A bug died... inside my monitor...

[thedylanarts]

Is there any way I can take a monitor apart to get a literal dead bug out of it? (edit: it is an Westinghouse 32" 1440p 144hz monitor https://www.newegg.com/p/3C6-01JD-000P1)

Yesterday I was gaming and there was a tiny little bug flying around on my monitor, no big deal. I swiped at it and it didn't leave, so I swiped again and bumped the monitor. Turns out, that stupid little bug was inside my monitor... between the view-port and the pixels... and when I smacked the monitor the bug got smashed inside. It is hard to capture on camera, but here is a picture.

 

It is ok to laugh, it is the only way to cope with a nice monitor being messed up by something stupid.

 

Edited August 17, 2023 by thedylanarts
Added more info

[TylerD321]

There are probably some screws hidden by your monitor stand that you can remove. It is probably held together by clips - hopefully not glue. It is probably possible to take apart and clean. I dunno if it is worth the risk of breaking the monitor, though if one bug was in it maybe there are many or eggs. Up to you.

[thedylanarts]

2 minutes ago, TylerD321 said:

There are probably some screws hidden by your monitor stand that you can remove. It is probably held together by clips - hopefully not glue. It is probably possible to take apart and clean. I dunno if it is worth the risk of breaking the monitor, though if one bug was in it maybe there are many or eggs. Up to you.

Yeah. I was looking to upgrade (aka add another monitor because I never retire them lol) anyway but this was not the motivation I needed. I want to see if someone has done something like this before so I can have an idea of how hard it is. I am pretty confident with a screwdriver and taking things apart, but I don't know much about monitors. I also don't know if the fact that it is VA panel will change the answer.

[TylerD321]

1 minute ago, thedylanarts said:

Yeah. I was looking to upgrade (aka add another monitor because I never retire them lol) anyway but this was not the motivation I needed. I want to see if someone has done something like this before so I can have an idea of how hard it is. I am pretty confident with a screwdriver and taking things apart, but I don't know much about monitors. I also don't know if the fact that it is VA panel will change the answer.

I have never actually taken apart a monitor before so I don't know how hard it is. I always just assume it is cheaper to replace a monitor than it is to fix it. I have replaced several laptop screens and it really isn't difficult. I would imagine moving parts around to where you can wipe the bug guts out isn't overly difficult assuming you don't just yank/break connectors immediately.

[djksm]

do you have the model number? I could look it up on ifixit or on youtube

edit: it is found at the back of the monitor on a sticker or something

Edited August 17, 2023 by djksm
clarifying something

[thedylanarts]

2 minutes ago, djksm said:

do you have the model number? I could look it up on ifixit or on youtube

Here is a link to it on Newegg but there isn't really much info. iFixit doesn't have much even if you just search "westinghouse". https://www.newegg.com/p/3C6-01JD-000P1

[djksm]

Linus made a video on how to take apart a monitor. I will link it, but i dont know if you want to watch it. take apart monitor diy

[djksm]

1 minute ago, thedylanarts said:

Here is a link to it on Newegg but there isn't really much info. iFixit doesn't have much even if you just search "westinghouse". https://www.newegg.com/p/3C6-01JD-000P1

ok thank you!

[thevictor390]

Unscrew every screw you can find, and after that most likely there are plastic clips all around the border of the screen that need to be gently pried open. It's a pain if you haven't done it before, but it is doable. And breaking a few clips isn't a big deal.

[thedylanarts]

3 minutes ago, thevictor390 said:

Unscrew every screw you can find, and after that most likely there are plastic clips all around the border of the screen that need to be gently pried open. It's a pain if you haven't done it before, but it is doable. And breaking a few clips isn't a big deal.

Is there any risk of killing the panel if I like touch it or something? I know OLEDs can be quite easy to break.

[djksm]

i found a teardown for another westinghouse monitor, try and see if it works. Its not the same model, but its from the same compny and thus will probably have the same procedures. 

 

[djksm]

2 minutes ago, thedylanarts said:

Is there any risk of killing the panel if I like touch it or something? I know OLEDs can be quite easy to break.

if you are taking it out of a huge lg 77 in c2 tv or something, but on a 32 inch monitor? probably not. Still, its best to be EXTREMELY careful when handling any panel.

[thedylanarts]

I'm going to have time to try to take it apart in a few days, I will update this post on how it goes.

[loonks]

59 minutes ago, thedylanarts said:

I'm going to have time to try to take it apart in a few days, I will update this post on how it goes.

Also if your monitor has an internal power supply (plugs directly to mains without an external power brick) please be extremely careful around that, there is some components that can be deadly (to you, not to the monitor)

[thedylanarts]

1 minute ago, loonks said:

Also if your monitor has an internal power supply (plugs directly to mains without an external power brick) please be extremely careful around that, there is some components that can be deadly (to you, not to the monitor)

It does have an internal power supply so I will be aware of that. Thank you!