Modern Flatscreen HDTVs require special care as they are fragile devices and care must be excercised when handling, cleaning and powering your TV.

Protecting your TV from Power Surges: The latest flatscreen TVs are very sensitive to power surges. Repeated surges can damage your TV\’s power supply and other voltage sensitive electronics. Surges can be from downed power lines, power grids changing sources of power, and from lightning strikes. These surges can occur in both your electrical power and also through your cable TV provider\’s coaxial cable. You can protect your TV from electrical surges with a surge protector which plugs into your power plug and provides several surge protected plugs for your TV, cable box and other devices. Surge protection is rated in JOULES (this is the energy that can be absorbed by the surge protector without failure). Higher number of Joules offers better protection. Surge suppression works by diverting excess surge voltage (that cannot be absorbed) through the outlet\’s ground wire. So its important that your outlet for your TV is properly grounded. Surge protectors can also \”clean\” line noise from your powerline that can cause static on your TV.

TV Surge Suppressors: There is a special type of surge suppressor designed for TVs that has a high joule rating, connects not only power, but you can protect surges from your coaxial cable tv inputs, and have superior EMI/RFI line noise filtering for best picture and sound. Many have automatic voltage regulation which corrects brownouts (dips in voltage) and surges. Many will guarantee your equipment against surge damage. These specialized surge suppressors can cost over $100.

Using a UPS for your TV: There are battery backup UPS units that not only have surge suppression, but can also handle voltage dips and smooth out the power spikes and dips. (Voltage dips can occur when a large appliance draws a lot power at startup such as a refrigerator). APC manufactures SMART UPS units that handle both dips and surges. They can temporarily power your TV and cable box for a few minutes if the power dip or outage is brief. Its best to get a UPS that is pure sine wave, which is the closest to the power you get from the grid. UPS units can also protect your TV coaxial cable from surges.

Cleaning your TV: Always clean or dust your TV with a soft cotton cloth, never use paper towels as they can scratch your TV. Never use a swiffer to dust the screen of your TV as a swiffer can damage the anti-glare coatings on your screen (warning is on the package). Never use any household cleaners, such as windex (which has ammonia), and this can also damage the anti-glare and other coatings on your screen. Only use a clean soft cotton cloth dry or very slightly dampened with water.

Protecting your screen: If you have kids, place the TV in a place that is less likely to be hit or tipped over. Flat screen TVs are very prone to cracking and impact damage. The latest TVs now have Gorilla Glass which is very durable and less likely to be damaged by impacts. Gorilla Glass is manufactured by Corning Glass.

Proper Ventilation: Always leave room for your TV to have proper ventilation as all TVs generate heat which can damage the TV should the vent holes be blocked or the TV is enclosed in a space with no airflow.

Placement of your TV: Never place your TV in a place where it will be subject to extreme temperatures such as in direct sunlight, near a radiator, heat vent, or other heat source.

Author Bio: SmartReview.com reviews only top quality HDTVs, Camcorders, SLRs and other consumer electronics. See our HDTV Buying Guide and our Top Rated HDTV pages.

Category: Computers and Technology
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