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Electronics Forum / Repair / July 2008"Sticky Goo" Inside Remote
I have an older Mitsubishi TV remote and the channel up/down button stopped working. So I took it apart, and it had some kind of "sticky goo" inside. Not only on top of the rubber keypad between the buttons, but also between the keypad and the circuit board. It closely resembled Vasoline. I cleaned the entire remote with rubbing alcohol and Q-tips and now it works fine. Does anyone know what in the hell the sticky goo was? The only thing I could find on Google, was that it was a natural break down of the rubber. (and no it has NEVER had anything spilled on it) > I have an older Mitsubishi TV remote and the channel up/down button > stopped working. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > (and no it has NEVER had anything spilled on it) I'm thinking you dx'd it...rubber breakdown. I've seen it too. jak Going back a number of years, with some of the rubber key-pads the rubber would start to degenerate. Eventually the rubber material will start breaking down.  SignatureJANA _____ I have an older Mitsubishi TV remote and the channel up/down button stopped working. So I took it apart, and it had some kind of "sticky goo" inside. Not only on top of the rubber keypad between the buttons, but also between the keypad and the circuit board. It closely resembled Vasoline. I cleaned the entire remote with rubbing alcohol and Q-tips and now it works fine. Does anyone know what in the hell the sticky goo was? The only thing I could find on Google, was that it was a natural break down of the rubber. (and no it has NEVER had anything spilled on it) > I have an older Mitsubishi TV remote and the channel up/down button > stopped working. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > (and no it has NEVER had anything spilled on it) I've seen the same thing. I almost thought it was some kind of silicone grease. The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most remote controls are almost impossible to disassemble. Screws aren't enough -- the back snaps together so tightly that, unless you have the right tool and know how to use it, it's impossible to open the back without destroying the unit. I irreparably damaged remote for a Toshiba IDTV doing this, and of course, full-function replacements aren't available. The remote for my NAD MR-20a is secured solely wth screws, and is easy to clean. > The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most remote > controls are almost impossible to disassemble. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > The remote for my NAD MR-20a is secured solely wth screws, and is easy to > clean. Warming them with a heat gun, and a bit of twisting often gets them apart. Don't over heat ones with lcd displays tho. Ron > > The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most remote > > controls are almost impossible to disassemble. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Ron I've often done that, assuming a hot air gun , masking off any problem areas like LCD, soft buttons etc. Stout thumb nails are useful tools also, structuraly just about the right material. Anyone know of a similar material that is easier to use with heated plastic? Thin, tough and short scale flexible, long enough to get some purchase -- Diverse Devices, Southampton, England electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/ >> > The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most > remote controls are almost impossible to disassemble. [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > Anyone know of a similar material that is easier to use with heated plastic? > Thin, tough and short scale flexible, long enough to get some purchase I've used relay points burnishing files. About 6-7 mm wide and ~10 cm long. Got them 40 years ago as a Field Tech for IBM. The wrong tool for the right job. :-) Jonesy SignatureMarvin L Jones | jonz | W3DHJ | linux 38.24N 104.55W | @ config.com | Jonesy | OS/2 *** Killfiling google posts: <http://jonz.net/ng.htm> > > > The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most > remote [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on > http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/ I use one of those fake credit cards that come in the mail. They are thin enough to slide along and release the catches, and if you damage the card it's no big loss. I trim the card if it gets too raggy, and use it until there isn't anything left to hold on to. Now I save all those free credit card offers from American Express etc., until I get the fake cards out of them. - Tim - >>>> The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most >> remote [quoted text clipped - 34 lines] > > - Tim - Guitar picks...they come in many sizes/thicknesses/degrees of stiffness. Top it off, they're almost the perfect size. jak jak > Guitar picks...they come in many sizes/thicknesses/degrees of stiffness. > Top it off, they're almost the perfect size. > > jak > > jak That sounds likely , what do you mean by top it off? I may try gluing one in a split or cut piece of wooden dowel. Whatever that material is , its simulating human finger nail. I too have held back mock american express cards but they are too floppy and relatively thick for this task. -- Diverse Devices, Southampton, England electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/ >> Guitar picks...they come in many sizes/thicknesses/degrees of stiffness. >> Top it off, they're almost the perfect size. [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on > http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/ Should have read *To* top it off...just adding a further quality to the preceding. In fact, I saw instructions on the web somewhere for replacing cell phone cases (by a company which sells such replacements). They sold tools for installing their product--a t-? torx driver, and a....well, it looked just like a guitar pick, but they called it something else and charged a dollar or two for it. One more quality to recommend the lowly guitar pick: they are (usually) made of some sort of plastic--minimizing scratching/gouging if they slip--and inhibiting the application of too much force. jak I dont think its the rubber breaking down . I have seen many remotes dry as a dry bone . Many older remotes that were never used dont do this . Here at my house the only remote that did that was the one i used to hold i my hand alot . After i cleaned it and stopped holding it the goo stopped . I believe its somehow oils from the hands that get drawn in somehow . I also found a good way to fix those remotes where the rubber pads inside loose their conductivity . Clean it real good . Smear a thin coat of auto emblem adhesive on the pad . Take a motor brush and scrape it with a knife to make powder on something then push and smear the glue coated pad into the dust . This might be old news ?? but it works pretty good . >I dont think its the rubber breaking down . I have seen many remotes dry > as a dry bone . Many older remotes that were never used dont do this . [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > something then push and smear the glue coated pad into the dust . > This might be old news ?? but it works pretty good . You can also keep the keymats from scrap phones / calculators / remotes, and then, when needed, razor blade a black conductive lozenge off the rubber substrate, then superglue it to the substrate on the keymat you're repairing, after first razor blading off the worn out lozenge. Arfa >> The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most remote >> controls are almost impossible to disassemble. [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > > Ron Laptop people use "spudgers". Great word, that. Here's a demo. http://reviews.ebay.co.uk/Open-an-iBook-for-repairs-without-damaging-the-case_W0 QQugidZ10000000005121811 Gareth. > >> The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most remote > >> controls are almost impossible to disassemble. [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Laptop people use "spudgers". Great word, that. Here's a demo. http://reviews.ebay.co.uk/Open-an-iBook-for-repairs-without-damaging-the-cas e_W0QQugidZ10000000005121811 > Gareth. Unexpected , to me as never heard of a spudger, there is a Wiki entry for them -- Diverse Devices, Southampton, England electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/ > >> The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most remote > >> controls are almost impossible to disassemble. [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Laptop people use "spudgers". Great word, that. Here's a demo. http://reviews.ebay.co.uk/Open-an-iBook-for-repairs-without-damaging-the-cas e_W0QQugidZ10000000005121811 > Gareth. They mention nylon as the material of spodgers which I would say has not the same characteristics as human thumb nail. -- Diverse Devices, Southampton, England electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/ > The worst part of it is that this problem is easy to fix, but most remote > controls are almost impossible to disassemble. [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > The remote for my NAD MR-20a is secured solely wth screws, and is easy to > clean. A blunt curved X-acto blade in a standard X-acto holder, will easily open any clipped together remote control. It's just a case of experience really, I think. Arfa > A blunt curved X-acto blade in a standard X-acto holder, will > easily open any clipped together remote control. It's just a > case [sic] of experience really, I think. I attacked the case quite aggressively, and it simply bent, rather than budging. I wasn't even able to break the case -- though I did (as I found out later) break the PC board, rendering the unit unrepairable. I think I'm going to call Toshiba. Not only doesn't Toshiba make a compatible remote, but they don't supply the full set of codes to replacement-remote manufacturers. >> A blunt curved X-acto blade in a standard X-acto holder, will >> easily open any clipped together remote control. It's just a [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > compatible remote, but they don't supply the full set of codes to > replacement-remote manufacturers. You must normally release at least two of the clip points, holding them released either with a second knife / credit card / finger / any of the other good suggestions that there has been, before finding the rest of the clip points, which will usually then just 'spring' quite readily. Once you have three or four of them released, it will virtually fall apart. Sometimes, they can seem like they are resisting unreasonably, but once you find the right places to 'probe', it sometimes amazes you how readily they then come apart, and you can't believe that it has taken you so long. The top edge of some monitor cabinets is a similar case in point, where unless you find the exact right place to probe, the clips will resist you until the plastic breaks. Arfa > Sometimes, they can seem like they are resisting unreasonably, > but once you find the right places to 'probe', it sometimes amazes > you how readily they then come apart, and you can't believe that > it has taken you so long. Which is exactly the point. This is a large remote, and it's hard to even begin to guess where the "ears" are. I just bought some AR interconnects, which come in a large snap-shut "egg". I had little trouble getting it open. So why...? >> Sometimes, they can seem like they are resisting unreasonably, >> but once you find the right places to 'probe', it sometimes amazes [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > "egg". > I had little trouble getting it open. So why...? You can usually insinuate the edge of the knife blade into the crack between the case halves, and then rotate in the plane of the blade, either up, or down. This will normally result in the case halves twisting apart at that point, and will tell you which half is clipped over the other. You can also normally see at this point, where the case halves are resisting twisting apart, and that will be where your first clip point is located. You can either slide the knife blade down to that point, and then knowing which way the case is clipped together, twist again in that direction, or come out with the knife and then move down to the clip point, and reinsert. Either way, it's not that hard, and as I said, probably more a matter of technique and experience, than special tools, or the manufacturers trying to stop you getting in there. Arfa > >> Sometimes, they can seem like they are resisting unreasonably, > >> but once you find the right places to 'probe', it sometimes amazes [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] > > Arfa Some of these remotes aren't even worth the trouble to repair (if you can get the darn thing open in the first place) when they go bad. I have a "GE" branded universal remote I bought from a discount store for $5. I don't see any clips or other types of fasteners holding the case together. It would seem to me that one would have to almost literally destroy the remote to get it open. Oh well. This type of remote is meant to be thrown away when it fails anyway, like just about everything else these days. The only reason I bought this particular remote is that it is the only universal remote short of an expensive learning remote that will operate all four components of my video entertainment system, including my CyberHome DVD player. OTOH, I also have a "One for All" universal remote that should be very easy to open should it require service, as there is only one screw holding the unit together. I would still be using that remote today if it supported my DVD player, but it doesn't--none of the One for All universals have setup codes for this brand of DVD. CyberHome even mentions on its website that no other remotes than the ones supplied with its DVD players will operate them. Jasco Products (the company that manufactures "GE" branded universal remotes and other video accessories under the GE name and logo) must have seen the need for a universal (other than a learning remote) that would operate CyberHome DVD players, as the unit I have, and likely most other recent-vintage "GE" branded universal remotes, have setup codes for the CH DVDs, what few of them are still in use (CyberHome went out of business not long ago). Jeff Strieble, WB8NHV Fairport Harbor, Ohio USA > This type of remote is meant to be thrown away when it > fails anyway, like just about everything else these days. We're not talking about universal remotes. >> This type of remote is meant to be thrown away when it >> fails anyway, like just about everything else these days. > > We're not talking about universal remotes. yes,factory remotes often have instrument-specific functions that a universal remote will not activate;I have a Pioneer PD-M70 CD player where the remote died,and a universal remote does -some- things,but not many commonly used functions. and a universal remote will not operate my new Magnavox OTA DTV converter. SignatureJim Yanik jyanik at kua.net >>> This type of remote is meant to be thrown away when it >>> fails anyway, like just about everything else these days. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > and a universal remote will not operate my new Magnavox OTA DTV converter. I've posted this before.... Buy a Palm unit. There are several programs out there which convert the unit to a universal, learning remote. Libraries are posted online of codes for various devices. There are forums where you can request codes for esoteric gear. People who have that gear can teach their Palm remote and post the results for those hard to find functions. A Palm M130 goes for maybe $15 on eBay. It has a sufficient IR range to function as a useful remote control. Either buy a new battery (if needed) for a few bucks, or leave it in a charging cradle close to where you use it. Even an old Palm III X, that you might have in a drawer somewhere, can be a viable device remote with an IR extender added. Better yet, you can control your devices with any Palm-enabled smart phone.... <http://www.pacificneotek.com/omnisw.htm> <http://www.novii.tv/palm/> <http://hp.vector.co.jp/authors/VA005810/remocon/premocce.htm> jak >>> Sometimes, they can seem like they are resisting unreasonably, >>> but once you find the right places to 'probe', it sometimes amazes [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > > Arfa maybe some of that steel banding used for going around shipping crates would work.I use pieces of it for cal sticker scrapers. SignatureJim Yanik jyanik at kua.net > I have an older Mitsubishi TV remote and the channel up/down button > stopped working. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > (and no it has NEVER had anything spilled on it) What kind of movies are you watching while using that remote? >> I have an older Mitsubishi TV remote and the channel up/down button >> stopped working. [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > What kind of movies are you watching while using that remote? heh >I have an older Mitsubishi TV remote and the channel up/down button >stopped working. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > >(and no it has NEVER had anything spilled on it) I've seen tape decks where the rubber belts have completely disintegrated into a sticky sludge. I've also just cleaned the rubber goo out of my Sanyo TV remote for the second time in as many years. - Franc Zabkar SignaturePlease remove one 'i' from my address when replying by email. |
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