VAFC display woes.... not showing up when cold
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From: kyoto sangyo daigaku, kyoto, japan, sometimes bay area CA
VAFC display woes.... not showing up when cold
so i have a problem with my VAFC.... let's get the story:
i bought the unit in july '02, hooked it up myself, everything worked/works perfectly fine. i used to mount it on the dash in the 100 degree cali summer heat, and parked it at a community college parking lot 4 days a week.
fast forward to today, it is now mounted above my rearview mirror. about a month ago, i turned the car on after a late night (around 2 am) to head home. it was pretty damn cold, and i noticed that my VAFC display was missing a line or two....
after about a month i've concluded that it only does that when it's cold, and once it gets fully warm (i.e. you can feel it hot to the touch) it's fine. but it seems to be getting worse. the blank lines have spread up to 3 or 4, and i don't know what the hell is going on. it comes back once it's warm, yes, but why is it doing this? just because it's bitter cold? i'm kinda worried. here's what it looks like cold:
what do you think it could be?
i bought the unit in july '02, hooked it up myself, everything worked/works perfectly fine. i used to mount it on the dash in the 100 degree cali summer heat, and parked it at a community college parking lot 4 days a week.
fast forward to today, it is now mounted above my rearview mirror. about a month ago, i turned the car on after a late night (around 2 am) to head home. it was pretty damn cold, and i noticed that my VAFC display was missing a line or two....
after about a month i've concluded that it only does that when it's cold, and once it gets fully warm (i.e. you can feel it hot to the touch) it's fine. but it seems to be getting worse. the blank lines have spread up to 3 or 4, and i don't know what the hell is going on. it comes back once it's warm, yes, but why is it doing this? just because it's bitter cold? i'm kinda worried. here's what it looks like cold:
what do you think it could be?
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Joined: Feb 2000
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From: NY
Re: VAFC display woes.... not showing up when cold (dLo GSR)
I dont know how the cold usually affects a vacum flourescent display like the VAFC has, but it can freeze/ruin LCD displays like cellphones have. How cold was it? Cellphone screens can become slow to respond/dim when the temp dips into the low 30's and ruined(burst) if it dips into the 20's or below. Check the VAFC manual to see what the operating temp for the unit is.
[Modified by brinks, 2:07 AM 1/21/2003]
[Modified by brinks, 2:07 AM 1/21/2003]
Honda-Tech Member
Joined: Dec 2001
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From: Altadena, CA, USA
Re: VAFC display woes.... not showing up when cold (brinks)
It could be a cold solder joint. This happens when the unit is in extreme temperatures. After a while the solder joints can become brittle from temperature changes and cracks. The connecton will be loose until the unit heats up and metal expanse ever so slightly reconnecting the joint. you may want to just open the unit and check the solder joints for tiny cracks or resoldering everying. All you have to do is melt the solder or just add a tiny bit to each connection.
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From: kyoto sangyo daigaku, kyoto, japan, sometimes bay area CA
Re: VAFC display woes.... not showing up when cold (erniecars)
It could be a cold solder joint. This happens when the unit is in extreme temperatures. After a while the solder joints can become brittle from temperature changes and cracks. The connecton will be loose until the unit heats up and metal expanse ever so slightly reconnecting the joint. you may want to just open the unit and check the solder joints for tiny cracks or resoldering everying. All you have to do is melt the solder or just add a tiny bit to each connection.
the thing is, its not like extreme temperatures... cali weather ranges from like 50-100 yearly...
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Joined: Mar 2002
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From: bay area, ca
Re: VAFC display woes.... not showing up when cold (brinks)
I dont know how the cold usually affects a vacum flourescent display like the VAFC has, but it can freeze/ruin LCD displays like cellphones have. How cold was it? Cellphone screens can become slow to respond/dim when the temp dips into the low 30's and ruined(burst) if it dips into the 20's or below. Check the VAFC manual to see what the operating temp for the unit is.
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Joined: Aug 2002
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From: MD
Re: VAFC display woes.... not showing up when cold (obd2gsr)
from my understanding, which could be completely wrong, the electrons move the liquid crystals to form proper images and if its cold the LCs could be frozen together, happens with my calculator all the time
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