How to Fix a Stuck Pixel on Your LCD Monitor

The LCD monitor is a breakthrough in display technology, as its display has a crystal-clear sharp quality with vibrant colors and graphics. Plus LCD monitors have a very slick-and-slim profile, that allows for portability and convenience as opposed to heavyweight CRT monitors. But a common problem faced with most LCD monitors is pixel defects and one such defect is a stuck pixel. Each point on an image is called a pixel, so to display an image, each pixel must turn a particular color and must change colors to display different images. A stuck pixel does not change its color according to the image being displayed. It will stay blue, green or red, irrespective of the picture being displayed. This can occur only in certain applications or the pixel can be stuck throughout. Some LCDs can go for years without a stuck pixel showing up but yet some brand new monitors can have stuck pixels in them after a few days of use. Stuck pixels are not dead pixels, which permanently remain off and show up on screen as a dark spot or dot. Cleaning the LCD monitor will not make stuck pixels go away, so read on to learn how to fix a stuck pixel on an LCD monitor.

Ways to Fix a Stuck Pixel on Your LCD Screen

Caution: The following methods are not guaranteed solutions to fixing a stuck pixel. Different models and brands of LCD monitors have different internal fixings and ways of working, so results may vary. Sometimes the method may work temporarily but once the screen is left off for sometime, the pixel will once again "stick". This site does not guarantee the effectiveness of any method, so follow any steps at your own risk. It is recommended that if your LCD monitor is still under the manufacturer's warranty, then please refer to their expertise prior to trying any self-help methods.

The Pressure Way

• Turn off the monitor.
• Dampen a washcloth slightly, do not make it very wet and fold it to become a thick square. Do this, so you don't scratch the screen or puncture it.
• For a poking tool, use a pointy object with a not-too-sharp end. Examples would be a dull pencil, PDS stylus or a pen with blunt tip. A screwdriver is a good tool but the screw drive should be a slot or a blunt end, not a torx or star screw drive, which are too sharp.
• Place the washcloth on the spot where the stuck pixel is. And place the pointed end of your poking tool on the washcloth, to poke the stuck pixel. Try to poke the exact spot of the stuck pixel and not any other area.
• Apply a moderate amount of pressure, do not poke or jab very hard. Keep pressing and turn your monitor on.
• Stop pressing the screen and take out the washcloth, the stuck pixel should be gone. An LCD screen has liquid crystal distributed to each pixel. This method redistributes the crystal in the stuck pixel's area and it moves around to recolor the stuck pixel.

The Tapping Way

• This method involves keeping the LCD monitor on. Your computer should be on as well. Open a black colored image file on your computer or set the background wallpaper to it. This will highlight the stuck pixel. A dark image will not do, only black will show the pixel. You can also open the program Paint, fill an image with the color black and keep the file open.
• This time the poking tool should have a rounded blunt end, like a soft-tip marker with the cap on. A stylus will also do.
• Use the rounded end of the tool to gently tap the stuck pixel. Start out slow and gentle, when you tap, a small white glow will appear at the point of tapping. This is the correct amount of pressure.
• Keep tapping at this pressure, about 5-10 taps exact on the pixel should be performed. Be careful you don't tap anywhere else, you could end up causing another stuck pixel.
• To see if the pixel is fixed, you need a completely white background. So either open a text document or a blank web page in full screen or change the background image to a white image. If the pixel is not fixed, do not try the tapping method so soon. Too much of such tapping on the monitor could damage it.

The Software Way

There is always a handy software or program around to serve any need and a stuck pixel on an LCD screen is no exception. Certain software, some free and some paid, will rapidly adjust and flash various colors on the screen in an attempt to "unstick" the stuck pixel. Do not keep running the programs, if at first the pixel is not fixed, then wait for a while and try a different program. Some programs need you to select the stuck pixel, some will automatically detect the broken pixel or pixels. The following are a few programs available online:

• JScreenFix
• DPT 2.20
• UDPixel 2.1
• PixelRepairer
• LCD Scrub

Whatever you do, do not open the monitor casing in an attempt to fix the pixel. Fiddling with internal monitor parts to fix 1 or 2 pixels can damage the monitor completely. Do not get water on the monitor. If left alone for sometime, stuck pixels can become right, so sometimes leaving it alone can resolve the problem.