How to Clean a Flat Screen TV Without Leaving Streaks

A flat screen TV is undoubtedly a luxury that many people are lucky to have. The graphics and resolution on TVs are getting better and better, and yet one problem still persists: TVs get dirty really easily.

It does not matter if you have the nicest TV on the market, you won’t be able to fully enjoy watching your TV show or movie if the sleek screen is covered in dust or streaks.

And somehow there is always dust, which can cause allergies, or fingerprints, and yet, when you try to clean the dust or fingerprints off, you often are left with an even more distracting nuisance, which are steaks across your screens.

In this article, we will go over some of the best methods available for making sure that you can clean your TVs to perfection without leaving streaks.

The Importance of a Clean TV Screen for Business

A dirty TV is undoubtedly annoying when the TV is part of a home entertainment center, but when it comes to TVs displayed in businesses, a dirty TV can be a real liability.

TVs displayed in waiting rooms, restaurants, and many other types of establishments are meant to entertain customers, or they are used for digital signage with important information or great promotions.

However, if the TVs that are displaying your content on are dirty, that simply looks bad for a business in any industry, since any business will certainly want to present a clean image to their customers, clients, or guests.

For this reason, making sure that you find a way to ensure that you are able to clean your TVs without streaks is truly important for business, and even if customers do not think of it consciously, a clean flat screen TV will undoubtedly leave a positive impression and improve the customer experience.

Moreover, having nicer TVs can actually exacerbate the problem. Whether you have an LCD or an OLED tv, you've likely dealt with a few horrible streaks,and as great as these new, ultra HD or 4K TVs look with all the lights shut off, any tiny bit of glare is sure to shine a light on the streaks in a way that simply will not be overlooked.

Moreover, although regularly cleaning your TV screen will keep your TV working as well as it can, if you don’t clean it correctly, you may scratch the screen or damage the delicate anti-glare coating that many new screens have – which will seriously affect the performance of the TV.

This is a liability whether the TV is used for personal use or as a display in your business. With old CRT televisions, you could wipe the screen with almost anything without causing any harm. But, a modern flat-screen TV needs more care.

So, whether you love watching TV at home or want to display the best image for your customers, and yet, you get frustrated by the difficulty in keeping your TV clean, then you know that this is no small matter.

If you can find a way to clean your TV without leaving streaks, that will certainly be a blessing, and luckily, as we will show, you absolutely can!

Preliminary Steps

In this article, we will cover a number of cleaning methods to get your screen surface clean and without streaks, but there are two steps that are necessary for you to take no matter what cleaning method you choose to go with. These steps are reading the user manual for your TV model and turning off your TV.

First Step: Check Your TV Owner’s Manual

Before attempting to clean your TV, you should always consult the instruction manual for your television model first. If you got rid of the manual or don't know where it is, a simple online search for the exact model should result in being able to easily download it.

This is extremely important because there may very well be important information regarding what you should or should not be using to clean your specific flat screen TV. What can work for a QLED screen may not be the best for a LED, a plasma screen, and so on. If you damage your TV by using a method not covered in the manual, then your warranty may not cover the cost.

So it's very important to know what the manufacturer instructions are ahead of using anything to clean the screen.

Step Two: Turn Your TV Off

No matter the cleaning method you choose to wipe away those streaks on your flat screen TV, it is absolutely crucial that you turn your TV off before you start to clean it. If you leave the TV onIf you use any sort of liquid, even just dampened on a gentle cloth, you're going to end up with a streaky cleaning job.

LCD screens produce heat when turned on. Do not worry, the amount of heat that the TV produces is not enough to be in any way dangerous to you. However, cleaning a heated screen, even one that produces such a small amount of heat as a flat screen TV, will ultimately result in visible streaks.

So, regardless of whether your next step involves a DIY dish soap mixture or just plain old water, always make sure to unplug your TV and let the flat screen cool first to avoid a streaky finish.

Cleaning Your Flat Screen TV Without Streaks

Now that you have completed the first two steps, we can dive into some of the best methods for cleaning your flat screen TV without leaving those annoying streaks!

1. A Clean Lint Free cloth or a Clean Microfiber Cloth

Even if your TV looks like it needs some major cleaning, a lint-free cloth (the best option is a microfiber cloth) or feather duster may be just enough to do the trick.

Simply unplug the TV and give the screen a gentle wipe down. You don't want to apply too much pressure, because you'll risk damaging the hardware. Use just enough force to remove the dust and debris from the screen, and you should be left with a clean, streak-free result.

2. Distilled Water

If you've already attempted to clean your TV screen with some sort of cleaner, then there are probably some existing streaks you need to take care of.

While a dry microfiber cloth is key to regular maintenance, it may not be powerful enough to remove any stubborn streaks. In this case, another cloth with some distilled water might just do the trick. You do not want to use tap water, since tap water often contains minerals that could leave streaks.

Start with a dry microfiber cloth, wiping in gentle, circular motions. Then, use a spray bottle to spray another clean lint-free cloth with water. You don't want it to be oversaturated, and you definitely don't want to spray the water directly on the screen, since that could fry the internals of your TV.

Get the cloth just damp enough and wipe the streaks away for good with the damp cloth, then follow up with the dry cloth again to finish things off.

3. White Vineger, Water, and a Soft Cloth

If water and a cloth are not enough to get rid of the streaks, there are still many options that are available, so do not worry. The last thing that you will want to do is use a common household cleaner like Windex or other window cleaners.

In fact, Windex and other ammonia-based cleaners can actually severely damage your television by removing the protective layer on the surface of the screen. A much better option is to use water and white vinegar.

Mix up a 50-50 ratio of distilled water and white vinegar. Wipe down the flat screen in an S-shaped pattern to avoid any more streaks, then give it another pass with a dry cloth. This will stop the at-home vinegar mixture from sticking behind on the screen, and inevitably forming those unsightly water spots.

4. Isopropyl alcohol

Isopropyl alcohol is probably the most harsh cleaning solution that you should apply to your TV. But do not worry, it is certainly safe and is commonly used as a cleaner for various devices with glass screens like phones, tablets, and computers.

Start with an equal amount of water and isopropyl alcohol and mix the two, then apply it directly to an anti-static cloth. Be sure to wring out any excess liquid so that you aren't over-saturating the TV.

If that does not work, then it is safe to use 100% isopropyl alcohol without causing any damage. nce you're done, give the TV another gentle wipe with the plain water to get rid of any residue from the alcohol, then dry it with a clean cloth.

5. Dish Soap

This might seem like a bad idea, but in fact, many people swear by dish soap’s ability to wash off unsightly smudges and streaks on flat screen TVs. The important thing to keep in mind is to use barely any dish soap at all in a mixture with water. You do not want to overdo it with the soap because too many bubbles will leave their own marks on the screen.

Remember to always apply the cleaning solution to a gentle cloth first, then wipe down the screen. The last thing you want to do is spray the cleaner onto the TV directly. This is because it is so important to maintain the correct amount of soap in the mixture.

Additionally, you will want to make sure that the dish soap you're using does not contain ammonia or any harsh chemicals or particles

6. Electrostatic Duster

If you do not have microfiber cloths, then the next best option is probably an electrostatic duster. Electrostatic dusters use static electricity to attract dust away from the surface and onto the duster instead.

Using one on electronics, such as the TV and computer monitors, can be especially powerful in getting rid of the unwanted dust. Moreover, most are easy to wash by stirring the feathers in warm water and letting it dry, so you can use the same duster many times.

7. Electronic Wipes

For a particularly tough to get out spot on your flat screen TV, try using a wipe that is designed specifically to be safe for electronics. They're easy to find, particularly in any office supply or electronics stores or an online store like Amazon. Additionally, they are easy to store in your TV console for easy reach.

Electronic wipes are not only a good screen cleaner for getting smudges and grime off of your TV, but they are also safe to use on most other electronic devices like gaming consoles, computers, tablets, and phones. Its important to keep these devices sanitized and cleaned, and electronic wipes can be some of the best cleaning products on the market for these purposes.

However, you may want to be careful of chemical cleaners if you have a plasma TV since this would potentially remove the protective anti-glare layer on the screen. Whatever you do, however, do not use paper towels, as this can really scratch your screen.

Clean the Frame, Stand, and Back of the TV

In order to make sure that your TV screen stays clean, it is important to make sure that the rest of the TV is clean. This will not only make the whole TV look better, but it will also reduce the amount of dust particles that may attach to the screen.

When cleaning parts of the television that are not the screen, using many of the methods that we have talked about in this article can work. However, it is generally best to avoid using wet materials as much as possible.

Try using a duster or microfiber cloth, and if that does not work, then try the distilled water method, making sure that you do not oversaturate the cloth with water and accidentally damage the electrical components of the TV.

Making Your Cleaning Efforts Count

Cleaning your TV is definitely a must, whether your TV is in your house or displayed in your business. However, cleaning a TV can be some seriously tricky business. In this article, we have given many cleaning tips to overcome the problem of streaks on your TV.

Nevertheless, there is no more important step than checking the owner’s manual. You want to make sure that whatever you do, you do not damage your TV while trying to improve it. With that said, after reading this article, you should be all set to take your TV cleaning to the next level!