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Old 4th Oct 2017, 9:01 pm   #141
chriswood1900
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Whilst skimming a back issue of old Television Mags I spotted this in the news section;_

From Television Dec 1972 Page 196
TV FIRES: A WARNING
Mains -operated radio and television sets can cause fires as we should all be well aware. Now the Fire Protection Association has appealed to the BBC and ITA asking them to broadcast fire safety warnings every night in an effort to help reduce the 1,500 fires which it says occur every year in radio and television sets. As the FPA says, the simplest and most effective precaution is to switch off the set and then unplug the set from the wall socket after use.
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Old 4th Oct 2017, 9:12 pm   #142
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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Originally Posted by Nickthedentist View Post
This was exactly the arrangement on the Rediffusion (Doric) MkIV chassis from the early 1980s. If the button was not attached to the switch actuator properly, it often flew across the room.

Very safe, very green, if a tad inconvenient when the set needed to be switched on again.

Nick.
Yes! That was the model, I remember it now. Thanks Nick. A good TV as I recall, bright sharp tube & good colour.
Mark.
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Old 4th Oct 2017, 9:33 pm   #143
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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Originally Posted by TonyDuell View Post
I remember one of my relatives rented a (colour) TV set where the remote control could turn it off but not on. Pressing the off button caused the power button on the set to pop out to the 'off' position with a loud click. Although (obviously) I never took the back off, I suspect there was a solenoid on the on/off switch that released the normal latching mechanism.
My parents had a Goodmans set that did this.

It had an annoying habit of picking up IR signals & randomly changing channel or turning itself off!

Normally my Dad likes to make sure he's buying decent electronic equipment, so this was a rare exception to the rule. It lasted just over a decade as a 2nd set, mostly as a monitor for our Acorn Electron & for my brother to use while at university, before the picture started to shrink & was binned in the late 1990s.
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Old 4th Oct 2017, 11:16 pm   #144
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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Originally Posted by chriswood1900 View Post
Whilst skimming a back issue of old Television Mags I spotted this in the news section;_

From Television Dec 1972 Page 196
TV FIRES: A WARNING
Mains -operated radio and television sets can cause fires as we should all be well aware. Now the Fire Protection Association has appealed to the BBC and ITA asking them to broadcast fire safety warnings every night in an effort to help reduce the 1,500 fires which it says occur every year in radio and television sets. As the FPA says, the simplest and most effective precaution is to switch off the set and then unplug the set from the wall socket after use.
Regards
Chris
That's very interesting, Chris.

I wonder how many radios were responsible, and whether any particular types or brands were notorious.

N.
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Old 4th Oct 2017, 11:25 pm   #145
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Speaking of TV fires, how about Soviet TVs. According to Komsomolskaya Pravda in an article published in 1987, out of 4.2 million color sets produced in a five-year period, 5,490 caught fire. "People were killed and buildings burned down," the newspaper said.

The model "most likely to explode" was the Rubin-714

Link: http://articles.latimes.com/1987-02-...elevision-sets

I hope this is not OT -- I think it does pertain directly to the thread topic.
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Old 5th Oct 2017, 12:33 am   #146
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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I wonder how many radios were responsible, and whether any particular types or brands were notorious.
This anecdote relates to when I was working as a TV repair tech in the mid '70s

I was called out to a flat on a counsel estate. As often happened, the tenant was not at home, a key had been left with a neighbour.

When I let myself in there was some very distorted music coming from somewhere.

Upon investigation it transpired that the din was coming from a tightly wrapped bundle of clothing with a mains lead emerging from it.
Undoing the bundle revealed a small, very hot, valve radio, and the reason for the muffler also became apparent, the volume was at max and could not be turned down, consistent with the earthy end of the pot OC.

While I was working on the telly the lady of the house returned, and I asked her the obvious question, apparently it was to deter burglars, (and no doubt attract firefighters).
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Old 5th Oct 2017, 8:42 am   #147
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Many years ago some local radio hams on Topband were discussing an incident where a home owner had experienced a lightning strike on their TV aerial. The state of the TV was not mentioned.
The problem was that the co-ax cable ran under a brand new (expensive) lounge carpet, right under the middle.
The co-ax cable had exploded & cut the carpet in two. No mention of a fire, which was fortunate.

I am surprised that Pye hybrid TV design was allowed out of the works. Even back then I would have expected a switch before the incoming AC went to any panel.
Heat caused all sorts of issues with Paxolin printed circuit boards, usually with conducted heat from valve sockets frying the board into a semi-conductor. Cheap radios were also prone to PCB issues, but not necessarily ones with potentially lethal consequences. They were always switched off at night.
Early automatic washing machines were electro-mechanical. The timer block had a slowly rotating notched drum. I am sure they were regarded as untrustworthy when they first came out as well.
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Old 5th Oct 2017, 12:05 pm   #148
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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Originally Posted by MartinMarris View Post
Speaking of TV fires, how about Soviet TVs. According to Komsomolskaya Pravda in an article published in 1987, out of 4.2 million color sets produced in a five-year period, 5,490 caught fire. "People were killed and buildings burned down," the newspaper said.

The model "most likely to explode" was the Rubin-714

Link: http://articles.latimes.com/1987-02-...elevision-sets

I hope this is not OT -- I think it does pertain directly to the thread topic.
The Rubin-714 was also built here in Poland until 1982 (!). It's a massive great hybrid set, and even here it has a reputation for catching fire. However, clearly quite a few have survived. There are several listed on one of the big Polish trading websites. One of them is only a couple of miles from here and for sale at £15 'or near offer'. It's probably a good job I haven't got room for it!

Chris
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Old 5th Oct 2017, 12:15 pm   #149
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

About 25 years ago, my parent's TV was blasted to a smoking mess by a lighting strike!! 😱- not even a direct strike on the aerial as it was in th loft. I wonder if unplugging it to take away the low impedance path to earth would have made any difference 😂!!
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Old 5th Oct 2017, 2:44 pm   #150
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Very safe, very green,
Don't tell everyone it may catch on. Our newish TV (a Sony) does have a real on/off switch (one of those small rocker jobs), it is needed as the firmware has a tendency to crash every week or so.
 
Old 5th Oct 2017, 3:17 pm   #151
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Quote:
The Rubin-714 was also built here in Poland until 1982 (!). It's a massive great hybrid set, and even here it has a reputation for catching fire. However, clearly quite a few have survived. There are several listed on one of the big Polish trading websites. One of them is only a couple of miles from here and for sale at £15 'or near offer'. It's probably a good job I haven't got room for it!
The also have one on display in the wonderful Technical Museum in the distinctive Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw. Well worth a visit if you want to see room after room of Soviet era industrial and consumer technology. Including some British built cookers which for some reason seem to have been popular in Poland during the 60's/70's.
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Old 5th Oct 2017, 8:52 pm   #152
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Someone not far from my parents had a lighting strike hit their TV aerial, which supposedly left it a smoking mess.
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Old 6th Oct 2017, 1:40 am   #153
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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Originally Posted by TonyDuell View Post
I remember one of my relatives rented a (colour) TV set where the remote control could turn it off but not on. Pressing the off button caused the power button on the set to pop out to the 'off' position with a loud click. Although (obviously) I never took the back off, I suspect there was a solenoid on the on/off switch that released the normal latching mechanism.
Some cheap Italian no-brand TV sets in the early to mid 1980's did this. Later, Grundig reintroduced this feature with the name "eco switch".
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Old 6th Oct 2017, 11:33 am   #154
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Rediffusion Mk 3 and early Mk 4s has this feature, which as everyone knows caused the button to fly across the room - we kept a few buttons in stock. Early ITT CVC25/32 chassis had the solenoid switch as well though without the projectile tendencies. They did give a satisfying 'clunk' though. I think I still have a blue switch for one of these.
Nowadays TVs are never switched off so this sort of thing would be pointless - imagine having to get up to turn the set on!
Have you noticed in films when a TV is turned off there is a high-pitched 'whoop' noise? Probably from the same school of thought that computers all bleep when an important screen is displayed.
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Old 6th Oct 2017, 2:39 pm   #155
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Same with car alarms in film & TV making a loud beep when turned on & off.
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Old 6th Oct 2017, 7:50 pm   #156
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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Have you noticed in films when a TV is turned off there is a high-pitched 'whoop' noise?
I must confess I hadn't noticed that trend, but my current LCD TV does make a rising tone when switched on, and a corresponding falling tone when switched off.
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Old 6th Oct 2017, 9:01 pm   #157
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Used to have CELLO TV's at work which had an energy saving feature that when the green "power off" button was pressed on the remote the TV would be completely disconnected from the wall power using (I'm guessing) a relay with a corresponding green momentary rocket switch on the rear of the TV to turn it back on (a regular standby button was provided as well).

Used to get regular calls from new guests that the TV in their caravan was not working, I would then be dispatched to look at the TV (despite not being part of the maintenance team I was the go to TV guy back then).
On entering the van I would see the TV and immediately go to it, reach behind and press the switch. Pretty sure it worked 100% of the time!
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Old 7th Oct 2017, 12:59 pm   #158
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

My old girlfriend had a TV like that with an on switch on the back.

Some TVs seem to start up in standby mode, but aren't clear what needs pressing on the remote to get it turned on, most just need a channel pressed, but my Brother's Toshiba needed the standby button, which caught me out a few times.
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Old 7th Oct 2017, 4:37 pm   #159
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

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I'm sure there was some outfit that used a diode for heaters when in standby mode.
Yes, precisely that. Diode in series with the heater chain, BY100 probably, and switch off the feed to the HT rectifier, if I remember correctly.
The US built transformerless color sets used that scheme. Some used a complicated and pricey on-off switch that had a pot-metal actuator assembly to would break and disabled the set. On many of them, I just rewired the good part of the switch to disable the instant-on and get the set working again.
Most set owner's didn't like that feature anyway, as it wasted electricity.
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Old 7th Oct 2017, 5:57 pm   #160
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Default Re: Why did folk always unplug the telly at night?

Quite a number of fairly recent TVs had a rocker switch that, inevitably, the customer doesn't know about of has forgotten. Several times I've had an irate customer bring his TV back after repair complaining it was dead 'after you've looked at it'. The degree of smugness when asking 'have you switched it on?' and flicking the switch was proportional to the decree of anger displayed by the customer!
These switches give their fair share of trouble, as do the odd green ones mentioned above (#158) - these are hard to get now.
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