FTC Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through some of the links in this article for more information, visit our Advertising Disclosure Page.

You can subscribe to the Everything About RVing YouTube Channel for some great videos about RVing

My RV's TV Keeps Turning on By Itself

by Jim Mallow
(Lake Wales, FL)

My RV's TV Keeps Turning on By Itself

My RV's TV Keeps Turning on By Itself

Pictured Above: possessed TV scene from the Warner Brothers Movie Poltergeist

Made a recent trip, and on returning home, we stored our coach and hooked up to shore power. The TV was turned off; however, three days later, I returned to the coach, and the TV was on, no picture, but on. The power button on the TV control would not turn it off, so I unplugged it from the power source. What do I do to fix this problem?

Thank you.

Jim

ANSWER: Hi Jim one thing that you do not tell me is whether this is a continual problem. Aside from beings from the "other side" taking over your TV as in the Movie Poltergeist to turn on and off by itself.

* The first thing I would check is to see if your TV has a built-in timer that turns it on and off. You may have accidentally activated the timer on the TV.

* If the TV has a remote control and you have it laying around in the RV, a little visitor such as a mouse or rat could have accidentally stepped on the remote and hit the power button. Our dogs have done this occasionally and changed channels or turned off the TV while trying to sit on our laps.

* An electrical power surge could trigger the TV to turn on by itself. The surge could also damage the internal electrical components of the TV, which could explain why the TV had to be unplugged to shut it off.

* This could be a sign that the TV itself could be failing.

If this was only a one-time occurrence and the TV is working fine, I would not worry about it.

If the problem continues to happen and you've checked the items that I mentioned above and they are not the cause of your problem then you have a choice to make to either take the TV in and have it checked or buy a new TV. In most cases you will find out that purchasing a new TV may cost less than having your existing TV diagnosed and repaired.

I hope that this information has been helpful.

Good Sam Roadside Assistance


Over 1,500,000 successful roadside rescues—Good Sam RV Emergency Road Service

Comments for My RV's TV Keeps Turning on By Itself

Average Rating starstarstarstarstar

Click here to add your own comments

Rating
starstarstarstarstar
Same issues: possessed TV
by: CoopsRVadventures

We are full-timers and we have had the same issue. Our TV has turned on all by itself several times. The first time it was in the middle of the night. It scared us to death. All at once, we heard someone talking in our RV. Other times we have shut off the TV only later to find it on the black screen. Sometimes it's on a channel sometimes it's on the black screen.

A couple of times we have had issues turning on the TV. In fact one time it would not turn on for several days. We thought it had died so we had started shopping for a new TV. We came home from a TV shopping trip and the TV was on! It has been working fine since that occurrence several months ago.
Our RV is a 2016 Forest River Vengeance and our TV is a Visio.

Rating
starstarstarstarstar
tvs come on automatically when plug in
by: Anonymous

our problem is with our Sandpiper 5th wheel. Every time we plug into power the bedroom and livingroom tvs come on

Rating
starstarstarstarstar
Same TV issue
by: Anonymous

TV comes on when plugging and unplugging power. I can assure you no critters because the unit is brand new. I just unplugged the TV.... although something is wrong amd Now the transfer switch will not transfer to battery power. I’m hoping it’s control panel switch and not the transfer unit.

21 Ft. Dessert Fox toy hauler.

Rating
starstarstarstarstar
Sorry don't but your response
by: Anonymous

I have the same issue with my Jensen TV. It's a brand new fifth wheel and I can assure you there no mice or rats running around our fifth wheel. So there's something else going on.

Click here to add your own comments

Return to Ask an RV Question.

LEARN HOW TO RUN 2 RV A/Cs ON A 30 AMP CONNECTION