1. Get a Swiffer Sweeper from the grocery store and use that to get rid of the dust, spit wads and Gummie Bears.

2. For this one you will need an "A" frame ladder or scaffolding so that you can reach the top of the screen. You will also need lots of white terry cloth towels, a couple of buckets and Ivory dish washing detergent. Use towel #1 with the warm soapy water and scrub the screen. Use towel #2 to rinse the screen and towel #3 to dry the screen. Start at the top and work your way down. You must do the entire screen. Work in manageable sizes like 3' x3'. Use care so as not to let the soapy water run and run down your drapes. Perhaps have another person at the bottom of the screen with another towel to catch any drips.

4. Some people have had success painting their screens. This is not something I would take on. You have to make sure that the paint is thin so that it will not clog the holes in the screen. I have even heard of someone in the front of the screen painting and someone behind the screen with a shop vac sucking the paint out of the holes.

5. If the screen is small, it may be best just to replace it. I had a 10' x 24' screen that I replaced for $500.00. We installed it ourselves. We rented a scissor lift. It looks great and the total cost was probably closer to $1,000 installed. But the people quit complaining and the screen looks fabulous and much brighter.

Remember what people see, they see light coming from a good lamp reflecting off of a good reflector out a nice lens through a good piece of glass onto a nice white screen. If you make sure that all those elements are in good shape, your public will have had a good presentation and know it.

 |  IP: Logged

 |  IP: Logged

------------------
John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Eastman Kodak Company
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7419
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: 716-477-5325 Cell: 716-781-4036 Fax: 716-722-7243
E-Mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com

If you do it yourself, the loose dirt has to be removed both from the front _and back_ of the screen. Dirt on the back can bleed through to the front when liquid is applied.
If you can't get to the back, you may have to vacuum from the front to get the worst back dirt.

Always use a screen brush before wet cleaning. Forget about cleaning huge screens by yourself. This is a job for pros.

If you have a medium or small screen, two pool brushes and extension poles are your best tools, along with a number of rolls of strong soft absorbant kitchen paper towels (Brawny or similar). Use a clean garbage pail to hold water and a small amount of spic-n-span - the ivory soap is soap and not as effective as detergents, plus spic-n-span dries to a powder and soap dries to a gummy mass.

Wrap both brushes in paper towels, dip one in the weak spic-n-span solution and starting at the top, lightly bring the sopping paper towels down the surface to the bottom of the screen. Work only in about a three or four foot wide section at a time. _Wait_ to let the detergent work without scrubbing, then go over the same area a second time with fresh solution and paper towels. Use the dry paper towel wrapped brush to dry the remaining liquid, again working from top to bottom without scrubbing.

If you find nacho cheese dried on the screen, you can try McDonld's napkins , but you're probably stuck with the stain unless the screen can be patched.

Gummy Bears come off with a dry screen brush, but the shiney spots from Coke and the Gummy Bear spots need the spic-n-span solution. Oil is going to be much more difficult, and you might need to use a degreaser, like Titan, which won't be good for the vinyl or surface.

As a _temporary_ emergency measure, painting a screen with quality ceiling paint is possible. Muddy sound and reduced gain are less objectionable to customers than an ugly stain looking like a huge zit on Julia Robert's face.

You might also contact the various screen manufacturers for their recommendations.

 |  IP: Logged

 |  IP: Logged

Yes Jeanine, We're out here!!!

 |  IP: Logged