question on monitor discharging

I read all the guides I can find, and I've come up with questions I'm hoping you guys can answer.

1. I can't decide if I should use the monitors metal frame, or my apartment's ground. I'm alittle afraid to use the apartment's b/c I don't want to blow anything I do not own.

2. If I use the monitor's frame, should I unhook the monitor's PCB from everything? I read an article that said grounding to the frame might cause all the energy to go back into the PCB. I figure if I unhook everthing but the anode I can prevent that. But I'm afraid with the ground from the PSU not being connected I will have problems.

3. Should I go through and discharge every cap on the PCB before I work on it. (redoing the caps.)

thanks
cack01

i would like to know the proper procedure for discharging a monitor as iam about to do a cap kit as well. Ive read many different guides but they all differ.

Check out this excellent info on cathode ray tubes in general, the section on discharging is a good guide.

http://www.repairfaq.org/sam/crtfaq.htm#crtsdc

Discharge the anode or altor to the aquadag ground, thats the braided wire/strap which is tensioned by springs and runs around the grayish painted surface on the rear of the tube. This painted surface is actually conductive and essentially acts as the crt ground (and one plate of the capacitor which the crt becomes when charged)

Do not discharge to the monitor boards signal ground, you risk damage to the monitor board and/or game mother board for that matter.

Discharging to the monitor chassis metal work is usually safe, but imho direct discharge to the crt aquadag is the way to go.

I use a well insulated flat screw driver with a shorting lead connected by crocodile clips from the aquadag strap to the underneath of the anode cap. For the faint hearted connecting say a 2.2 mega ohm 2W high voltage resistor ( the blue ceramic looking HV type) in series takes the crack out of the arc.
I dont bother with this usually but its really I good idea to" soften the blow."

Before handling the tube discharge a second and even third time with a direct short as the tube seems to builds up a slight charge even after the initial discharge, whith nothing connected to the anode.

Thanks. Just got done replacing all the caps. The picture looks great.

Jediwarrior: We might be related somehow. My collection is a MvC cab, 1 slot neo cab, and a point blank cab. Pretty darn close if you ask me.

yay my mvs commited suicide a few days ago heh!