tv stems

I know I'm beating a dead horse. I'm a little confused on how experts can disagree whether to release the vacuum from the tv stem before dismantling. A simple yea or no would work wonders. Iv never released the vacuum. In fear of releasing " gases" which I cannot find a conclusive answer if those really exist. How would a vacuumed tube be any more dangerous. I understand the imploding scenario. It would be nice to have conclusive answers in this one. Thanks.

Trust me, there is no need to break the stem. There are no gases inside but there is lead, mercury and other toxins inside that you should not expose to the environment (or yourself) . There are several threads here about how to get the yoke off without breaking the stem. Please read more before you tackle this. Especially the safety issues when dismantling the tv or monitor.

Thanks, Dee. I've felt I've done my fair share of research only to find a lot if contradictory threads. As I stated I do not break the stems. I inadvertently broke one the other day. So I researched it yet again. I believe what I'm doing is correct and hate that I'm now second guessing myself after I've dismantled dozens to think... I've been putting myself in danger all this time.

No problem Russell...you will always hear contradictions on a public forum. That's why you have to read a lot and get the consensus from those who are on here regularly. You'll soon learn to trust the "core" group and you'll soon learn who NOT to trust. Good luck.

Thanks, I will trust your judgement. And I will stick to what I'm doing.

If you haven't already, read the thread started by Copper Head yesterday. Forget the title, but it's on topic.

Thanks, I'm mainly concerned about the imploding tube.

you know the piece that is attached he little board to the end. carefully just bend that piece over and the tube will fill with air. no more worries and you can work how u want.

Don't you still expose yourself to lead fumes Dune ? I'm not sure, but it seems like it would, mercury and a few others too.

no dee those elements are stored in the glass i believe opening a vacuum wont blow anything in your face and there is no air pushing out any contents inside. Ive broken more tvs then i would like to admit. when you do it there is small flakes that go through the air like crazy. These are the bad things i think least when i see it i go take a break. just had a heavy metal test done last week for my doctor and none of my levels were abnormal. Like another poster in the thread said we are exposed to these elements on a daily basis unless you hoss breaking down 100's of tvs i wouldn't worry to much. im more worried about getting electrocuted the heavy metal poisoning.

good example the trash trucks around here grab 100's of CRT tubes and crush them and drive around every neighborhood around here, stuff flying out all the time. this goes for other electronics paints and such. so unless you live in a bubble your running into these things everyday when you go outside.

the face is typically made of thick lead glass so as to be highly shatter-resistant and to block most X-ray emissions, particularly if the CRT is used in a consumer product.

Color and monochrome CRTs may contain toxic substances, such as cadmium, in the phosphors.[45][46][47] The rear glass tube of modern CRTs may be made from leaded glass, which represent an environmental hazard if disposed of improperly.[48] By the time personal computers were produced, glass in the front panel (the viewable portion of the CRT) used barium rather than lead, though the rear of the CRT was still produced from leaded glass. Monochrome CRTs typically do not contain enough leaded glass to fail EPA tests.

I hope this clears things up a bit

Thanks Dune, unfortunately this is the contradiction I had mentioned. I do discharge my TVs beforehand. I'm really just concerned about an implosion during dismantle or even after I put the case back on. I'm just wondering how an implosion would occur? I would think by dinging the backside accidently while its apart? If its under pressure isn't the vacuum always a constant threat? Wouldn't it be dangerous just to sit and watch it then?

We must of been typing at the same time. And yes that would answer my question as far as the front side of the tube would be concerned. So the backside would have compromised by say dropping something on it or such.

Originally Posted by Dunemaul

no dee those elements are stored in the glass i believe opening a vacuum wont blow anything in your face and there is no air pushing out any contents inside. Ive broken more tvs then i would like to admit. when you do it there is small flakes that go through the air like crazy. These are the bad things i think least when i see it i go take a break. just had a heavy metal test done last week for my doctor and none of my levels were abnormal. Like another poster in the thread said we are exposed to these elements on a daily basis unless you hoss breaking down 100's of tvs i wouldn't worry to much. im more worried about getting electrocuted the heavy metal poisoning.

The lead is in the form of leaded glass but is coated in powdered phosphors. These phosphors are coated to the inside of the CRT and could be released when the vacuum is released. Cadmium used to be used in old tvs 40 years. Now I believe the main substance to be wary of is the Yttrium used to create the phosphor that is responsible for the red colour in your CRT. Yttrium is also a restricted substance because it can cause lung cancer if you inhale it.

OK unless you are taking a hammer to the front screen, then you got a problem. hit the end cap of the gun to release the vacuum and have no worries at all, you now have a glass shell containing toxic elements. i have found it pretty hard to rupture a sealed crt unless you have an accident and drop it well you loading it in the trash or trailer. literally you dont have to break the cap off just wear gloves and you can pry one side up and you hears a whistling swoosh sound till it stops and pressure is balanced.

very true and im guessing that is what the flakes are when a yoke is taken off with a hammer, but the area where the phos is used is right below the gun unless you take the yoke off with a hammer i dont see them getting ruptured by prying the cap off as i have suggested. on a side note everything seems to give you cancer these days.