One of the behaviors that dooms any hobby is getting excited about hardware without any plans for making it last. I learned this the hard way with my one and only e-scooter. I was lazy about keeping the tires inflated, and sure enough, I got not one but two punctures before I decided I was better off giving it away. I prefer an electric unicycle these days, but you’d better believe I’m careful about every aspect of maintenance.
Home theaters don’t require as much attention as a single-wheeled vehicle. Still, things can and do go wrong with AV systems if you neglect them, so here are a few tips that should ensure yours is as good five years from now as it is today. Even if you don’t plan to hold onto gear that long, solid maintenance can help resale value.
Cleaning screens and lenses carefully
You’re not scrubbing the Empire State
For the most part, cleaning a TV or projector screen is about immediate clarity rather than longevity. You don’t want dust, dried liquids, or a child’s sticky fingers distracting from your movies and shows. Some materials become harder to remove if you don’t clean right away, however, and in rare cases they might even react badly if they contain particular chemicals.
There’s no hard and fast rule on how frequently you should clean, other than when it’s obviously necessary. What is set in stone is that you should clean with microfiber cloths, and avoid using anything with ammonia or alcohol in it, like Windex. That’s because the glass surfaces in home theater equipment almost inevitably rely on special coatings, and it’s too easy to damage them. Use liquid cleaners specifically mixed for TVs, lenses, or computers.
You’ll want to be especially careful about cleaning projector lenses. These may not be very tough to begin with, and the slightest nick or smudge is going to be amplified.
Dusting vents, filters, and other surfaces
Defeating the silent killer
As I’ve said elsewhere, heat is typically the ultimate killer of TVs. No wire or circuit is 100% efficient, and that waste energy takes its toll — it’s just a question of which component goes first. To stretch longevity as far as possible, you have to keep heat under control.
That means preventing dust accumulation anywhere that might hinder airflow. Vents and filters should be your priority, but even perfectly flat surfaces can start trapping extra heat if you let a layer of dust build on top. I recommend dusting gear once per month, or at least every few months. Microfiber cloths are preferable. You may in some situations want a compressed air can, but be sure to keep it level, and a few inches away from your target. You don’t want the can’s fluids landing on circuitry.
Severe accumulation can also increase the intensity of static shock, although it’s dry air and imbalanced charges that actually trigger it. It should be easy to avoid accidentally frying your equipment.
Inspecting ports and cables
A lesser priority, thankfully
For the most part, you don’t need to worry about this. Once a system is fully installed, many ports are blocked by cables that aren’t going anywhere. Some ports will inevitably remain open, though, and those could fill up with dust, lint, and other debris. Keeping them clean will keep them usable. If you need to scrape anything out, do it gently with a soft-tipped tool that won’t bend any contacts or leave its own debris behind.
Pay attention to the state of the cables themselves. Creasing and squashing can potentially wear down sheaths and internal wiring. Also, if cables are unexpectedly brown or exposed, you should probably replace them right away — they could be fire hazards, or even electrocute someone. You may be able to cover exposed wiring with electrical tape, but that level of wear suggests a cable is on its way out anyway.
Upgrading power supplies and protectors
Be prepared for the worst, not daily life
Electronics require varying wattage to function. If you upgrade key components of your system, like the TV or speakers, there’s a risk that your existing power supply will be inadequate, leading to unexpected shutdowns. You may have to do a little math occasionally, tallying the max wattages of everything plugged into a power strip. Normally, a single strip/outlet combo can’t supply any more than 1,800W, and you should keep practical levels a few hundred watts below that to prevent overheating or tripping the internal circuit breaker.
Your power strips should also be surge protectors, rated for at least 2,000 joules. The joule rating determines how much of a surge can be absorbed. On top of that, though, you should research clamping voltages when you can. The lower this figure is, the sooner protection will kick in. 330V is the ideal.
The best protection often comes from a UPS, short for uninterruptible power supply. Using a battery, this can keep your gear running for a short time after an outage, preventing the harm that sometimes comes from sudden shutdowns. All the wattage and surge requirements I mentioned still apply, though, and you should probably put amplifiers and larger subwoofers on direct power instead. A massive peak in power draw can overload consumer-grade UPS units.
