Someone told me my CRT monitor looked like a fish tank and now I clean the dust out every 3 months on the dot

I was showing off my old Sony Trinitron for retro gaming at a friend's house party last winter. A guy I barely knew leaned over and said "man, that screen has more dust layers than my grandma's curio cabinet." I was ready to shrug it off but then he pointed to the little heat vents on top and said "you know that's basically a fish tank for static cling in there, right?" I looked closer and yeah, there was a whole fuzzy coat of stuff inside the bezel. So I took a can of compressed air (careful not to spray too close to the tube neck) and blew it out. Now I pop the back off every 3 months and give it a gentle brush with a soft paintbrush. The picture actually looks sharper with less dust haze. Has anyone else found a weird trick for keeping old monitors clean without messing up the coating?

2 comments

2 Comments

jake_walker22d ago

Pop the back off if you know what you're doing, just discharge the tube first with a screwdriver and a wire. A bit common sense goes a long way here. My Trinitron's been dust free for years with zero issues.

iris39423d ago

Wait, are you sure popping the back off is a good idea on a Trinitron? I've heard those things can hold a charge even when unplugged, like for months. You might want to be really careful about touching anything inside, especially around the tube neck area. I just use a soft brush and canned air through the vents on mine, never opened it up. Just a heads up because I'd hate for you to get zapped lol.