water damaged lcd screen fix factory

I’m trying to replace the optical layers of my old Dell Inspiron 5100 from an old lcd screen. The question is. in which order should the optical layers be positioned??

When I was fixing my screen I just removed all layers from the old screen and transferred them in the same order into the new screen. I didn’t pay attention how the layers were positioned.

I have a Tecra S3 which is only a year old, just out of warranty. The display just started to have problems mainly with the color red. Little red dots appeared everywhere and the color red had blotches of crappiness in it. Toshiba told me my warranty was over, I figured I’d try to fix it myself. I determined the problem comes from a weak plug in the display

I have a Toshiba M100 which is otherwise in great shape but has a problem with the LCD. If you look directly at the screen you can see dark grey spots scattered around the screen. To me this looks like mould or some sort of dirt and it’s definitely on the inside of the screen. So basically, the LCD is dirty on the inside!

To make the story worse, a friend of mine also bought the same laptop from the same source (private seller, used laptop, no warranty) and it also has the same spots. When I was buying the laptop I figured the screen was just plain dirty and I could wipe it off. But it turns out it’s not and the spots are driving me nuts.

Do you know whether or not it would be possible to open the screen and clean the LCD panel? I figure it’s the top glass layer but then again, I could be wrong.

I have a Sony Vaio FRV25. I was having fan problems, opened up the laptop, replaced fan. The screen is now black. I tried an external monitor and nothing happens.

Question: Can one replace only the flexible shiny front plastic cover which protects the Toshiba LCD screen? Mine has a little scratch where the cover bravely protected the LCD from a falling tool. It’s not the end of the world, but if I can replace this easily and economically I’d like to do it. If I could I’d replace it with a protective cover that was not so reflective.

Any ideas ?? i read in one of your posts that you fixed a laptop which wouldnt start because of a lose cable .. do you think this is a similar problem ? or is the motheboard DEAD ?

I have a 15.4” WXGA High-Definition BrightView Widescreen laptop that has a bright white spot that is very notable, what causes this problem? And is it fixable?

Just to say a big ‘thankyou’! Your site gave me the confidence to open my screen cover and swap the broken LCD with a working one…which saved a fortune. Keep up the good work and thanks again.

i read in one of your posts that you fixed a laptop which wouldn’t start because of a lose cable .. do you think this is a similar problem ? or is the motherboard DEAD ?

my daughter accidently knocked my e1505 off my desk now i have a three inch portion of my screen that is white with pink,green and yellow lines running through it,any suggestions

I replaced a cracked screen on an HP Pavilion dv8000. I followed your instructions, but I only get horizontal lines on my new screen. Any ideas what I might have done wrong?

i have a toshiba satellite p105 17”. i tried a massage method to remove a stuck pixel but instead of that when the laptop is turned off there is a circle on the screen which is like a blur bubble. when the notebook is turned on the circle is visible only on black background.i havent put much pressure so to cause damage.

I think I have the same problem as Savvas, tried to do something with probably bad pixels on my Toshiba Satellie A105 which I thought was a dirt at first. I did not do it to hard, but may be it suck water inside and now it has a large blur on the screen, when it is on it is not visible, mostly not even turned on black screen. what bothers me more, is the fact that I have two shiny spots on the screen, pretty visible and it is not dirt (as I have found out), they were there before. Can these be fixed? Can I try to repair at least the shiny spots within manufacturers warranty?

I’ve been striping and repairing laptops since 97′ in Toronto, Canada. I know that it has been pointed out with a big disclaimer, but I think for the average user or “tinkerer’ it would be LCD Suicide to disassemble the LCD layers on a spotty screen !!.

I’m very curious to know what kind of environment you did this in. I.E. Was it a clean room /box or were you just sitting at your desk ? I’m also going to hazard a guess that although you and I may have LCDs lying around in many “stages of broken” very few other people do !!

I’m not saying this guide is for everybody :). If you are not careful enough and have no experience fixing laptops, you can damage the LCD. That was my first time when I took the laptop screen apart. I had to reassemble it three times until I was satisfied. It was really hard to get rid of dust between layers.

I have a dell Latitude D600 and am having a problem with the lcd. When there are large black areas on the screen it kind of blinks black and red in that area. Also, there are very fine vertical lines throughout the whole screen. Dark blues have the blinking redish problem also. Also there is a slight double image of some elements on the screen such as the submit comment button below, I see a pink outline to the right of it. It does look normal sometimes, but a majority of the time it has these problems. Any suggestions? Thanks

Test the laptop with an external screen and see how the external video is displayed. If you have the same bad video on the external screen, there is a problem with the video card.

If you can see the whole desktop, including all icons and taskbar (the image on the screen appears to be compressed vertically), it’s possible it’s just a software related issue. Play with the screen resolution, test if the display works fine in Safe Mode. Try reinstalling the video driver.

Thank you very much for detailing your disassembly with photos. I’ve recently gotten a fully functioning Inspiron 5100 with good external display but the LCD is completely dark. I am considering replacing the backlight or inverter myself and you’ve helped a lot with your pictures. I have the display panel removed but cannot tell one part from another. For instance I wondered if the backlight was behind the top edge or the bottom edge and was the inverter the circuit board in the middle of my display of the one that has the caution tape on it running across the top of the panel.

Is it a thin vertical line about 1-2 pixels wide running across the entire screen? If yes, then there is not much you can do to fix it. It’s a screen problem and you’ll have to replace the screen (or get used to this line).

Post-op I’m convinced the backlight is fine and therefore the inverter is at fault. For roughly $30 I hope to aquire a replacement. This will be a reasonable cost for the fix.

I see that, on your pictures (and in my own laptop) there is that white tape with specific instructions not to touch it. However, it would appear that you are, in fact, touching it when you’re displaying where to remove the screws on the side of the screen.

I believe they put “Do not touch” instructions because there are data cables connecting the circuit board with the LCD and they are located right under the white tape. I think nothing terrible is going to happen if you accidentally touch the tape, but do not push on it because you can damage the data cables.

Secondly, I formatted the C:\ drive and now am trying to install XP…but it keeps turning the screen off after 3-4 minutes…and I have to restart the computer so that the screen comes back again…is there a cure to this? ANY help is appreciated.

If the laptop starts with normal video but after some time the backlight goes off (you still can see an image on the screen) then most likely it’s just a faulty screen inverter. If the screen goes off and there is no backlight or image, then it’s not an inverter issue.

hi, ive justknackered my sceen with water damage, its stillworkingbut a can see a water mark esspecially on awhite background.i don’t fancy taking the screen apart because i have important work on my comp anddon’t wannabreak it. it seems to have subsided, (only damaged it a coupl of hours ago!) what are the chances of it evapourating and evrything bing hunky dory again?

Probably a better chance of that than of you improving your spelling skills. If it was distilled water (pure H2O), you might have a chance of it coming clean. The impurities are what makes a mark and tap water (or bottled) has a bunch of them like trace minerals, microscopic solids, etc. If it was still wet, you might be able to remove the bezel, detached the screws/clips that hold the screen in place, and “drain” it out by taking the screen, holding it vertically, and gently tapping it against a hard surface to possibly spread out or move the water out of the screen. Kind of a long shot, but there’s not much you can do when you don’t want to go to the source of the damage. There’s an active market on ebay for used screens.

Followed the article on LCD screen repair. Found it excellent. Cleaned the glass layer with Walmart glasses cleaner (70% isopropyl alcohol might also work) and used latex gloves without talc to avoid fingerprints, have not taken a screen appart before but dissassembled an old broken one to get the back sheets and learn the pitfalls . The silver back layer does not seem to clean and needs to be replaced if the water damage is on this layer..

i dropped my work laptop in puddle on friday and its wasnt drying out – so followed ur and hp manual instructions to take screen apart dried various bits of lcd screen 90% sure they all back correctly as they only fit in one way and now have vertical lines across screen n no picture hooked it up to external monior and it worked ok. ple\se tell me i haven’t messed it up! and theres something i can try to put it right so that i odnt have to crawl back in to work n get b******ed

Thanks very helpfull, I also tryied to fix my LCD screen for the first time. I got a replacment on ebay for a LCD 15″ dell insiron Model 5100 but the cable connections are diffrent from LCD to mother board as my old one . Any idea where I can get a cable?

I need a screen for my Dell Latitude C640. I dropped it and the screen broke. Do you know where I can find one real cheap. The computer works fine. I live in Richmond, Va. Right now it is hooked up to a regular monitor.

Probably the cheapest one you’ll find here. I just searched for “Latitude C640 screen” and found two LCDs, one for $85 and another one for $65. I think this cheap enough.

Hi! I have successfully transferred LCD screen from Inspiron 6000 to Inspiron 6400 but I had to take along inverter and video cable. I really like this particular screen and I wonder if it likely to be compatible with other brand laptops? I plan to upgrade to a santa rosa laptop and don’t want to limit my choices to Inspiron 1520. Thanks!

I ony Vaio FRV37 with possible moisture damage around the outer edge. I never had to clean the screen so I’m not sure if it is moisture. The damage- some spots with dark uneven middles that fade out then go dark at the outer edges – some are at least 1/2 inch in diameter. The extensive damage from right side across the top to left side and are darker at inside edge and lighter closer to bezel. All spots are very noticable on white background. I cannot find any examples of screen damage to compare. I need to know is this indeed water spots or LCD damage so I can fix it or replace it. I do have another undamage screen as replace but only as a last resort. Thanks for writing such an informative article.

My dughters Inspiron 6000 has the black screen problem with (very) faint image. How can I tell if it’s the backlight or inverter which is bad and can the backlight be changed on this model without the horror story above ? Thanks for any help you can give, a local repair shop is quoting £180 for a fix !

Another problem I have is that one of the sreens just does not work, that is to say the backlight is fine, but no image. I am sure that the inverter and the cable to the screen is OK, as they work properly with another screen.

Take a look at the example 2. Does it look like your screen. If it does, most likely you have a faulty screen. You’ll have to replace the screen in this case.

I dropped my laptop about couple of months ago. the top corner of frame is cracked. i turned on computer a thin line bluish/white vertical from two inches from the edge. it ran ok. its starting to get larger due to opening and closing the laptop. it is a hp new model. when i hold the screen tight the line does get thiner. please help

If the LCD screen lights up and you can see an image on it, even though the image is completely garbled or distorted, the problem is not related to the screen inverter. When the inverter goes bad the LCD will not light up at all.

You’ll have to test your laptop with an external monitor connected to the laptop VGA port. Set the laptop to output video on the external screen. If both internal and external screens display the same bad image, most likely you have a problem with the video card. If this defect appears only on the laptop LCD but no on the external screen (external screen works fine), then most likely your laptop has a defective screen.

I have an HP zd7249. My screen is not functioning properly. When the computer is on, the screen is dark, but I can see that a light, which I assume is the backlight, is actually lit. From what I have read here, that would indicate that the CCFL and the inverter would be fine. I should also note that I have connected the laptop to an external monitor, and I get a perfect image. What do you think my problem is?

I’m using a Dell XPS M140. About 8 months ago I replaced the LCD screen. Currently when the laptop is running off the battery the screen will stay lit for about two mintues and then go dark. You can still see the image in the background. When running off the AC cord the LCD will remain lit. I was wondering if this is something that I did incorrectly upon install or if I have an off setting somewhere. Thanks.

I was running from my car to front door wile it was storming and some rain drops somehow got in the lcd screen. I have a Compaq Presario V300 made by HP and it is basically new and is a great system. As soon as I got inside and noticed the damage, I looked up on google “I got water in my laptop screen”. This was the first site and it worked great!!!! I read through and followed all directions (my lcd is connected to the laptop a little different though). It worked perfectly and I was able to get all the rain water out before it was able to dry and stain. I recommend this to anyone with the same problem. Just like the directions say, be very careful though! THANK-YOU THANK-YOU THANK-YOU ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

When the computer is on, the screen is dark, but I can see that a light, which I assume is the backlight, is actually lit…I should also note that I have connected the laptop to an external monitor, and I get a perfect image.

Could be a connection issue between the motherboard and the screen. First, I would try reseating the video cable connector on the motherboard, it’s easier to access this one. Second, I would check the connection between the video cable and the LCD screen. To access this one, you’ll have to open up the display assembly and take a look on the back side of the screen. Make sure the video cable is plugged in correctly, all the way inside the socket.

a few weeks ago a family member left my laptop in a postion where no air could come out of the ventilators. when i discovered this my laptop was really hot. Now my laptop will begin to heat up and won’t cool down unless i shut it off. Also, my computer screen doesn’t look right. It’s hard to see, especially on darker backgrounds. how can i fix this?

My DV1000 screen went dark (with faint images of the screen) 2 weeks ago – I ordered a new inverter (from invertercentral.com) that was supposedly compatible with my DV. Replaced the inverter and found out that the old one didn’t have the exact same number as the new one.

Now my laptop will begin to heat up and won’t cool down unless i shut it off. Also, my computer screen doesn’t look right. It’s hard to see, especially on darker backgrounds.

I have question about removing all the films fron an Inspiron 6000 LCD screen and replacing them. First, is there anywhere I can get new film sheets? Second, when I put everything back together, is there a schematic on the placement of the film sheets and/or does anyone know what order they are supposed to be in? This is a used laptop that I aquired and someone has already taken the LCD completely apart. All the parts are there and there are no visible scratches or anything like that but I notice that the clear plexiglass panel is thicker on one edge than the other. I am going to assume that that is because it sits on the backlight but I really want to know before I start in on this. I have the film sheets (Background?) laid out like they came to me but if I could find a schematic showing which one goes in first, second, etc. I would be in heaven.

It’s possible that the video cable got pulled from the connector on the back of the LCD screen and is not making a good connection with the screen. Reseating this connection might help, I would try it first.

Yes, I believe these transparent layers has to be placed in the order they were removed. If someone has already taken the LCD screen completely apart and didn’t assemble it back the way it should be, probably your are screwed. I think you’ll have to find a new screen.

Hi, I have a problem with my laptop, recently I turned on my laptop and the screen stays plain white, I could hear the sound of windows started, but it stays white, if I remove the power cable, the screen will start dimming, on the other hand, I tried to test the LCD screen on my brothers Identical laptop and it WORKED wonderfully, when tried to put it back to mine, it’s WHITE! this is frustraiting! anybody please help me..

Your LCD screen works fine with another laptop, so there is nothing wrong with the screen. Apparently, you have a problem either with the video cable or the motherboard/video card.

The lid catch on my Compaq Evo N600C is broken; I have obtained a damaged N600C screen with a good catch system. However, I cannot discover how to separate the screen form the bezel so I can remove the catch system. I have removed all screws I can see, but the top left and left side will still not separate.

Sometimes HP glues the LCD bezel to the screen with double-sided sticky tape. In cases like this I usually insert a piece of plastic (guitar pick, credit card, library card, etc…) between the bezel and the screen and move it alone the side to separate both parts. Be careful with the screen.

I took it apart and found the problem. On the left side of the LCD (screen facing you, back behind you), it has some flexible circuits that connect with the white tape. When one part doesn’t touch the white tape, the image is dark (or has vertical lines). Applying pressure connects the circuit to the tape.

This flexible circuit has a lot of very small connectors. I’m afraid you cannot fix it at home. Maybe you can put a piece of eraser between the screen and the screen top cover, so it always apply pressure on the screen? It’s just a wild suggestion but it might work.

I have a Dell Inspiron 6000 with a wsxga+ lcd that is cracked and displays weird colors when turned on. I have tried it with an external monitor so I know the video card still works. Here’s the question: my buddy has a screen from a Dell Inspiron 1520 with the same resolution and he is willing to let me have it cheap. How can I find out if it is compatible? I don’t want to bother him and have him ship cross-country if it won’t work. I have conflicting answers from others who say it will work no problem and also that it won’t work because of the inverter. I’ve searched everywhere I could think of to no avail. Since you sound extremely knowledgeable, What do you think? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I doused my Inspiron 6000 with water and had water between the laminaire of the LCD. I tried all the stuff recommended by others, but in the end I did the exact same thing you did, except I cut the sealing tape and applied new when done. Mine is now as good as new.

A couple of tips. You need the right tools, and patience. Dont try to get along without a good quality 0 and 00 phillips, aluminum foil tape and mylar tape. To clean the various layers I used eyeglass cleaner wipes, and changed them often. The alcohol in them kills any organisms, and they are lint free. The LCD itself is relatively simple, and more durable than everyone seems to let on. Take your time and roll the layers over as you clean them so you dont mess up the order. An ice tray will allow you to sort the screws. Make sure the LCD is properly supported all the way across its surface on a book and soft cloth, and dont do this when tired or upset. By the way I cleaned the LCD panel too, and it caused no damage whatsoever. Good luck to all. JimA

I have a toshiba portege a100 12.1 inch laptop with a cracked lcd. Is it possible to use the lcd from an m100 12.1 inch and transplant it into the a100?

I had a sploshy screen on the bottom right corner of my Laptop, due to spilling fluids on the laptop, it showed up as super bright patches on the LCD.

Both the cable connectors are the same. 20 pins. However, I have not purchased the screen from the m100 as I do not know if it will fit. The A100 has 2 circuit boards attached to the screen and the M100 screen only has 1. I am asking so as to know if if should purchase the M100 screen online from auction.

Hi i have a dell D600 latitude and the front cover is very badly scratched when you removed the lcd could you have easily removed the front lid cover as i want to change mine to a nice new lid/cover but i dont know how to go about it is it easy to change the fron cover can you advise on how i could do this please many thanks

I don’t know if the screen from M100 will work on A100. I’ve tried to research online but it looks like both screens have different part numbers and they might require different video cables. If I would be you, I would search for the original A100 screen replacement. Find the part number on the back of the LCD screen and search by the part number. It will help you to avoid unnecessary waist of money.

I have a cracked screen on my dell d410. I was able to replace the lcd, but when i booted up, the screen showed white. Is there something wrong with the inverter or video cable?

Test the laptop with the cracked screen again and see if you can get image. If you get it with the old (cracked) screen but not with the new one, probably your new LCD is bad and you’ll have to replace it.

Thank you so much for your detailed instructions on taking about the lcd..Dell didn’t send any instruction with the replacement and this was my first time attempting this…I was able to follow the instructions without wrecking anything….and now my user is happy happy happy!!!! Thanks again~!

Disregard the blurry picture. That’s my lack of photography skills. Instead, please tell me what’s making any LCD I connect to this laptop display images (including BIOS screen) 4 times. Despite the bad photography, the 4 images are perfect representations of the 1 image that is supposed to be seen on the display, i.e. no blurriness or dimness. External monitors show the 1 image perfectly.

this might be the wrong place, but you guys seem to know about this stuff, but … is it possible to rip the lcd off a dead laptop and with some messing about, get it to act as a standalone lcd vga monitor ?

I want to use my D600 screen on my Dell 610 (D610 screen has 3 cracks over it, that’s why I want to change screens). Every thing looks the same when I take it apart, except one thing. The cable from my D600 has more wires connected to the screen. The socket itself looks the same, so I can move the cable from D600 to D610 or vice versa. But when I boot the D610 with the D600 screen, I have tiny colourful strips all across the screen. It doesn’t matter witch cable I use, same result. The screen cables has a tag, the D600 has CSSWJ.Wanshih REV.3A 04/03/15 DD0JM1LC0000 and the D610 CSFFOL.Foxconn REV.3A 06/01/03 DDJM5BLC107. Can I do anything to make this work?

i spilled a small amount of diet coke on it towards the left side of the keypad. now when i try to turn it on all the lights come on for about 5-8 seconds then they turn off and no activity on the screen.

Can anyone tell me how to fix this or what to look for when i take it apart?Look for corrosion on the motherboard. Apparently the motherboard has been damaged by coke.

When the laptop is switched on the LCD shows a dark gray light (for less than a second) and then turns black. Earlier it used to flicker and come back but one day it just went black and is same since then.

Now, assuming that I am correct in the above assumption, it could be the video cable or the LCD screen/circuit itself. I have removed and replugged the video cable but nothing happens. Is there a way I can guarantee a faulty video cable without trying another one? (i suspect the answer to be no)

Now the final question, I am willing to buy a new LCD screen for my notebook and its available on ebay (and a few other sites). But is it possible that its not the fault of the screen at all? Could it be the circuit on the motherboard between the video card and the LCD connector on the motherboard that is breaking the signal? I ask because if this is the case then even buying a new screen wouldn’t help.

I have tried my screen on another laptop (Inspiron e1405) which has a different video cable connector to the motherboard. But I managed to attach my LCD (of Inspiron 2200) to e1405 using its video cable and the LCD works fine (I used my inveter only).

I recently revived a friends laptop that had been his daughters. The display is splotchy. He is not interested in spending $100 for a replacement LCD panel. It displays text OK. Thats enough for him. The colors are muddled. I do not think it is bad pixels, as during the Dell diagnostics routine, it displays solid colors perfectly. It does not display red well when mixed with other colors. The colors are perfect when displayed on an external CRT monitor.

Just a quick ?. I do not want to throw good money after bad. I bought ny daughter a Dell Inspiron 2200 about 3 years ago. She used it about 20 hours watching dvds. About 2 weeks after the 1 year warranty, the screen went dark. If you have light shining on it at the right angle, you can see and read what is on the screen. Obviously, it works fine with a monitor.

Your instructions on how to replace the layers was quite informative. However, could you please advise if this solution is applicable to a lcd with different colored vertical lines on the screen at startup and windows?

Thank you for so detailed instructions . I have read trough all posts but don’t find neccessary answer. How do You think- changing LCD layers will help to remove white spots? Now I san “see” through monitor and see all support points behind LCD as white cloudy spots. I have Dell Latitude D600. Thank You

The whole process took a total of 30-minutes to effect repairs on a severely crack LCD Panel on a Gateway MX6124. I Can not Thank These People Enough For Helping Explain What I thought was an ardious task being made simply for a layperson.

While creating this guide, I had to disassemble/assemble the screen a few times. It wasn’t as easy as it looks in the instructions above.