The water vapor in the air or the droplets from rain can both cause damage to your LED displays. Whether you place the display outdoors or indoors, it needs waterproof protection.
How to take effective waterproofing measures? This article will offer you complete guidance.
How Does the Water Damage Your Display?
Causing Short Circuits Inside the Display
As we all know, water can conduct electricity. When water droplets enter the circuit board, they can connect two circuits or electronic components that were isolated. Therefore, the normally flowing current will increase in an instant, causing the fuse to trip and even damage the components or wires.
Corroding and Oxidising Electronic Components
Corrosion is a phenomenon that often occurs on metals. Water vapor, salt, acidic substances, and impurities in the air may all cause corrosion of the metals in LEDs, including metal brackets, PCB copper foil, and circuit boards.
The corrosion of the metals can lead to an increase in local resistance, poor circuit contacts, short circuits, and a decrease in screen brightness, which will significantly shorten the lifespan of the display.
The Ways to Protect Your LED Display From Humidity
Ways to Protect Outdoor LED Screens From Moisture
Use Waterproof Materials
When purchasing or customizing displays, you should inform the manufacturer about the conditions of your location, such as whether it is near the coast, has high humidity, or has a long rainy season. Experienced manufacturers will choose corrosion-resistant metals, humidity-resistant PCBs, and additional waterproofing measures according to your condition.
Use Waterproof Adhesive Tape
Waterproof adhesive tape is often used to seal the joint between the modules and the cabinet to achieve a waterproof effect. It can also prevent ultraviolet rays and dust from entering the circuit board. In addition, the adhesive tape is elastic and compressible, which can ensure a tight seal of the joints and remain attached firmly for a long time.
Waterproof Packaging Method
After the display processing is completed, appropriate packaging is equally important. First, the display module needs to be waterproof packaged. Common package methods include encapsulation and spraying conformal coating.
Then, seal the cabinet and reinforce it with silicone strips, use waterproof connectors for data and power ports, and ensure the cabinet has drainage channels to let rainwater flow out naturally. And last, you also need to conduct waterproof tests to confirm the IP rating of the enclosure.
Install A Humidity Sensor
After putting the display into operation, you can install a humidity sensor inside the module to monitor relative humidity. When it exceeds the set threshold, it can trigger an alarm or automatically shut down.
It is wise for you to set up a humidity sensor in outdoor displays to prolong their lifespan, especially the ones used near the sea, in humid and hot environments, or large-scale outdoor billboards.
Take Drying Measures After Moisture Exposure
If the LED screen is exposed to a damp environment for a long time, you also need to take measures to dry it out. Prompt drying can prevent circuit shorting and component corrosion, thereby extending the lifespan of the LED screen.
Regularly Inspect for Leakage
Having waterproof packaging and a humidity sensor doesn’t mean you can completely relax. You still need to regularly inspect the modules for any water leakage. The frequency of inspections is decided based on the environment. In high-humidity conditions, you’d better check the modules once a month.
The items you should examine include the surface of the cabinet, the power connectors, the module packaging, and whether there are any water droplets on the circuit boards. When inspecting, you are also responsible for conducting waterproof tests on the packaging.
How to keep Indoor screens moisture-proof?
Use Drying Agents
In some areas with relatively high air humidity, LED screens may not need to meet IP65 or even more standards, but you still need to adopt some waterproofing measures. Using desiccants is a cost-effective and convenient method for waterproofing. You can just place them into the gaps inside the modules to absorb moisture.
Common types of drying agents include silica gel beads, molecular sieves, activated carbon, etc. After they have fully absorbed moisture, you can dry them or replace them with a new one.
Adequate Ventilation
Ventilating your display regularly can not only prevent moisture but also remove the heat it generates during operation in time so that extending its lifespan. In addition, if you want to ventilate the module frequently, you also need to leave some space for heat dissipation on the outside of the enclosure during installation.
Avoid Splattering When Using
Unlike outdoor screens, indoor screens generally have a protection rating of only IP20 or IP30, and they can hardly resist water. Therefore, after the display’s packaging is opened and it starts to be used, you need to pay attention to preventing water damage. Once water gets in, you should quickly switch off the power and dry or bake the circuit board.
How to Dry LED Panels After Long-term Storage
Use Silica Gel Desiccant
Some densely packaged modules, like mini LED or OLED modules, are not suitable for baking or air-drying, and can only use silica gel desiccants to reduce humidity. In addition, if the displays need long-term storage and transportation, especially by sea, using desiccants is necessary for you.
Drying Oven
A drying oven is a professional device used for drying LED components, and it can precisely control the temperature and humidity during drying. You can place most of the components in LED screens into a drying oven after getting damp, and it ensures that the performance of the module is not affected.
However, if you are a small-scale retailer or an end user, the cost of purchasing a drying oven is quite high. As an alternative, silica gel desiccants or air drying are a good choice.
Air Drying
If you do not have a professional drying oven, then air drying is also a good way to remove moisture. Air drying refers to taking out the damp module and placing it in a dry and ventilated indoor environment to remove moisture. At the same time, you can place a fan nearby to assist.
However, severely damp modules are not suitable for air drying because of the low speed. They must be placed in a drying oven or discarded directly to avoid issues in future use.
Avoid Direct High-temperature Baking
If you do not have a drying oven and are not familiar with disassembling and assembling LED display modules, the measures you should take are to use desiccants, contact the manufacturer for repair, or even discard them.
It is worth noting that you can not put the modules into a regular drying oven, because its temperature control is not precise enough, and high temperatures can lead to encapsulation glue deforming and the chips being damaged.
Check After Drying
No matter which drying method you use, it is necessary to check the module after drying. First, you need to check whether the module’s appearance is intact, for example, whether the encapsulation glue is cracked. And then, check the functionality, such as testing single-color and full-color displays on the screen.
Other Tips to Protect Your Displays From Damp
Correct Storage
For LED displays, proper storage conditions include suitable temperature and humidity, avoiding heavy pressure, preventing dust from entering the modules, and conducting regular inspections. For those rollable or foldable screens, special reels and racks should be used.
Mould Proof
Mold growth can damage the optical layer film and affect the complete display. Therefore, in addition to waterproofing, you must also prevent mold spots from forming on the modules. You should regularly clean the area where the screens are placed or used to prevent mold. In addition, during storage, you should also pay attention to whether the packaging is sealed.
Avoid Direct Sunlight and High Temperatures
The direct sunshine and high temperatures can not only lead to deformation of materials, but also create condensation when the air cools after the temperature drops, which can enter the module. Therefore, you also need to avoid high temperatures and direct sunlight when using and transporting LED screens.
Other Ways to Lengthen the Lifespan
Control the Work Temperature
Besides waterproofing, other measures are also necessary to take in order to extend the lifespan of LEDs. Controlling the temperature of the module during operation to prevent overheating is an important aspect.
The screen not only requires heat sinks and PCBs during manufacturing, but also has some requirements during use. For example, avoid using it at high brightness for a long time; when the screen becomes too hot, use a fan to cool it.
Use Reasonably
Besides controlling the temperature, other usage specifications are also important, including:
- Avoid continuous and rapid power on and off.
- Use the correct voltage.
- Avoid displaying all-white or highly saturated patterns for a long time.
Clean Regularly
Dust on ventilation vents can prevent air circulation and reduce cooling efficiency. Therefore, it is wise for you to clean the dust from the air vents and fan blades. Besides, you should use a soft brush or a vacuum cleaner to remove dust, rather than cleaning directly with water.
FAQs
What is the IP standard?
IP is the abbreviation of Ingress Protection, which shows a device’s ability to resist solids and liquids, normally written as IPXY. X stands for the solid protection grade, and Y stands for the liquid protection grade. The smaller the numbers X and Y, the weaker the protection; conversely, the larger the numbers X and Y, the stronger the protection.
What are the differences between waterproof ratings IP65, IP67, and IP68?
The waterproof protection levels of IP65, IP67, and IP68 are 5, 7, and 8, respectively. ·Protection level 5: It means the device can resist water jets from any direction, but cannot be submerged in water.
- Protection level 7: Devices with IP67 protection can not only prevent water jets but also be briefly submerged, generally within 30 minutes.
- Protection level 8: IP68 devices can resist water jets and can be submerged for a long time. They are suitable for very high humidity environments, and the cost is relatively higher.
Will transportation and storage affect the waterproof performance?
Yes. If the device is transported or stored incorrectly, for example, under pressure, impact, or temperature changes, the waterproof layer could be broken, lowering its water resistance.
Final Thoughts: Cooperation with an Experienced Manufacturer
Whether you are a distributor, a brand owner, or an end user who wants to purchase or customize LED displays, it is necessary to confirm the required waterproof level.
If you are not sure what kind of waterproof packaging is needed for the device, feel free to contact JINGYLED to customize your displays. Whether you are in tropical or cold regions, indoors or outdoors usage, we can provide the most reliable waterproof methods and transportation to ensure the screen is safely delivered to you.
