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I Screwed Up. Will Blurred Images On My Projector Regain Sharpness Again?

post #1 of 12
1/26/10 at 7:35am
Thread Starter 
I am a new user and this is my first post here. I am a newbie in this and would appreciate some help.

The air filter on my Hitachi PJ-TX100 projector was soiled and trying to be smart I used a thin layer of sponge to replace the air filter instead of getting the original replacement. After about 2 hours into the movie the images on the screen began to lose definition and sharpness and became slightly blurred. That was when I realized I had screwed up.

My question is, will the picture quality regain its sharpness and definition when I don't use the air filter at all? I have been watching a 2-hour movie on the projector without the air filter in it and things seem to be improving, but images are still not as defined.

The lamp has about 1,100 hours on it(lamp life is 2,000 hours).

Any advice would be most appreciated.
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post #2 of 12
1/26/10 at 8:21am
Debris from the sponge has probably coated the lens assembly. You may need to open up your PJ and clean the lenses in order to get your best image back.
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post #3 of 12
1/26/10 at 8:24am
Thread Starter 
Thanks a lot for the advice. Looks like a came to the right forum. Now time to have a look at that manual. I am a total novice in this and don't want to screw anything up, again.

Cheers.
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post #4 of 12
1/26/10 at 8:26am
Opening up your PJ is not for the faint of heart. You might want to send it to someone who will clean it for you. I'll see if I can find instructions on how to handle this yourself.
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post #5 of 12
1/26/10 at 8:26am
Thread Starter 
By the way, what is the actual function of the air filter? Am I doing any harm by not using any air filter? What are the consequences of doing so? Will the life-span of the lamp become shorter without the use of an air filter?

Your advice on this matter would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.
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post #6 of 12
1/26/10 at 8:28am
The air filter keeps dust, smoke, mites, hair, and other debris out of your PJ to prevent what has happened to yours.
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post #7 of 12
1/26/10 at 8:32am
Thread Starter 
Never mind if you can't find any instructions to clean the lens. I'll just see if I can live with the current picture until it's time to change the whole lamp altogether. About 900 hours more to go.
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post #8 of 12
1/26/10 at 9:10am
I would get it cleaned as reconlabtech suggested. You'll most likely only be out $100 or so, and you'll have a fine working projector.
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post #9 of 12
1/26/10 at 3:04pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by reconlabtech View Post

Debris from the sponge has probably coated the lens assembly. You may need to open up your PJ and clean the lenses in order to get your best image back.

This is a preferable end over what I thought might have happened...

My guess was that putting the sponge in blocked too much air, overheated something and he's warped some piece of the optical path.

I sure hope it's your explanation.
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post #10 of 12
1/26/10 at 3:23pm
I was thinking this also,but he did say his air filter was plugged up so it would of did the same thing. I hope it was a new sponge if not you may be getting some contaminates off of it.
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post #11 of 12
1/26/10 at 3:38pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by BMaugans View Post

My guess was that putting the sponge in blocked too much air, overheated something and he's warped some piece of the optical path.

I hope that "some piece of the optical path" that's warped comes in the new lamp assembly. If not I cannot fathom what needs to be done to get crisp image back. I tried to watch without the air filter for 2 hours and there were some improvements but image is still blurred. I only have myself to blame for being too smart in using a sponge that may have overheated something.

I can only hope it is the debris that might have covered the lens and not something in the optical path that has warped. There is a possibility that the lens is covered with debris as part of the air filter that is soiled is missing. It might have got sucked into the projector.

At any rate I guess I would need someone experienced to look at it to get the crisp and sharp picture back. Thanks for all advice.
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post #12 of 12
1/26/10 at 5:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BMaugans View Post

This is a preferable end over what I thought might have happened...

My guess was that putting the sponge in blocked too much air, overheated something and he's warped some piece of the optical path.

I sure hope it's your explanation.

If you cut off the air flow so that the PJ overheated, it would have shut down. It has that built into the unit in case a fan fails.
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