water damage?

    "A ballast or inverter transformer is a high-voltage transformer that powers CCFL backlight tubes, usually with one or more transformers on the inverter board for multiple lamps." These parts matter after flooding because trapped moisture or contamination in high-voltage sections can cause later arcing, shorting, or intermittent failure even when the TV first powers on. One commenter was surprised the Samsung’s fluorescent-lamp inverter transformers had not already failed. Another warned that coils and transformers should be avoided during washing because trapped water inside windings can later cause shorts. [#21259965]

    Which cleaning method works better for flooded electronics: plain water plus distilled or deionized rinse, or direct cleaning with IPA and compressed air?

    The better method depends on how much mud or residue the flood left behind. Heavy contamination needs a flush-first approach: plain water to remove sludge, then distilled or deionized water, then IPA and air for drying. For lighter contamination or contact areas, IPA and compressed air work well as a final-stage method. Several replies favored that sequence, because IPA alone does not always remove flood sludge, detergent, or sewage residue. The Samsung repair itself used IPA heavily on legs, ribbons, and sockets after mechanical disassembly. [#21255672]

    Why do flooded connectors, ribbon cables, and VGA or tuner sockets stop making contact even when the TV powers up?

    They stop making contact because oxide, silt, and residue remain on the contact surfaces after the main boards dry. In the Samsung case, the TV powered up before all input functions returned, and the connectors still needed flushing with IPA because they did not make contact. After cleaning, VGA worked, and then the satellite tuner also delivered picture and sound. That pattern shows a flood-damaged TV can have separate power and signal-path faults at the same time. [#21254476]

    How far can flood water and silt travel inside an LCD TV, including behind the panel films and into the grooves near the fluorescent tubes?

    Flood water can travel through nearly the whole lower display assembly, not just onto the main board. In this case, silt appeared on the mains connector, PCB surfaces, front frame area, matrix-side boards, behind the LCD matrix, under the diffuser and polarizing films, and in the grooves near the fluorescent tubes. The owner explicitly wrote that water had reached even the side areas used to remove the films. The practical takeaway is simple: if the cabinet flooded halfway, contamination may still extend into hidden optical layers. [#21254476]

    What signs tell you a flooded TV is worth attempting to save, and what signs mean it should be scrapped immediately?

    A flooded TV is worth trying when power was cut before immersion, corrosion has not eaten tracks away, and the panel survives a careful first test. The Samsung had been unplugged before the flood and later recovered picture, sound, tuner control, and side-key operation. Scrap is the safer choice when electrochemical corrosion has already removed leads or thin tracks, when hidden residue remains aggressive, or when the matrix has developed irreversible lines. Several replies described later failures such as matrix lines, shutdowns, and corrosion continuing in unseen places. [#21254984]

    How does leaving power connected during a flood change the damage pattern in car electronics compared with unplugged home equipment?

    Leaving power connected turns contamination into active electrochemical damage almost immediately. One car-audio case described equipment that stayed live until the battery died, and the owner identified powered circuits by the component leads that had vanished through corrosion. By contrast, several successful home-equipment rescues depended on mains power being cut before flooding. A commenter summarized the car problem directly: in vehicles, voltage is always present somewhere, so flooded modules often emerge with digested thin tracks and far worse board damage. [#21254516]

    Why are BGA chips and capillary-trapped moisture such a problem when drying water-damaged PCBs?

    BGA packages are a problem because water hides underneath them and escapes slowly. A thread reply stated that the worst places are under BGA parts, where moisture gets trapped by capillary action and may need compressed air or alcohol-assisted drying to remove it. Surface dryness is not enough, because water can remain in tiny gaps while the rest of the board looks clean. That is the same failure mechanism seen in the TV’s film stack and grooves: narrow spaces trap liquid long after accessible areas seem dry. [#21255672]

    What drying methods are people using for flooded electronics, such as warm-air drying, oven heating, calcium chloride in a sealed box, or radiator drying, and what are the risks of each?

    People used warm air, radiator drying, low-temperature plate heating, oven heating, and desiccant drying, but each carries a different risk. One phone was heated at about 45°C for 3 hours on an aluminum plate. Another repairer heated a projector to 150°C after washing. Others suggested overnight radiator drying or calcium chloride in a sealed box. The risk rises with temperature and poor control: plastics, adhesives, films, and trapped residues may degrade, while uneven heating can miss water in windings, BGAs, or panel layers. [#21255577]

    How should transformers, coils, and inductors be handled after a flood if trapped water inside the windings could later cause shorts?

    Treat them as suspect parts, because water can remain inside the windings even after the outside looks dry. One reply explicitly warned to avoid washing transformers and coils and, if possible, remove them instead, because even a small amount of trapped water can later cause a short. Another commenter expected the Samsung’s CCFL inverter transformers to be among the first parts likely to fail later. In practice, these parts need extra drying time, targeted inspection, and zero trust in a quick power-up result. [#21259965]

    What long-term failures tend to appear after a flooded TV seems repaired, such as matrix lines, corrosion in hidden places, or intermittent shutdowns?

    The common long-term failures are matrix lines, hidden corrosion, bad contacts, and shutdown faults that appear later. One reply described a TV restored after fire-extinguisher exposure that worked for a few months, then developed matrix lines and later began shutting down. Another commenter doubted flood residue can ever be fully removed from hidden places, warning that corrosion may continue with normal air moisture. Even the Samsung success story included caution that later problems might still emerge despite 3 weeks of drying and a complete initial recovery. [#21255016]

    How much work does it usually take to restore flood-damaged equipment like TVs, projectors, pumps, or office electronics, and when does the repair stop making economic sense?

    It usually takes hours of dirty, repetitive labor, and it stops making sense once labor exceeds the item’s replacement value. One commenter priced typical work at 4–10 hours × 150 PLN, plus about 50 PLN in materials, before transport and with no guaranteed result. Another repairer said a projector rescue was worthwhile only because the projector was expensive then; today, the same hours could earn several times more elsewhere. The Samsung TV was treated as an experiment, not a normal commercial repair, because it was an older CCFL model. [#21261101]

    What happened with the flooded CNC3040 kit, and what steps are still needed beyond a basic rinse and drying before it can be tested safely?

    The CNC3040 kit was not repaired yet; it only received a basic rinse and drying. The owner said there was still nowhere to assemble it and no time to continue. Before safe testing, it still needs complete inspection, proper assembly space, and likely deeper cleaning and verification of each module rather than a blind power-up. That matters because the same author showed fresh corrosion on other flooded boards even after only about 6 hours of water exposure, proving that delayed damage can keep developing after the first rinse. [#21254612]
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