Wonder how to tell if TV power supply is bad? If your LED/LCD TV gives you a black screen or won’t turn on, you may be experiencing a power supply or mainboard problem.
In this scenario, you will have to track where the problem is coming from and decide if you need assistance from professional TV repairmen.
But before you contact a professional electrician, you have to know how to tell if the tv power supply is bad.
Sometimes the power supply and the mainboard failure may have similar symptoms. Catching these symptoms early can prevent severe repairs on your flat-screen TV.
If you get home and turn on the tv and notice a black screen, or it won’t turn on, you may be encountering a power supply problem.
But before you start opening the tv, in order to find and track the power supply, make sure the TV is not in warranty. Because if you open the body of the TV, it will become invalid. Also, ensure you have the required tools prepared around you.
How to Spot Mainboard Failure?
If you are not sure if the problems, come from the power supply or the mainboard, you will have to tear apart the body of the TV. But how to tell if a tv mainboard is bad or the power supply?
The main difference between mainboard and power supply failure is simple to spot. If you experience mainboard failure, the TV will turn on but shows a blue or black screen or just go off again.
However, there are more led tv main board failure symptoms that you can notice if your mainboard is giving up.
Symptoms that you may experience a bad mainboard
- Missing Sound
- HDMI Ports are Not Working
- Unable to Connect to The Internet
- TV Locks Up
- Drastic Noise Spike and TV Shuts Downs
How to Test the Mainboard of Your LED/LCD TV?
To identify the dead mainboard, you will have to remove the back panel of your TV and find the mainboard.
Therefore, unplug the cables between the power supply and the mainboard. If the device’s light is still on, this means that the power supply board is working, and you experience mainboard failure.
However, if this seems too complex, you can pay for diagnostics at a TV repair service, find the problem, and replace the part yourself.
How to Tell if TV Power Supply is Bad? How to Track it?
Power supply problems can be simple to solve if you work consistently. Yet you may face more complicated cases. When it comes to tracking the power supply, you have to start from the beginning of the electrical circuit.
Common Power Supply Problems:
Steps to Track and Tell if Power Supply is Bad
1. Switch the Outlet
Before tearing apart your TV with screws and pliers, make sure that the power supply problem is not coming from outside the TV. Did you try to switch the electrical outlet? Even if the outlet looks brand new, there may be no electricity.
To prove that there is no electricity reaching the power cord, you can use an electrical voltage tester (phasometer). Another way to test the outlet is to plug something else in it and see if it works.
2. Check the Power Cord
After you check the electrical outlet and try to plug the TV in another, but still no results, move to the power cord.
First of all, examine the power cord. Are there visible cuts or scratches? If there isn’t visible damage on the cord, move further.
Ensure that the power cord is connected correctly to the TV socket. If there is a sloppy connection between the cord and the TV, you will experience a bad power supply and flickering screen.
3. Next Step-Open Up The TV
In case the problem isn’t coming from the power cord or the outlet, you will have to open up the TV. But before this, make sure that the TV is unplugged, so you don’t get an electric shock.
When this is done, unscrew the screws of the back panel and remove them. Now you can locate the power board and the mainboard and find the defective component using the electrical voltage tester.
Sometimes from first sight, you can tell if TV power supply is bad. But not always you need a meter. Some of the components inside may have visible damage.
4. Examine The Power Supply Board
After locating the power board, make sure everything is connected tightly to the sockets and there is no dust around them. Then move to the individual components of the power supply board and examine them. Some of them may be blown or dead.
5. Blown Fuse
Every power supply board has a fuse that can blow up due to a storm or power surges. To check if the problem is coming from the fuse, you can use an ohmmeter.
A blown fuse is one of the most common problems to tell if the power supply is bad. In individual cases, you can notice a blown fuse just by a look.
Note that if the fuse is not causing the problem, and you replace it, the new one will also blow. So, make sure you use a meter to test the fuse before you start replacing it.
6. Bad Filter Capacitor
The next thing you should watch for is the capacitors. They are tiny cylinders, and from first sight, you can tell if they are causing the power supply problem. Usually, if they are bad or not working, you may notice two things.
The filter capacitors can be raised at the top or leaking fluid, indicating that they are bad or already not working.
In the end, if you follow the steps and trace the source of the problem, you can tell if you really have a bad power supply and replace the defective component.
Read Next: Do you Need Only a Smart TV for Firestick?
Conclusion
Tracing power supply problems is not easy, and not everyone can do it alone. But if you feel enthusiastic and follow the steps that we mentioned, you can at least find the source of the problem by yourself.
And now you know how to tell if TV power supply is bad. Remember to check the outlet and power cord before you make it worse than it was.
Kevin has over five years of experience working in various Tech startups and providing Technical solutions. He has contributed to many Tech publications and websites.