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mv1f

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I just got a New Net City and it’s filthy. The inside is filled with dust and cigarette residue. I’m comfortable cleaning everything but the monitor. Can anyone offer some do’s and don’ts? I’ve got isopropyl alcohol and I’ve got some Simple Green on the way. I was thinking I’d go over the back of the tube and the boards with the iso with some cotton balls and qtips, but I’m a bit nervous. Feel free to assume I know nothing.
 
I would recommend to not use anything else than a wet clothe on the back of the tube. There’s a coating that you can damage with other liquids.

As for the PCB, feel free. The last one i cleaned was so dirty that i washed it under the shower, then dried with the compressor.
To remove all the moisture, i soaked the pcb with isopropyl alcohol and then again compressor.

some pics of the result
 
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Under the shower
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The result
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I would recommend to not use anything else than a wet clothe on the back of the tube. There’s a coating that you can damage with other liquids.

As for the PCB, feel free. The last one i cleaned was so dirty that i washed it under the shower, then dried with the compressor.
To remove all the moisture, i soaked the pcb with isopropyl alcohol and then again compressor.

some pics of the result
Wow. Ok. I’m not sure I’m ready to put the whole thing in the shower but I might do that after I make sure everything’s working. So far I’ve just been using isopropyl alcohol on the PCB with Q-tips and cotton makeup remover pads. Then I’ve dusted with q-tips and blown it off with an airbrush (no paint, of course).

About the second soak in isopropyl alcohol, is the idea that it displaces any water that might have gotten inside the parts? About how long did you soak for?
 
I've always just sprayed the chassis/neckboard down with Simple Green, then run them under water.

Leave out in the sun for most of the day rotating it every now and then (easy here because it's always sunny and often over 100F). Then blow air under the parts that sit /really/ close to the PCB.

Trying to fight with iso and makeup remover pads is an exercise in frustration as there's so much you simply won't be able to get to.
 
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I like the way nobody told him to discharge the monitor first.

That should be your first step.

SMDH.
 
1st method (dry)

Discharge Tube
Use compressed air and a soft bristle paint brush to remove dust build up, etc..
Done



2nd method (wet):

Discharge Tube
Take it outside
spray the shit out of it with simple green (I prefer Krud Kutter, I fond it cleans krud better than simple green, only let it sit for at most 10mins while brushing)
Use a soft (good quality) paint brush to gently scrub basically all parts of the tube/chassis
Rinse it clean with a garden hose, dont be afraid, just dont use the spray full jet setting, just the open hose with ok pressure is enough.
Drain as much as you can by tilting, inspect and see if you need to spray/clean/brush a little more, repeat rinsing and draining
The hit with some compressed air to get as much water out as possible.
Then bake in the sun or make sure to put some good fans on it for like a day or 2 to dry it out. If you have a dehumidifier stick in the rooms with it also.

Hope it helps
 
Ah, yeah, ha.

And don't put that wet rag anywhere near the hole in the top of the tube. You should discharge that as well as the anode cap. And the tube can build static charge back up even when stored/left alone, so don't trust that hole.

And don't forget to re-grease the edge of the anode cup because no reason not to and what's on there is probably ancient.
 
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Just wanted to report back and thank everyone for the tips.

I finally got around to cleaning my monitor. I basically went with @Derick2k 's wet method. Got it hosed down with the pressure low then went to town with Simple Green and rinsed it off. Did a few cycles of this then let it dry out in the garage for a week.

I left the PCB connected for all this since some of the screws were really close to the tube and I didn't have any tools that short. No big deal in the end since I was going to do the same thing to it, just in the bathtub. It just made the monitor awkward to move around since I did take the neckboard off the tube but couldn't get the cables fully disconnected.

I was a little worried about the "aquadag" stuff on the back but I did a test on a small area with a paper towel and Simple Green. I really can't see any way this stuff is coming off unless you're deliberately trying to remove it and you'd need more than Simple Green. I'm guessing this is a bigger deal for older monitors but this one was from 2003.
 
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