TV repair workshop advice please

[dicky96]

Hi guys
I put this under troubleshooting TVs rather than general electronics section as it is more related to TV repair. Mods, If I missposted this please move it.

OK so I am moving from my little 7sq metre workshop into a larger workshop.

I already put a deposit down on it and hope to move by the end of March once it is vacated by the current occupier.

The new workshop is basically an open plan oblong room, 28sq metres. And it has aircon

I have been thinking about how to lay out the new workshop. I will be undertaking a variety of work from audio and computers to TVs. Possibly some mobile phone work too. I think I will probably end up with another technician working with me if the demand is how I expect.

I have an idea to lay out specific areas of the workshop for different types of work, for example an area specifically for BGA and microsoldering, another for PC/laptop work etc.

The main thing I want to get right is the TV repair area. From my experience I have come to the decision it is probably easier to work on large TV panels if I can get to all sides of the panel easily.

For example I currently have difficulty working on 50" TVs reaching across them to unscrew the surround etc. I had one 70" TV in for repair and couldn't do it because it wouldn't fit on my workbench!

I was kinda thinking if I took 2 desks and placed them some distance apart in a central area of the workshop, I would then be able to place a TV panel across the two desks and walk all around it. I could put some sort of baize or cloth on the desks to prevent scratching. Then I thought of putting one of my scopes and some other test gear on a wheeled trolley that I could move around as I work. Same with a soldering iron, meters, tools etc.

Any more demanding soldering work I could take the PCB to a proper rework area.

How about a mirror mounted under the desks or even a camera connected to a monitor so I can easily see what is happening on screen while I am working?

Power and lighting could be suspended from a duct or gantry running across the workshop ceiling?

So how have you guys got your repair workshop set up? In particular for TV repair. Am I on the right track with my thoughts? Is it ideal as it is or could you think of ways to improve it?

Rich

[Unspun01]

Re: TV repair workshop advice please

Most of your thoughts are well planned out.

Let me tell you that most of your repair work on small or large TVs will be with TV laying face down.

Anyone trying to repair a TV still on the stand in vertical orientation is just taking shortcuts and risking damage.

In vertical orientation, it is far easier for probes to slip and to drop a small screw where you cannot reach it (even more dangerous with TV plugged in to power). Then you also need mirrors to see around the other side. I'm not saying I have never worked on a TV mounted vertical in it's own stand, but I prefer not to.

One of the best decisions I ever made was to get a metal frame table with large tempered glass top (IKEA has a few nice ones)

By rolling towels and placing in 3 or 4 places (left side, right side, middle, etc) on the table top, I can support the TV face down on soft surface where the weight of the TV rests on the bezel, with little to no risk of scratching the screen at all. I have a few small wooden blocks for supporting TVs face up so the boards don't get stressed or pressed on.

The TV boards can be worked on from the top and you can see the screen output by bending down and looking through the glass top. I can walk all the way around the TV in any direction. I can work on TVs up to 75" with my table. With 80" or larger, I move a 2nd identical TV beside the 1st table and lay the TV across both tables. Still able to walk around from all asides and see image from underneath.

TVs can be flipped facing screen upwards too for LED or CCFL replacement or screen "surgery".

Best of luck.

[JayArr_BC]

Re: TV repair workshop advice please

Then I thought of putting one of my scopes and some other test gear on a wheeled trolley that I could move around as I work. Same with a soldering iron, meters, tools etc.

I would arrange my test gear and tools to be stationary and the tables or desks that you put the TV on should be on wheels, that way you don't have to carry the TV as much. It would be great if we opened up a tv found the problem and fixed it all in a couple of hours but the reality is that it often has to be stored somewhere while we get parts or boards and unless you have enough space for a bunch of tvs to just lie around waiting you need to move and store them. TVs are pretty resilient when assembled but they get flimsy with the rear panel off and the odds of it getting damaged are higher. I currently have an unmoveable 11 foot bench that can fit two tvs with some space to work but I'm constantly picking them up and carrying them to the storage racks. If I had to do it again I'd make a large table on wheels (instead of a bench against the wall) that I could use to wheel to and from the storage racks.

Mirrors are great, the back wall of my bench was a big mirror all through the 90s because I did a lot of CRT monitor repair and needed to see the picture as I worked for alignment etc. A camera with an LCD could work but a mirror is cheap, keep it simple.

For our soldering station I have a long bench that comes out from the wall between me and my engineers bench, it has the microscope, hot air, dremel, small vacuum, small vise etc on it. The gear serves both of us with the microscope swinging between the two of us on it's post. Until last year all of our BGA gear was also here (I've since sold it all off, it wasn't making enough $$ for us) The point is that a shared station can reduce the amount of gear you need to buy and if you plan right it can be accessible to both of you on rolling chairs without having to stand up. Efficiency can be the key to profitability.

Power above your head is a great idea, I did that in one previous shop I had that had a low ceiling, I actually ran the cable and mounted the electrical boxes to the ceiling, we had tall shop chairs and benches and you could just reach the switch by stretching so you never had to reach "through" a device under test to turn the power to it off. This isn't at all important 99.9% of the time but the day a unit begins sparking and burning and you realize that to turn it off you have to stick your arm through the fire you'll wish the power switch wasn't at the back of the bench behind the thing that's on fire. LOL

JayArr

[dicky96]

Re: TV repair workshop advice please

One of the best decisions I ever made was to get a metal frame table with large tempered glass top (IKEA has a few nice ones)

.............

I have a few small wooden blocks for supporting TVs face up so the boards don't get stressed or pressed on.

We do have an IKEA on the island - it hadn't occurred to me to use glass top tables.

I think a few wooden blocks is a simple yet excellent idea!! cheap too! Thanks

[Kg74]

Re: TV repair workshop advice please

I don't have a shop, but here is what I would add.

I use a mirror for viewing the screen with a magnet on the base. I can attach it to my storage racks if the screen is vertical or on the floor if it is on its face.

Figure out your power outlets. Whether a retractable cord from the ceiling and/or sockets on the wall. Power strip is a must.

My main work station I have in my basement is an old filing cabinet on wheels with a cradle I made for it to get it to the proper level. It is rock stable. If I work on a larger screen I change out the top board to a larger one. Above it I have two lighting sources - one fixed and one movable. (I also use this set up to build large wings for my RC planes and to wax my skis).

When I am working on something else and it is occupied I can roll it to the side and use a smaller "cart" set up I have on the side (also on wheels).

I have a wall rack with all my power supplies, meters, oscilloscope, microscope, and spare parts. The key to what ever you choose is to have a place for everything when the shop is clean - when you clean up or are done with a tool it always goes back to the same spot. Labeled bins on the racks helps keep things organized and easy to find.

For a glass table you can go to a window and glass shop and have a custom piece cut for much less than buying a fully functional table. You can have a few sizes made up and just put the largest one on top when you need it. A set of saw horses would come in handy if you have two large sets going at once.

Storing in process sets has to be thought through. Also use bins for small parts and have sections on your racks for the sets as they wait.

Those are my thoughts.

[dicky96]

Re: TV repair workshop advice please

For a glass table you can go to a window and glass shop and have a custom piece cut for much less than buying a fully functional table. You can have a few sizes made up and just put the largest one on top when you need it.


A set of saw horses would come in handy if you have two large sets going at once.

Storing in process sets has to be thought through. Also use bins for small parts and have sections on your racks for the sets as they wait.

Those are my thoughts.

Hmmm I didn't think it was possible to get tempered glass cut to size?

Saw horses = what an excellent idea, thanks

One problem I have had in the past is putting a TV set on one side waiting for parts, then can't find where I put all the screws and fittings, or which set they belong to. And that's with just a few TV sets coming through the workshop. I need to think about that more.

[Kg74]

Re: TV repair workshop advice please

Not sure in Spain, but here one can get a shower door cut to size of various thickness. I suppose one could even look for a used shower door from a remodel.

Bins and shoe boxes with labels is the best place to store parts while you wait. I usually use a piece of card board and punch the screws in to the cardboard or tape them on the cardboard writing down where they go - or penciling in a diagram. That way I know where everything came from - if it gets confusing I take digital pictures for reference.

[saddle_au]

Re: TV repair workshop advice please

Just looking around the workshop, this is what I've found works.

Portable (wheeled) trolley with isolation transformer, variac, variable power supply, soldering irons and tools (screw drivers, multimeters, magnets, screw trays, basic PCB cleaning fluid and paper towels).
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Something that can be easily placed next to different benches. I'm finding empty bench space is imperative with these large screens. So only one bench here has permanent electronic shop setup on it.


At least 8 to 10 pool noodles
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I use pool noodles which I cut two flat sections out of so they lie flat on the table and the tv can lie face down on the other flat (cut like flat ellipses). I use three of four of them on a table running top to bottom under large TVs. Using the noodles means there is a small amount of give, and there is little chance of putting a screen down on a screwdriver or worse, some screws. You can also see activity on the screen as it's not up against the table surface. A small mirror or even a CD works well there.

They are cheap and easily replaced, they also allow for the screens to be transported face to face in the back of station wagons/utility vehicles.


Inline power switch on a male to female short mains extension.
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I always have a separate inline switch with a light on the desk in-front of me for turning the screen's power supply on and off in easy reach.


4 sets of small silicon suction caps mounted to wood.
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I've mounted up to 5 suction caps under a piece of 1 by 2 pine and using up to 4 of these, I'm able to easily move a 70 inch screen up and off. I don't trust the large window moving suction cups as they bend the glass way too much and the liquid crystal may move. I feel this bending could cause those round holes and odd shading differences to appear on screen. Having a number of them spaced apart on a light beam spreads the pull and stops the screens bending away towards the edges when lifting. One at either end and I attach two more across the screen on really large screens to stop them flexing in the middle during a lift. Keep a couple of them at various lengths for screens of different sizes. Always have a place where it's going before lifting. If vertical storage, have soft cushioning for the bottom edge and never store sitting on tabs.


A pair of powered speakers mounted under the bench or on multimedia trolley
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3.5mm connection.


A HDMI, VGA and composite video source under the bench or on multimedia trolley
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Usually a PC or even just a Western digital live TV


Yellow Tape on the floor stating where things cannot go for walkways
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Strong, metal, 3 level shelving with soft slides (cloth) and many double ended hook bungies
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I remove the bases off the screens and store the tv upside down slid into the shelf with a bungie between each screen. The bungies stop the screens leaning over into each other and allow for easy change of screen thickness in the shelf. I always write the tv model on the bottom of the base and store it above or below. If there is a job number associated with it, that goes there as well. TV models, job numbers and dates are written on tape which is put on the end of the tv plastic panel facing outward. I use those camping foam squares that click into each other on top of the shelf bases so the plastic tv frames are not scratched.