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Heidi asked: How can I clean ink from an LCD TV screen? My daughter “cleaned” our TV screen with an ink pen. I’m afraid of making it worse if I try to clean it. Any suggestions would help.
LCD
screens offer many valuable options and features that make them appealing to many users. Taking care of the screen and cleaning it requires careful steps so the surface does not become scratched and dull. Commercial cleaners are available, but they can be easily made right at home. Follow the methods below to safely and effectively remove the ink marks from an LCD screen.
You Will Need:
- Isopropyl alcohol
- Distilled water
- Microfiber cloth
- Spray bottle
Steps to Remove the Ink Stains:
- Begin by mixing a solution of one part rubbing alcohol with one part distilled water in a spray bottle.
- Moisten the microfiber cloth by spraying it lightly with the solution. Do not spray liquids directly onto an LCD screen. Doing so may cause damage.
- Use the moistened cloth to gently wipe the area clean.
- Avoid using too much pressure as this can cause damage to the screen as well.
Additional Tips and Ideas
- Never use any abrasive cleaners or scrubbers on an LCD screen!
- If your screen is left with white smears, the water used in the solution was not distilled. Tap water contains minerals that will leave a coating on the screen and should be avoided.
- Microfiber cloths should be used at all times. Even though tissues and paper towels feel soft, they are too abrasive and will cause tiny scratches all across the screen. While it may not look scratched, it will take on a dull or filmy look.
- Keven Ellison submitted an effective solution of using insect repellent to remove the stains quickly and effortlessly. Spray on sunscreen has the same effect. The chemical make-up of these products allows water to penetrate under the stain allowing it to lift right off. Keven also recommends WD-40 for ink.
This was a great tip! I sprayed insect repellent on the LCD screen then wiped it clean with a baby wipe. It came right off!
Thanks a lot. Because of your suggestion, I was able to remove a ball pen scratch from my LCD screen.
How do I remove ink from an Xperia XA Ultra phone?
Chanoy,
The Xperia XA Ultra has an LCD screen, so the steps in this article should work. However, because it has an oleophobic coating, try to avoid using any more alcohol than necessary. Use a cotton swab instead of a cloth to keep the alcohol only where needed on the ink area. Alcohol should not damage the coating the first couple of uses, but better to be conservative with it if you want to preserve the coating as much as possible. Good luck!
Source: Wovow.org – Introduction to Sony Xperia XA Ultra smartphone
Source: iFixit – Should you use alcohol wipes on iPhone screen?
Thank you, now I can remove the ink from our LCD monitor. Just rubbing alcohol and a cotton ball, and it removed the ink!
Bug spray worked great for me.
Bug spray worked fantastically; took the black ink right off the screen. Thanks!
Just used the fly spray on a microfiber cloth and it wiped straight off; thanks heaps. Brilliant tip.
Spray-on sunscreen did the trick! We just got our new TV a week ago and I thought it was ruined! Thank you!!!
Thank you a whole bunch!! I used sunscreen on the ink and it came right off…so thankful as it is a new TV!!
It actually worked great thanks to bug spray.
Just used Aeroguard (insect repellent) and a cloth… It came off so easily. Thanks heaps!
I sprayed insect repellent on a cotton swab and the ink came off immediately.
Thank you. I used spray-on sunscreen with a microfiber cloth. It came right off. Serves me right for pointing at something on the screen while holding a pen.
Started a show on Netflix. When the white screen came up, I paused the TV because I saw scribbles. I asked my boyfriend, “What is that? Do you see that?” I thought it was my hair or pen. Turns out my three-year-old used pen. Well, Lysol Dual Action Cleaning Wipes did the trick! (; Kids…
Our toddler also used the LCD screen as her drawing board. The spay-on sunscreen and microfibre cloth did the trick.
Thank you!
Does this work with LED screens?
Mr. Fetus,
Alcohol will work to remove the ink on most surfaces. With LED screens you want to be especially careful because they may not be covered, or they may have a chemical treatment on them. You can call the manufacturer to determine if alcohol is safe for your specific screen or you can test it on a small corner to look for any adverse reaction.
I have a Gionee P5W smartphone and I woke up and saw a black round ink stain with colour around it. I tried using alcohol to clean it, but it’s not working and the ink is now spreading little by little.
I used a mixture of isopropyl alcohol and Dawn dish washing liquid. Awesome! Thanks so much!
Can you help me out? Ink on my iphone 7. How can I clear the ink on the screen please?
Emmanuel,
Use isopropyl alcohol. Although the alcohol can remove the oleophobic coating on an iPhone, it usually only does so with repeated exposure. Just using it once should result in a removal of the ink without any/much removal or the coating. Good luck!
Source: iFixIt – Should you use alcohol whipes on iPhone screen?
I am removing the screen and circuits of the PSP body and putting them in an iPhone 6. It totally works, but as I was getting rid of the screen, ink spread, so now I know what to do to make it work. Thank you very much.
Please guys.. my iphone 6s has the blue ink by the top right hand side and it’s spreading little by little. Please kindly advise how I eradicate this. Will appreciate your help guys. Thanks.
Nelly,
The alcohol should remove it. A little alcohol is safe to clean your iphone once or twice, just don’t use it too often or rub very hard as it can remove the oleophobic coating over time. Good luck!
None of the methods work. In fact, the method with the nail polish remover made the stain worse; the area is all white now; the nail polish remover just took the ink and the plastic color off.
How do I get off permanent ink off of S8 edge screen?
Hi Joy,
These methods can work for all types of ink, including permanenet marker like Sharpie. Good luck!