Projector, clean dust off of main board

Just FYI.....this could be due to dust getting on the actual DLP chip itself. The way these things work, that is all I can draw as the most natural reason for this issue.

Great Advice!  Saved me big bucks on new lamp!!!!

Easy to follow instructions.  I wished I took pictures.  Thanks for the advice!

This is great advice, I was on my second projector, the first one I sent back for this problem, the same problem started with the second projector.  My warranty was up, so I was about to send out to be fixed.

I followed these instructions and now the projector is working great again, and has been for over a month.  All I can say is thank-you, you saved me a lot of time and money.  Dell should post this some where.

Great Post!, Just fixed my 2300 from dust. Lamp warning light was on, with no lamp operation. Dust,Dust,  Who would have thought. My unit is 300 hours new,( about 3 months old): I was told to replace the bulb...Glad I read this post!!! :smileyvery-happy:

How do i take my 2300Mp apart?

Dude.... You Rock.... I’m a bit new into the projector world and in my defense im a certified electronics tech. I would not have thought that the minute trace of dust that was built up would have reeked so much havoc.

I dont have a Dell projector but I did buy mine from Dell...I have a Viewsonic PJ755D that started to flicker. As I said...I’m new into the projector world so I was not sure of what to expect when the bulb went out. I was beginning to think it was the bulb because when I put in into "Econo-Mode" it got worse...

I did a little searching on Google and your post was like the 3rd or 4th hit. I did what you said and pulled it apart, (a little different than that of your model). As I was taking it apart I noticed that there was not a whole lot of dust build up ( I was beginning to think that this was going to be a futile attempt). I took the bulb out and pulled the top off to expose all of the electronics. Then I took it out to the shed to blow it out with the air compressor. I took the compressor to the control boards fans...everything that i could blow 90psi air too. Put it all back together and now it works like a charm....

For anyone who is reading this and owns a PJ755D here are a few things to look out for while doing this. Well Ill just write instructions:

1-Turn off the unit and allow the unit to finish its two minute cool-down, additionally, allow the unit to cool for another 25-30 min before doing the following...trust me.

2- Remove the small panel to expose the bulb assy, loosen the three Phillips screws and carefully pull the bulb assy out.(The three screws are captive and will not come off)

3-Place the Bulb on a tall shelf (away from Childs reach) about 10-15 feet away. This will keep you from accidentally knocking it off and destroying a 400-500 dollar light.

4-Using a long #1 Phillips, remove the 5 or six silver screws on the bottom of the unit. Watch out for the one right in the center, I missed that one at first.

5-After removing the screws (and placing them in a safe location) flip the unit back over so it is now sitting on its feet. Using only your fingernails the top should come off with little resistance. WARNING- there are two cables attached to the under side of the lid, be carfull not to rip them.

6- With the lid propped up on a book or something remove the ribbon cable by flipping the small brown lever up. The ribbon should come right out. (Mind you the contact pins on the ribbon are facing down; this will come in handy when putting it back together). The other cable is a (white) plastic connector like those found on sound cards in a computer. To remove just pull it out using your fingernails---Don’t pull by the wires....

7- BLOW BLOW BLOW...if your going to use an air compressor, be careful not to touch any of the "microchips" on the circuit board,(the electrostatic discharge caused by the moving air could destroy the chip and render the unit useless). Make no physical contact with any of the components on the circuit boards.

8- Flip the unit over and make sure you have blown out all of the dust from the inlet and the exhaust. The dust is evil...get all that you can because it apparently doesn’t take much at all to screw things up.

9- All done, Put everything back together, don’t forget about the two cables to hook up. Remember, the ribbon cable pins/contacts face down. The brown lever needs to be up while inserting the ribbon and is used as a clamp to secure the ribbon once it is in place.

10-Go get your bulb that is on top of the fridge or wherever you put it. plug it all back in and hopefully it worked for you too.


I hope this helps someone, it did me. Please if this takes care of your problem make a post to say so. I didn’t have a login for these forums before today. It took 2 min to sign up. Id likes to hear from you....


Mike

Message Edited by mbrang00 on 05-11-200610:24 PM

Thank you so much! This worked on my projector too. I already purchased a new lamp (on ebay so it wasn't too expensive) and the new lamp did not solve the problem. Since my warranty was over, I was sent by Dell to Optima service - I guess these are built by Optima for Dell. I told them the problem and of course, they suggested sending it in for service which was very expensive just to send it in and get looked at. Then they gave me a list of likely problems and the repair could easily have been in the $700 + range - so I opted not to send it in. I fugured there was no sense fixing an old technology projector and getting a 90 day warranty on repairs when for a little more I could buy a new projector and get an extended warranty. Since neither the repair nor a new projector were in my budget, I haven't used my home theater for months. There is no way I can spend a couple grand every 2 years for a new projector. I am so glad I found this post - hopefully it will last for a few more years! 

Sorry, I meant to write: cleaning out the inside, not side.

Thank you so much! It worked!!! About 2 weeks ago, my Dell 3200MP was flickering big time each time after turning on for 5 minutes. The temp light did not go off either. I have used the projector for almost 3 years now without any problem, with only ~400 hours of lamp life used. Unfortunately, I did not get to read this post and bought a replacement lamp from Dell for $399. Of course, that did not fix the problem. After I read your post, I fixed the problem by cleaning out the side with a can of dustser. Thanks you so much!! I hope Dell won't charge me 15% restocking fee for returning the replacement lamp. Or I can just keep it and use it in 10 years when I am through with the original lamp, at the rate I am going. Of course, I will want something newer then. Dope!

i have a 2300 i use as a regular tv in my bedroom i noticed a hair in the piicture took it all apart and vaccumed it and it worked. now my bulb wont turn on and it is 4 months past warranty. for some reason i got some one on a good day and he will replace my bulb for free. great projector great picture very impressed.

I saw this tip a couple of places here, and tried it last night, with no luck. Had the top and front of the 2300 off, used compressed air to blow across the circuit board on the top and back side, and when it was all back together, the same problem: no lamp, no fan, and a lamp light after a couple of minutes. Bulb has 120 hours on it. Warranty has expired. Frustration and anger w/ Dell mounting.

OK, Ive had the same problem with my 3200MP for some time now. The 1st time I air dusted inside as much as I could. This seamed to cure the problem, but it re-occured after about 150 hours use. Air dusted again - and worked for another 50 hours before the flickering & lamp light problem happening again. BTW I have 2 spare bulbs so know for sure it's not the bulb.

The final time, general dusting would not solve the problem, and the projector would shut down without fail after being on only a few minutes.

I decided to try and find out if there was a common problem with this projector model and phoned up some projector repair companies. One company told me that there are several reasons for the lamp light comming on - basically the light really means that the projector had to shut down due to a fault - which could be a number of things. Problems can range from a faulty fan to a faulty main board.

Anyway - to keep things short, I discovered exactly what was causing my projector to flicker and shut off - DUST IN THE COLOUR WHEEL SENSOR. If you open up your projector as described originally and have the lens facing you, the colour wheel is just to the left where the lamp goes. To clean the sensor, 1st remove the screw holding the small green circuit board. With it detached, you will easily see the sensor, and probably some dust/dirt. remove the offending dust, and wipe it clean. Also, if you spin the colour wheel carefully, you will see a black tape section. Wipe round where this tape is - the sensor picks up the black tape to sync which is used to sync the colours projected by the dlp chip.

Hope this is of some help to someone.