The inside of my TV is cracked. You can see it’s cracked from the inside because you can only see the crack when the TV is on. There is no visible damage to the outside. Nothing has come into contact with the screen. It cracked on its own from the inside. It’s a VIZIO E50 50-Inch 1080p Smart LED HDTV. The screen is distorted on one side when you turn it on. It’s a 50″ Class, LED E Series Smart TV. The specs are: Smart TV w/ built-in Wi-Fi, 1080p Full HD – 2 million pixels, Full-Array LED Backlight w/ 12 Active LED Zones, Clear Action 240 w/ 120Hz Effective Refresh Rate and 3 HDMI / 1 USB Ports. This TV cost $599.00! We didn’t pay it off, we are paying it month to month. How much would it cost to repair this television?
TV Screen Cracked From The Inside
What about TV warranty?
Did you buy a warranty from the store? Many times when you buy the TV the cashier (or online store) will ask if you want the 2 year replacement warranty for ANY type of issue your TV could have with no questions asked. Check to see if you bought this warranty and if so return the TV ASAP! Usually a crack on the inside of the TV screen is considered a thermal crack from heat (an internal failure) not impact damage. You should contact Vizio or whatever company makes your TV and ask about thermal screen crack replacement warranty. Especially if your TV is under 6 months old and mounted on a wall therefore not able to be easily touched or knocked over.
TV replacement screens available online… See below…
TV brand links for warranty claims listed by popularity: Samsung, Vizio, LG, Sony, Sharp, Panasonic, Insignia, Toshiba, JVC, Philips, Magnavox, Sanyo, and Emerson. If you get no help from the TV manufacturer, then you can look into fixing it yourself or getting a quote from a TV repair shop.
Can the screen be replaced?
You can replace the inside of the screen yourself. The usual problem you find here is the inside screen costs as much as the TV itself. You can take the TV to an authorized repair shop. If the crack is on the inside, they will tell you the crack is internal and not from impact damage. The TV repair company may be able to convince the TV maker to send you a new TV or they may be able to get the new replacement screen and replace it for you for free. This is not the usual outcome, only for about 25% of internal cracked TVs get fixed covered under warranty. It all depends on the make and model of your TV. Samsung, Vizio, LG, Sony, Sharp, Panasonic, Insignia, Toshiba, JVC, Philips, Magnavox, Sanyo, and Emerson. Sony, Vizio, and LG are usually a little better to deal with than Samsung or Element based on customer satisfaction ratings. If you can’t get anyone to budge to fix the screen or send a new TV, read on below on how to replace a screen yourself…
Where can I buy a replacement TV screen?
There are aftermarket replacement screens for LCD, LED, and Plasma. They are usually not available next day. Most of these aftermarket replacement screens are available on websites like Alibaba, AliExpress, ShopJimmy, and eBay so it will take awhile to receive them. Check the sites mentioned to see if your screen is available in generic form. A generic screen replacement will usually be made in China and ship directly from China. Be sure to email them a few times to be sure the replacement screen will fit the TV you have before buying.
The images below are replacement TV screens from eBay. We have tried to show all TV models including Dynex, Emerson, Sylvania, LG, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, and Vizio. Click an image below to go to eBay and find your exact replacement screen.
Dynex TV replacement screen
Emerson Sylvania replacement TV screen
LG 42inch TV replacement screen
Samsung 32 inch 4k TV replacement screen
Samsung 32inch replacement TV screen
Sony TV replacement screen
Toshiba TV replacement screen
Vizio TV replacement screen
How do I install my new replacement screen?
Once you have a replacement screen, we will explain to you how to install it yourself. These generalized “screen replacement” steps will help you to complete the replacement process. NOTE: When you received your replacement screen, included in the box, you should have received detailed info on “how to replace the screen”. See instructions if included in replacement screen box.
LCD TV Repair Parts Overview – How to Fix LCD TVs
How to take TV apart and replace cracked screen:
1. Unplug TV from wall.
2. Remove all external cables.
3. Lay TV on a soft flat surface.
4. Locate the frame screws to remove the cracked TV screen.
5. Remove the screws.
6. Remove the frame around the cracked screen.
7. Remove internal cables going from the TV frame to the cracked screen. (Label internal cables if needed for putting back together)
8. Remove the cracked TV screen.
9. Put the new replacement screen into the TV and connect internal cables.
10. Turn the TV on and cross your fingers.
Have a Plasma TV? Plasma screen repair
Do you have tips, methods, or ways to get OEM replacement screens for internally cracked TV screens? Or do you have questions on where to get and how to replace your screen? Please leave a comment below.
Written by Keith Schneerer
Certified Appliance Tech · Founder, RemoveAndReplace.com
Keith has spent 30+ years repairing machines, starting as a military mechanic and later maintaining food processing equipment before moving into appliance repair. He founded RemoveAndReplace.com to share field-tested repair advice.
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My brother threw a remote at my Sanyo plasma TV. It’s not cracked from the outside visibly but when you turn it on there’s a fat crack with complete darkness with multicolored lines. I don’t know what to do.
Hi, I have a 31.5″ Sanyo HDTV with LCD screen. My tv worked fine when power went off. I think they were working on power lines outside. Later that night I turned tv on and top left corner looked like a spider web. But you could still see tv picture through it. I couldn’t find my warranty papers so I put tv back in original box and stored it. I took it out to put in extra bedroom and tv has lines and looks like liquid pouring in screen. There is no visible damage to screen. So I don’t think anything hit the tv. The tv is only 3 years old and has wifi, netflix, etc on it. I hate to junk it if it’s worth fixing. I paid $350 for tv. Any advice?
Andrea,
If the TV is cracked from the inside, a new screen will be needed to fix the rainbow lines. Try looking online for an aftermarket screen and you may find one for less than OEM.
-RR
How do I fix my 60″ lg smart tv .it is displaying rainbow lines down and flashing across. It was hit when you turn the tv on you can see where it was hit .I believe it’s cracked inside
Mikki,
It should work for some time…. just depends how bad the internal crack is. If it not distorting your view, let it go as it should be okay as long as the TV is not hit or knocked over again. However… heat may make the crack bigger and make the TV unviewable. If the TV is left on for a long time, it may heat the area up and make the crack worse. Keep an eye on it and if the crack gets larger, you may need to replace the screen or get a new TV.
-RR
Our samsung lcd tv has a star looking “crack” apparently in the internal screen . It was hit by a toy. The tv is still working fine but in the corner it looks like a rainbow colored star. How long is the tv going to last in your opinion before it completely goes?
OMG. Thank you so much remove and replace.com. When I first contacted the warranty people they gave me a very quick no that’s it that’s all get off my phone response. Today I contacted them and just using your advice come to find out indeed I am covered and they will be shipping me my box and label within the next five days. I am very grateful for your site, you guys are the greatest..Thanks again.