My inlaws want a new flat panel. They have a house heated exclusively by a wood burning stove. If anyone has experience with this they know that in such a house the air is heavy and after you leave your clothes smell like camp fire. Well they were looking at rear-projections recently and the salesman told them they would need the bulb and other internals cleaned annually due to the soot in the air from the wood stove.

Frankly, I had never thought of this but suppose it makes at least some sense (although the salesman may have been trying to lead them down the road of paying for some sort of service plan). So I am now wondering if a flat panel (either plasma or lcd) would have the same issue or if this shouldn't be a concern at all.

My initial thoughts are that dust and debris make their way into all electronics, but it would take MANY years for any real noticeable damage to take place. After all, the inerds are protected by the encasing. I was thinking the glass screen of a plasma would at least be easier to wipe down than an lcd.

Any thoughts?

Why would the salesman's advice for the RPTV not apply to the inner workings of a plasma? Of course, there is no bulb, but there are other internal components that might be affected by that kind of environment. Electronics are not completely sealed - there are numerous vents and other openings. Then again, if it didn't affect the last TV they had, maybe there's no reason to think it would affect this one. Your post made me think of what happens when I wear my glasses when I BBQ (gas grill) - I have to clean them when I come inside. Smoke is particulate matter, not gaseous, and I would have to believe it is inherently not good for electronics of any kind.

But that's just what seems reasonable to me. I don't know for sure.

Is there soot that piles up on other things around the house? If not I really wouldn't worry about it with a plasma. Its not like there so much that they have lung problems because of it right?

I think you're on the right track with your thinking. First of all, the salesperson was probably getting ready to sell your in-laws an extended service plan which included annual cleaning or something. 2ndly, I think this would pose a problem over time for any TV. I don't think it'd be specific to LCD or Plasma or RP or DLP. They all have openings for airflow and if the airflow going in is poor then there's bound to be some problems eventually. I don't think this should necessarily be a decision driver towards one type of set over another. I'll be interested to see other peoples thoughts.

My inlaws want a new flat panel. They have a house heated exclusively by a wood burning stove. If anyone has experience with this they know that in such a house the air is heavy and after you leave your clothes smell like camp fire. Well they were looking at rear-projections recently and the salesman told them they would need the bulb and other internals cleaned annually due to the soot in the air from the wood stove.

Frankly, I had never thought of this but suppose it makes at least some sense (although the salesman may have been trying to lead them down the road of paying for some sort of service plan). So I am now wondering if a flat panel (either plasma or lcd) would have the same issue or if this shouldn't be a concern at all.

My initial thoughts are that dust and debris make their way into all electronics, but it would take MANY years for any real noticeable damage to take place. After all, the inerds are protected by the encasing. I was thinking the glass screen of a plasma would at least be easier to wipe down than an lcd.

Any thoughts?

Thanks for the thoughts.

There is no soot that piles up around the house and they obviously have all the normal electronics that most of us have (tvs, dvd players, video game consoles, stereos, etc) that seem ok. Its not like you walk in the house and there is smoke and soot everywhere, the air is just heavier (the best way I can describe it). The wood stove is in the basement (burning wood) and has ducts connected to it that go throughout the house. There is some filter material in the vents to catch the bigger particles.

If you are picturing a stove 10 ft across from a tv, that's not quite it.

The more I think about it the more I think they are fine. I'll probably guide them towards a plasma, as that is what I know and like.

If anyone has any other thoughts I'd appreciate it.

Does the wood burning stove have an open face or is it covered by glass doors? The reason I ask is because my grandparents have a lake cabin with a free standing woodburning stove that you simply close the glass doors and very little smoke/soot gets into the house. However as already mentioned, anything that would affect RPTV's would affect any other tv. Plasma would be my choice..but no matter what they go with I would mount/place it as far away from the stove as possible.