Vertical lines, horizontal bars, half-screen failure, T-Con board faults, ribbon cable issues and cracked panel assessments. Same-day diagnosis, honest repair-vs-replace advice and a 90-day workmanship warranty.
Send the brand, model and a quick photo of what the screen is doing — we'll come back with a likely cause and price guide.
A faulty television screen is one of the most disheartening things to walk into your living room and find. The whole TV becomes useless — and the temptation is always to assume the panel itself is dead and a replacement set is the only answer. In reality, fewer than one in four "screen problems" we see at our Gauteng workshop turn out to be actual panel damage. The vast majority are caused by repairable components behind the screen: the T-Con board that drives the panel, the LVDS ribbon cables that carry the video signal, the source and gate driver ICs, or in some cases simple oxidation on connector pins after years of South African humidity and load-shedding cycles.
The first job of an honest repair shop is to tell you which of those it actually is — and to do that before you spend a cent on parts. We charge a flat R780 screen diagnostic fee that is waived in full if you proceed with the recommended repair. You walk away with a clear written explanation of what is wrong, what it will cost to fix, and the honest economic comparison against replacing the TV. If the panel itself is cracked or has failed at the glass layer, we'll tell you straight — no upselling, no false hope.
A structured, transparent diagnostic process — designed to give you a clear answer fast.
We inspect the panel under controlled lighting and shine a torch at an angle. Faint image visible = backlight or T-Con issue. Cracks or impact rings = physical panel damage. This step alone solves 30% of cases.
We push test patterns through the panel input directly, bypassing the main board. If the lines or banding remain, the fault is downstream of the T-Con. If they disappear, the fault is in the main board or its connection.
We open the panel, inspect the LVDS ribbons for oxidation or hairline cracks, reseat connectors, and oscilloscope-trace the T-Con board outputs. Around half of all line-on-screen complaints get fully resolved at this stage.
You get a clear written quote with parts and labour broken out, an honest comparison against TV replacement cost, and zero pressure. We only proceed once you've approved the work in writing.
Transparent ranges — final price confirmed in writing after diagnosis.
| Screen Symptom | Most Likely Cause | Repair Range |
|---|---|---|
| Vertical lines down screen | T-Con board or LVDS ribbon | R1,100 – R2,900 |
| Horizontal lines / bars | Gate driver IC or T-Con | R1,100 – R2,650 |
| Half-screen black / dim | Source driver IC or ribbon fault | R780 (diag) + R1,450–R2,900 |
| Cracked panel (impact) | Physical glass damage | R5,900+ (often not economical) |
| No display, sound works | Backlight or T-Con failure | R1,450 – R3,400 |
| Ribbon cable re-seat only | Oxidation / loose seating | R550 – R1,100 |
| Half-screen diagnostic | Flat diagnostic (refunded if repaired) | R780 |
Please note that all prices displayed are estimated starting prices only. Final repair costs may vary depending on the TV size, model, fault diagnosis, parts required, labour, and any additional repairs needed after inspection.
The three options every customer has — laid out side by side.
Recommended in 80% of cases
Rare — case-by-case only
Only when panel is unrepairable
Different brands, different screen faults, all fixed.
Every brand has its own characteristic screen issues. We know what to look for.
Samsung QLED panels use a Quantum Dot film layer over an LCD substrate, which means screen-level issues are usually LCD-style faults: T-Con boards, LVDS ribbons, full-array zone drivers and edge-LED strips on slimmer models. The Quantum Dot film itself rarely fails. The most common symptoms we see are vertical lines (T-Con) and uneven local-dimming "halo" effects (zone driver IC).
LG OLED panels generate light at the pixel level — there is no backlight. That eliminates whole categories of fault (no backlight strips to fail) but introduces others: burn-in on static UI elements after thousands of hours, vertical green lines from a specific T-Con timing controller fault, and image retention. T-Con and ribbon faults are fully repairable. True OLED panel-level damage is generally not economical to fix.
We also handle OLED TV repairs, QLED TV repairs, LED TV repairs and dedicated backlight repairs across every major brand.
Screen Specialists
Most TV repair shops will simply quote a panel replacement the moment they see lines on a screen — because it's the easiest thing to charge for. We take a different approach. Every screen fault that comes through our Gauteng workshop is properly diagnosed at component level first, and we only recommend panel-level work when the evidence genuinely supports it.
Our screen-repair bench is equipped with proper test equipment: 4K HDMI pattern generators, oscilloscopes for tracing T-Con timing signals, ESD-safe panel-opening tools, ribbon cable reflow stations and a stocked component library covering the most common Samsung, LG, Sony, Hisense, TCL, Skyworth and Panasonic T-Con boards used across South Africa. That preparation translates directly into faster turnaround and lower bills for you.
Every screen repair we complete is backed by our 90-day workmanship and parts warranty. If the same fault returns within that window, the re-repair is on us. We're proud of the work we do — and the honest advice we give to customers who'd rather not be sold a repair they don't need.
In-home diagnosis available across the major centres. Workshop collection for larger panels.
Not seeing your suburb? Call 078 721 3551 to confirm coverage.
No — a physically cracked LCD or OLED panel cannot be repaired at the glass layer. The liquid crystal matrix is destroyed where the crack runs, and the spreading "ink" effect cannot be undone. The only fix is a full panel replacement, which on TVs 50 inches and larger almost always costs more than buying a new TV. We provide an honest no-charge assessment so you know exactly where you stand.
Vertical lines are almost always caused by one of three things: a failed T-Con (timing controller) board, a loose or oxidised LVDS ribbon cable between the T-Con and the panel, or a failed source-driver IC on the chip-on-film. The first two are routine repairs costing R550–R2,900. The third can sometimes be addressed with COF rebonding.
Half-screen failure typically points to a failed source driver IC on the affected side of the panel, a broken gate driver, or a fully detached / damaged ribbon cable on that half. Around 60% of half-screen cases we see are fixable through component-level repair or COF rebonding. Bring it in for our flat R780 diagnostic and we'll give you a definitive answer.
T-Con board repair or replacement in Gauteng typically costs between R1,100 and R2,900 depending on TV brand, panel size, and whether the original T-Con can be repaired at component level or needs a full OEM replacement board. We always attempt component-level repair first as it's cheaper for you and faster.
For TVs 43 inches and below, almost never — a new panel typically costs more than a complete replacement TV. For 55-inch and larger premium QLED or OLED models, panel replacement occasionally makes sense when the TV is recent and the rest of the electronics are in excellent shape. We give every customer an honest written assessment.
Yes. Lines on Samsung QLED and LG OLED screens are almost always a T-Con board or LVDS ribbon issue rather than a true panel fault — and both are fully repairable. The well-known "vertical green line" issue on certain LG OLED models from 2016–2019 is a T-Con timing controller fault that we resolve regularly.
Most T-Con, ribbon and driver-related screen repairs are completed same-day to 48 hours once the parts are confirmed in stock. Cracked panel assessments are turned around within 24 hours of TV receipt. Full panel replacements (rare) take 1–3 weeks because the panel has to be ordered from the manufacturer.
Yes. Every screen repair we complete carries a comprehensive 90-day workmanship and parts warranty. If the same fault returns within that period, we re-repair the TV at no cost. We're confident in the screen work that leaves our Gauteng workshop.
A modern television screen is a remarkably complex piece of engineering — an LCD, QLED or OLED panel made up of millions of independently-addressed sub-pixels, all driven by a network of timing controllers, source drivers, gate drivers, ribbon cables and voltage regulators that have to operate in perfect synchronisation. When any one of those parts misbehaves, the symptom appears on your screen as lines, bars, dark zones, flicker or no picture at all. The good news for Gauteng households is that the vast majority of "screen problems" are caused by replaceable supporting electronics — not by the panel glass itself. That distinction is the difference between a R1,100 repair and writing off the TV entirely.
At Nathtec TV Repairs we've spent more than a decade diagnosing exactly those faults for households and businesses across Johannesburg, Sandton, Pretoria, Midrand, Randburg and Soweto. Our screen-repair process has been refined into a four-step assessment that consistently identifies the actual root cause within the first hour of bench time. The result for you is faster turnaround, lower repair bills and the confidence that you're paying for the fix that's genuinely needed rather than the most profitable one for the shop.
Understanding what's behind the glass helps make sense of every screen fault you might see. The visible front surface is a polariser layer over the LCD or OLED matrix. Behind the matrix sits the row of source drivers (left/right) and gate drivers (top/bottom), implemented as chip-on-film (COF) units bonded directly to the panel edges. These are fed by a T-Con board — the timing controller that converts the video signal into row and column addressing — typically located behind the panel and connected via flexible LVDS ribbon cables. On LCD and LED-LCD TVs there's a backlight assembly behind the panel (edge-lit strips or full-array LED zones). On OLED TVs there is no backlight; every pixel produces its own light.
Every fault visible on your screen maps to one of those subsystems. Vertical lines from top to bottom of the picture point to a source driver or T-Con issue. Horizontal lines or bars across the width of the picture point to a gate driver or T-Con timing fault. A completely dark screen with sound still working is almost always a backlight failure on LCD/LED models, or a power-feed issue to the panel on OLED. A clearly cracked or impact-damaged area is the only fault category that genuinely requires a panel replacement.
It's an extremely common scenario: a customer walks into the workshop with a Samsung, LG, Hisense or TCL television showing three or four pink, green or white vertical lines down the screen, having already been told by another shop that the panel is finished and the TV is "uneconomical to repair". In our experience, in well over 80% of these cases the panel is perfectly fine. The lines are coming from a marginal capacitor on the T-Con, an oxidised contact on one of the LVDS ribbon cables, or a single failed source driver IC — every one of which is repairable for between R1,100 and R2,900.
The reason cheap repair shops default to "replace the panel" is simple: it's the easiest diagnosis to make (no real testing required) and it's the most lucrative for them when the customer ends up buying a new TV. At Nathtec we've built our reputation on the opposite approach. Every screen fault is properly tested with our pattern generators and oscilloscope before we recommend anything. If we can save you eighteen thousand Rand by replacing a R280 driver IC, we will — and our 90-day warranty backs it up.
Half-screen failure (where one side of the picture goes black, washed-out or shows a single solid colour) is one of the most distinctive screen faults we see. The root cause is nearly always on the affected half of the panel: either a failed source-driver IC inside the chip-on-film assembly, a broken or detached ribbon cable feeding that side, or in rarer cases a failed half of the T-Con board itself. Around 60% of half-screen faults can be repaired through ribbon reseating, T-Con component repair or COF rebonding for between R1,450 and R2,900. The remaining 40% are panel-level damage that we'll honestly identify and advise on.
Banding (visible horizontal or vertical bands across the picture, especially in solid colours or during fades) usually points to T-Con timing issues or marginal voltage rails feeding the panel. Flickering, especially the rapid kind that gets worse with brighter content, is more often a backlight LED driver fault than a screen fault per se — see our dedicated backlight repairs page for the full diagnosis path. Both faults are highly repairable and we resolve them every week.
If your television has suffered a physical impact and now shows a visible crack with a spreading dark "ink-blot" pattern, we owe you a straightforward answer rather than false hope: that panel is unrepairable. The crack has destroyed the liquid crystal alignment layer at the molecular level, and no patching, gluing, polish or screen film can restore it. The only remedy is to fit a replacement panel — and on every TV smaller than about 55 inches, that panel costs significantly more than a brand-new replacement television. We won't waste your time and money quoting a repair that doesn't make economic sense.
What we can do in cracked-panel cases is give you a no-charge written assessment confirming the diagnosis (useful for insurance claims), and salvage the working main-board, power-supply, speakers and stand from the damaged TV for future repair stock if you'd like to donate them. For 65-inch and larger premium QLED or OLED units where panel replacement might just be viable, we'll quote both options transparently so you can make an informed decision.
The T-Con (timing controller) board is the single most-overlooked component in a modern TV, and also the single most common culprit when something goes wrong with the screen. It sits behind the panel, takes in the LVDS video signal from the main board, and translates it into the precisely-timed row and column addressing that lights up each pixel. T-Cons fail in characteristic ways: a single bad capacitor causes lines or flicker; a failed voltage regulator causes a completely blank panel with sound still working; a corrupted EEPROM (rare) causes garbled output that looks like complete panel failure.
The good news is that T-Con boards are eminently repairable. Our workshop holds the most common Samsung, LG, Hisense, TCL and Sony T-Con boards in stock, and where the exact board isn't on the shelf we can usually component-repair the original. Ribbon cables (the flexible printed flat cables that carry the LVDS signal from the T-Con to the panel) are the second most common screen-fault root cause — they oxidise at the contact pads over years of South African humidity, and a simple clean-and-reseat solves more screen complaints than anyone expects.
Different TV brands fail in characteristically different ways at the screen level. Samsung QLED panels typically suffer from T-Con capacitor failure (vertical lines) and uneven local-dimming halos on full-array models — both very repairable. LG OLED screens occasionally develop the well-known "vertical green line" issue on 2016–2019 models, which is a T-Con timing fault rather than a true panel fault, and we resolve it routinely. Sony Bravia panels are typically very robust; when they do fail it's usually at the X1 video processor or T-Con rather than the panel itself. Hisense, TCL and Skyworth models share certain T-Con board families and tend to develop similar capacitor failures around the 3-to-5-year mark.
Whatever brand you have, our component library and parts network covers it. We work on Samsung, LG, Sony, Hisense, TCL, Skyworth and Panasonic screens every week, and the experience translates into faster diagnosis and lower repair costs for you. For a complete view of repair pricing across all screen and TV faults, see our repair cost guide or our overview of common TV problems.
For the majority of common screen faults — T-Con repair, ribbon reseat, half-screen driver work — same-day turnaround is genuinely achievable provided the TV reaches our workshop in the morning. Larger panels, complex COF rebonding work or component-level T-Con repair on rare boards may extend to 48 hours. Cracked-panel assessments are always free of charge and turned around within 24 hours. For in-home assessment of larger sets, we cover Johannesburg, Sandton, Pretoria, Midrand, Randburg and Soweto, with collection and delivery available at workshop-friendly rates.
For related TV faults, see our pages on Smart TV repairs, motherboard repairs, HDMI port repairs, backlight repairs, power supply repairs, and our installation services including wall mounting and TV installation. To start a screen-repair conversation, call or WhatsApp us on 078 721 3551 with the TV brand, size and a quick photo or video of the screen fault. We respond within minutes during business hours.
Before you write off a TV with a screen fault, let our team take a proper look. Most lines, bars and half-screen issues are far more repairable than the next shop will tell you. Free quote, no obligation.
Please note that all prices displayed are estimated starting prices only. Final repair costs may vary depending on the TV size, model, fault diagnosis, parts required, labour, and any additional repairs needed after inspection.