After a long day at work, you finally settled down on your couch, grabbed your TV remote, and pressed the power button to enjoy your evening in total relaxation. However, a small problem arose: your TV won’t turn on! A bit panicked, you immediately rushed online to seek advice on how to turn on a TV that won’t turn on, and here you are on this page of my blog.
Does this sound exactly like what you’re experiencing? Yes? Great, then I think this article is just what you need, as I’m about to give you practical suggestions on what you can do to bring your seemingly “dead” television back to life. Naturally, don’t expect miracles since if the issue is related to an internal component that’s burnt out or no longer functioning, you’ll likely need to contact support or a specialized technician. With all this in mind, let’s dive into the topic. Take your time, stay calm, and follow one or more tips I’m about to share.
WARNING: Some operations I’ll discuss shortly, if performed incorrectly, could expose you to serious risks, such as getting an electric shock or damaging your electronic devices. I advise you to proceed only if you’re fully aware of what you’re doing or if there’s someone knowledgeable in the field with you. I do not take any responsibility for any negative consequences that may arise from following the instructions in this tutorial. Clear? Yes? Then we can get started! Good luck!
Table of Contents
How to Turn On a TV That Won’t Turn On
In this first part of the guide, we’ll explore how to turn on a TV that won’t turn on in various ways. The tips I’m about to give you are simple to implement and you might find them obvious, yet they could resolve your situation. Let’s continue.
Check the Remote
The first thing you can do is check the remote or rather, verify if it works properly. So, if possible, first try to change the batteries in the remote, which are often AA batteries or AAA batteries.
What do you say? Even changing the batteries doesn’t change the situation? Well, it could be that the remote is no longer working. If you have an infrared remote, I can reveal a “trick” to find out if it works. Try taking your smartphone, opening the camera, and aiming it at the LED of the remote which should send the signal. Now press some buttons on the remote and you should see the LED light up on your smartphone’s camera when you press the buttons. If nothing lights up, then it’s likely that the remote is indeed not functioning.
In this scenario, you can try to power on your TV using the built-in buttons on the TV itself. You can generally find them along one side or at the top or bottom of the TV, depending on the model you have. If pressing one of these buttons does nothing, make sure the ON/OFF switch (if present) on the television is set to ON and try the power button again.
Check the Power Cord
It seems you’ve tried all the tips from the previous step but your TV still shows no signs of life, right? If that’s the case, then try to check the power cord.
Of course, first make sure that the power cord is properly plugged into the outlet and try to unplug it and reconnect it to ensure it’s inserted correctly. At this point, if the TV still shows no signs of life, I would recommend trying to plug the power cord into another outlet, if possible, as there is always the chance that this specific outlet is no longer working. Alternatively, you could connect another electronic device to the same outlet where the TV was plugged in to verify if that outlet works.
If you found the outlet works, and the TV LED, which usually should be on, remains off? Well, then don’t dismiss the possibility that the TV’s power cord might also be malfunctioning. To determine if the cord works or not, perform a visual inspection and check for cuts, burns, or areas that are severely bent.
Additionally, if you want to be more professional, you can always use a multimeter. To use it for this purpose, set it to the ohm [Ω] mode, then, unplug the cord from the outlet and also from the TV. Now connect one probe of the multimeter to the end of the cable that goes to the outlet and the other probe to the connector going into the TV. If the cord is intact, you should see a value close to zero ohms. If nothing happens, then it’s possible there is an interruption inside the cord and it should be replaced.
If the cord is IEC removable, the three poles should be tested separately for continuity. If it’s a cord with an integrated power supply, the voltage output should also be checked, not just continuity.
Having said that, a cord can show “intact” continuity but still be defective due to internal connection issues.
Unplug the Power for a Few Minutes
Are you finding yourself in a situation where your TV seems to be functioning correctly, the power LED is on (typically red), but you can’t turn it on either with the remote or the buttons on the TV? In this case, you might try to perform a sort of reset on the TV.
In fact, if you’re wondering how to reset a TV that won’t turn on, sometimes you can resolve the situation by unplugging the power cord and waiting a few minutes (maybe even 10 minutes) until the capacitors fully discharge. At this point, try reconnecting the TV’s power cord and check if everything is back to normal.
If Problems Occur
Despite all the advice provided in the previous lines, are you unable to solve your problem and the TV does not turn on at all? If that’s the case, then it could be that your TV has some more serious damage, and I think the right thing to do is to contact support or a specialized technician, or at most, consult the manual.
For example, if you have a Samsung TV, you can go to this webpage for assistance. The same goes for LG TVs, as you can go to this page on LG’s official website to get in touch with support. Regarding Sony TVs, you can refer to this section on the company’s website. Naturally, if you have a TV from a different brand than the three I just mentioned, I suggest searching on Google how to contact support [TV brand] for more information.
On the other hand, if you wish to contact a specialized technician practicing near you, then you could use the service of Yellow Pages that I discussed in detail in my guide on how to find phone numbers.