Cleaning Matte Displays

[taichi]

Has anyone here tried Monster AI ICLN-S iClean+ ScreenClean? It's apparently somewhere between being a spray and a gel, supposedly cleans extremely well, and ostensibly leaves a light polymer coating that helps the screen resist dust. It gets pretty much rave reviews on Amazon, but there is a caveat that one should check with one's manufacturer before using it on a particular screen. I'd like to use it on my matte, UXGA Flexview screen.

Somehow I think calling Lenovo and asking them might provoke a "I don't know response", particularly since the new crew seems not to know so much about the older machines, and so I'm asking my esteemed fellow Thinkpadders.

taichi

[ansible212]

I have found a damp, lint free cloth (such as a Carl Zeiss spectacle cleaning cloth) to be the most effective way of cleaning any TFT. (Wet it, wring it out, then roll it into a sausage shape and wipe the screen top to bottom. Never fails and leaves either no, or very little, trace.)

[sktn77a]

I'll probably get the cr*p flamed out of me for saying this but I've used Windex on LCD displays for almost 20 years and never had a problem. You could try camera lense cleaner if you're really concerned but I suspect the formula is similar.

[taichi]

Don't use Windex! I'll post substantiation later. But an example is a fellow's
statement that he'd seen a hundred screens hazed over by Windex, and I know a technician in Michigan who'd seen screens damaged by the same.

The LCDs are not glass, and they're given multiple coatings, some for anti-reflection. Windex acts as a solvent of some sort, and that eats away at the coatings.

Curiously matte screens are the most sensitive regarding cleaning.

taichi

[eyestrain]

I have found a damp, lint free cloth (such as a Carl Zeiss spectacle cleaning cloth) to be the most effective way of cleaning any TFT.

Do you clean the cloth? In laundry, or in sink?

I've read that a lint free cloth is best, but have been concerned with it picking up dirt or grease, especially if I use it on a computer I buy with lots of prints on the screen. But I've had very good results using filtered tap water, and old socks or t-shirts with holes. (Rather than throw them out when too old, I like to keep them, clean, to use as rags, then throw them out instead of clean them again.) Maybe old clothes doesn't have much lint because it's mostly been laundered away. On a lens you'd probably see a little though.

[goofyGAguy]

I think half my posts on here have been the following: clean your LCD with a microfiber cloth and a 50/50 mix of distilled water and isopropyl alcohol.

[ansible212]

Do you clean the cloth? In laundry, or in sink?

I've read that a lint free cloth is best, but have been concerned with it picking up dirt or grease, especially if I use it on a computer I buy with lots of prints on the screen. But I've had very good results using filtered tap water, and old socks or t-shirts with holes. (Rather than throw them out when too old, I like to keep them, clean, to use as rags, then throw them out instead of clean them again.) Maybe old clothes doesn't have much lint because it's mostly been laundered away. On a lens you'd probably see a little though.

The cloth goes in the washing machine periodically. Generally gets washed along with cycling clothing which is washed without conditioner.

The Zeiss cloth is a microfibre cloth, BTW. I also have a Nikon cloth but that has a much coarser texture and so I don't like using it.

Just remembered that I do sometimes use an LCD cleaning spray or IPDA first to remove stubborn marks, but find that always leaves a residue or marks, so I always clean the screen a second time with a damp cloth alone.

[taichi]

When I was into photography I was always concerned about cleaning lenses properly, and a good display should be treated like a camera lens in my opinion.

The problem with any solvent, as far as I understand, is that it interacts with all sorts of things, organic and inorganic. I know I've read somewhere that manufacturers use isopropyl alcohol, or an isopropyl dilution, but nevertheless there is the question of the coatings that are on modern screens.

Until researching this I was most inclined to use a microfiber cloth and distilled water, and then I saw the Monster product. But the more that I looked into the question, the more I began to survey the various cleaning products that are out there. Yesterday I came across a product called Purosol. It's made in Pasadena, close to Los Angeles where I live.

What's unique about this product is that it doesn't use solvents at all. Remember that solvents are nonselective... they interact with all sorts of things. The approach of Purosol is to use botanical extracts with enzymatic action instead of solvents. Enzymes "target" organic materials. Dirt, and oil from fingerprints, can be lifted from the screen without the cleaning agent interacting with the coatings on the screen. Apparently the product was developed for NASA.

Now, the proof is in the pudding, so I'm going to order some soon, and I'll see if it's for real. It's not cheap, but neither is a FlexView screen.

Windex was made for glass, which is a simple material without coatings. As I looked on the Internet I found a number of people who say that they have used it without harm, but there are many people who have used it who have wound up with hazed over screens. This would be the likely outcome of the action of a solvent, and it seems highly possible that the screen's coatings were affected.

This question is important to me because I'm somewhat display-centric.

taichi

[netzspannung]

Nah, don't use Windex and other "heavy" stuff. I use a drop of mild dish-washing soap on mine (Fairy), then rinse with water several times, then dry with a soft paper towel, taking care not to leave streaks.

I don't know if it is harmful for the display or not. My old t22 is perfectly fine after years of such treatment, the t42 IPS has yellowed a bit, but I think it's the backlight.

[taichi]

I just ordered Purosol online, and will probably get it in a week, so I'll let you guys know if it's what it's cracked up to be.

taichi

[ninjaronin18]

I've been using a lint free cloth to wipe the dust off. Then, I'd use just an lcd cleaner liquid to get the fingerprints and other such marks off. Sometimes, I just clean the screen off of dust.

[Franasia]

I use a microfiber cloth to dust it off. Every now an then I will clean it with 3M Electronic Equipment Cleaner spray, again, with a microfiber cloth. This product is good to also clean the whole machine.

Cheers

[taichi]

Dear Franasia:

I strongly sugggest that you do not use 3M Equipment Cleaner spray (or wipes) on your screen. It contains ammonia, which is not good for LCDs.

I just got off the phone with 3M here in the States, and they advised not to use that spray for displays. 3M does, however, make a screen cleaning spray which is intended for use on LCDs.

Be kind to your screen!

taichi

[Franasia]

taichi,

Thanks for the info. It’s good to know. I had researched years ago on LCD cleaners and still have them bookmarked. I could buy 3M stuff locally, so I never tried anything else.

These are three LCD cleaners that appear to be highly specialized and top quality. Suffice to say I’m not affiliated with any of them in any way:

http://www.opti-max.net/lcd/cleaner/opt ... ochure.php

http://www.klearscreen.com/

http://www.radtech.us/Products/OmniCleanz.aspx

Hope that helps.

Cheers

[taichi]

I, also not affiliated with anyone other than my girlfriend and my dog, was most impressed by Purosol's explanation of their technology, but the proof will be in the pudding. But they apparently did develop it for NASA.

taichi