# What Do You Clean The Screen With?



## jimisham (Jun 24, 2003)

I noticed recently that our 8 or 9 month old LCD set had a lot of dust on the screen. This was noticeable when the sun coming in through the window hit the screen.
I had a bottle of ScreenClean and a Monster cloth (looks like terry cloth) from Best Buy and cleaned the screen.
Now when the sun hits the screen, I can see what looks like a hazy film over the screen. You can even see it if you look closely at the screen when there's no sun. I can see the circular patterns of the cloth. I didn't use a lot of pressure when doing it.
Searching the internet, I see recommendations for using a 50-50 mixture of distilled water and isopropyl alcohol. I see the ScreenClean has no alcohol.
The manual doesn't seem to have anything about cleaning the screen.
When the set is on, the haze can't be seen..


----------



## BattleZone (Nov 13, 2007)

Distilled water all by itself is the best thing to use.


----------



## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

I had the same problem, and ended up having to use 50% isopropyl alcohol to get it off. I did 1/4 screen sections, and dried with second cloth before alcohol could evaporate, and then did the whole screen wiping the alcohol on with one hand, and wiping it off with the dry cloth in the other hand following the first. It took me a good 30 minutes before I couldnt see anything left on the screen. Sorta wish they had the option to put a real thin glass panel on top of the screen so you could just use windex  I think most of mine was cooking grease that floated from the kitchen to the living room over a two year period, and once I cleaned it once, I had varying levels of grease left on the screen, which is why it took me 30 minutes to get all of it off.


----------



## Grentz (Jan 10, 2007)

Microfiber cloth dry usually works fine.

If you need a bit of wetness, distilled water.


----------



## jimisham (Jun 24, 2003)

Davelnr,
I've got some questions for you. I looked a bottle of alcohol we have and I see it's 70% alcohol by volume and the rest is water.
Did you mix the alcohol with water or find a bottle of alcohol that was 50% alcohol by volume if there is such a thing?
I suspect some of my problem is grease from the kitchen also. If I look at the screen with it turned off, I see something that reminds me of wet pavement with a film of oil on it. There's a multi-colored sheen to it in a couple of spots.
What kind of cloth did you use?
Is yours an LCD set?


----------



## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

I used 50% alcohol from Fred's Discount store, if you happen to have them where you are. In the other case, just add distilled water to the alcohol to bring the 70% down to 50% or less, and you should be ok. I used a 100% cotton cloth, although I think you would be safer using a cloth made for screen cleaning. I have a 46" Sharp Aquos LCD.

Another thing, make sure you do it after the TV has been off for a few hours, dont try to clean it while the screen is warm, the alcohol will evaporate before it can dissolve the grease, and make it look horrible.


----------



## jimisham (Jun 24, 2003)

Thanks a lot for the info.


----------



## spartanstew (Nov 16, 2005)

You should not use any level of alcohol on an LCD screen. It can permanently damage it.


----------



## Cholly (Mar 22, 2004)

http://cleaning.tips.net/Pages/T004458_Cleaning_LCD_Screens.html


----------



## jimisham (Jun 24, 2003)

I've been doing a lot of searching on the internet about this. 
Some say you can use alcohol and some say you can't. The ones that say you can, caution you to not use a distilled water/alcohol mixture that has more than 50 % alcohol. Ethyl alcohol is a no-no.
I also saw some suggestions to use a distilled water/white vinegar solution.
My Samsung manual doesn't seem to cover this. For some reason they included a small cloth to clean the frame, but nothing at all about the screen.


----------



## matt (Jan 12, 2010)

Cholly said:


> http://cleaning.tips.net/Pages/T004458_Cleaning_LCD_Screens.html


Hmm, I have iKlear around for my laptop. Good to know I can just use the whole kit on the TV too!


----------



## jimisham (Jun 24, 2003)

Davenlr,
I tried cleaning my screen do the way you did. It worked great. I've got a nice clean screen now.
Thanks


----------



## Stuart Sweet (Jun 19, 2006)

I use screen cleaning cloths that I got from Office Depot. They were inexpensive and do a great job.


----------



## Davenlr (Sep 16, 2006)

Are they pretreated Stuart, or do you still need to use alcohol with them?


----------



## Lee L (Aug 15, 2002)

I have had little that I could not get off my TVs using just a touch of water from the tap and a microfiber cloth.


----------



## B Newt (Aug 12, 2007)

I have been using "Monster Screenclean " its made for LCD's. So far it works like a champ. Came with a real soft cloth to wipe the screen.


----------



## PokerJoker (Apr 12, 2008)

Watch out with some of those 70% alcohol bottles, especially if they are marked as "rubbing alcohol". Often these contain other ingredients that will dry and leave an ugly film on whatever you are trying to clean.

And as many have said, I wouldn't use alcohol at all unless there was no other way to cut through the crud on the screen.

But if you must - get some 91% USP isopropyl alcohol at a drugstore, and dilute it by half (or more) with distilled water. Test the mixture by using it on some clean glass and letting it dry, to see if it leaves residue. It shouldn't.

Don't use this stuff on a plasma screen. You could damage the AR coating.

Keith


----------



## Mike Bertelson (Jan 24, 2007)

According to Consumer Reports, don't buy a cleaning kit. Also, alcohol and ammonia can damage some the plastics that flat panels are made of so don’t use them. Use a soft damp cloth. Get a microfiber cloth and use a bit of distilled water. 

Distilled water is best because you don't know what or how much minerals/salts are in your tap water. They can leave residues and even damage the panel...especially the coatings on plasmas.

Mike


----------



## RACJ2 (Aug 2, 2008)

jimisham said:


> I've been doing a lot of searching on the internet about this.
> Some say you can use alcohol and some say you can't. The ones that say you can, caution you to not use a distilled water/alcohol mixture that has more than 50 % alcohol. Ethyl alcohol is a no-no.
> I also saw some suggestions to use a distilled water/white vinegar solution.
> My Samsung manual doesn't seem to cover this. For some reason they included a small cloth to clean the frame, but nothing at all about the screen.


The Samsung manual doesn't have info on cleaning an LCD screen, but the website does [link].



> To clean fingerprints and greasy smudges off your TV screen, first try using a dry, anti-static cloth and rubbing gently. If this does not work, get a bottle of ScreenClean screen cleaning solution or similar screen cleaner. You should be able to get it at most regular and on-line stores that sell monitors or TVs. Put a small amount of ScreenClean on a clean, soft, dry cloth, and then rub the screen gently.
> 
> Important: Rub as gently as possible. LCD, Plasma, and DLP screens in particular are fragile and can be damaged if you press too hard.
> 
> WARNING: Never use any type of window cleaner, soap, scouring powder, or any cleanser with solvents such as alcohol, benzene, ammonia, or paint thinner. Never use abrasive pads or paper towels. If you do, you can scratch the screen or strip the anti-glare coating off the screen and cause permanent damage.


----------



## Gaily Waily (Dec 8, 2007)

I'm a BIG fan of microfiber cloths for cleaning glass. I've found that straight vinegar by far is the best glass cleaner around. Absolutely no streaks with hardly any work and cuts thru everything! I've recently started using it on my LCD screens with no problems. Very happy with the result.


----------



## Lee L (Aug 15, 2002)

And the key to using microfiber is the smallest amount of liquid you can put on there is all you need usually.


----------



## Athlon646464 (Feb 23, 2007)

One more piece of advice for folks reading this great thread that no one has yet mentioned:

Never ever use paper towels! Only a clean cloth should be used (along with whatever solution you carefully choose), as any paper product could scratch.

It's the same for eyeglasses.


----------



## olguy (Jan 9, 2006)

4 or 5 minutes with a dry microfiber cloth weekly and there's never a need for any liquid. Unless the tricycle motors have been over for a visit :lol:


----------



## Hutchinshouse (Sep 28, 2006)

I use this: http://www.amazon.com/Simplee-Cleen..._2?ie=UTF8&s=automotive&qid=1268321559&sr=8-2

I've never had to "clean" it. Just dusting does the trick for me.


----------



## RobertE (Jun 10, 2006)

What is this "clean" you guys speak of. Sounds laborous. 


Anyway, a swiffer duster works just fine for me. Fingers get broken before they have a chance to touch the screen.


----------



## PTown (Aug 18, 2007)

Windshield wonder. Decent on windshields, great on plasmas!


----------



## JM Anthony (Nov 16, 2003)

Monster Screen Clean on a cold set. That's what the guys at Magnolia A/V recommended and it's worked well for me with a Panny plasma.

John


----------



## matt (Jan 12, 2010)

PTown said:


> Windshield wonder. Decent on windshields, great on plasmas!


The blue stuff at the gas station?

(just kidding)


----------



## Lee L (Aug 15, 2002)

Just be carefull about spaying stuff directly on the screen. Never know what could happen if it runs down inside.


----------



## Hutchinshouse (Sep 28, 2006)

RobertE said:


> What is this "clean" you guys speak of. Sounds laborous.
> 
> Anyway, a swiffer duster works just fine for me. *Fingers get broken before they have a chance to touch the screen*.


!rolling

So true. My 8 and 6 year old know better.


----------



## Athlon646464 (Feb 23, 2007)

Lee L said:


> Just be carefull about spaying stuff directly on the screen. Never know what could happen if it runs down inside.


Never never never ever do that. If you use a cleaning agent, always spray it on the cloth! :hurah:


----------



## B Newt (Aug 12, 2007)

Lee L said:


> Just be careful about spaying stuff directly on the screen. Never know what could happen if it runs down inside.


A TV at a bar I goto has a faded looking spot where they got windex under the screen. You can really see it when a baseball or football game is playing. It seems the color and shade of grass shows the spot up the best.


----------



## xmguy (Mar 27, 2008)

Grentz said:


> Microfiber cloth dry usually works fine.
> 
> If you need a bit of wetness, distilled water.


That's what i use. My Vizio came with a cloth like that. I don't clean the screen enough though.


----------



## xmguy (Mar 27, 2008)

Hutchinshouse said:


> !rolling
> 
> So true. My 8 and 6 year old know better.


Same here. My Dog also knows better.


----------

