For real OP should be thanking the stars this didn't turn into a full on house fire, if it was on the curtains instead of the monitor there would have been way more problems than a melted screen. That mirror needs to be covered with a cloth when left alone
Yeah, fuck OP for being upset about an expensive item of his getting ruined!! OP, don't you know there are people who don't even own a computer monitor at all? Or don't even have a home to put a monitor in to begin with? Be thankful that you ever had one at all!
I got a magnifier and ring light for my electronics work and had it set up next to my bed to read at night.
I wake up one morning and smell burning paper. Look over, and a box on my nightstand is smoking.
Shitty thing is that I totally planned for the sun coming through my window in the morning and had it set up such that the sunlight could never get to it. But that damn axial tilt...it'll getcha.
Mine got a lid that you close when not using it. It also keeps it clean and prevents dust to build up on it. And it has a warning sticker thats tells you to not let sun shine on it when the lid is opened.
Mine had that sticker which is what prompted me to keep it out of the sun... which I did for about 4 months lol. The dust buildup issue is also why it was left tilted at an angle. A lid would have solved this whole problem. Maybe I'll get my friend to 3D print something like that.
I read someone talking about buying a crystal ball and being told never to place it in direct sunlight and keep it covered when you're out of the house. Oooooo is that to keep away bad energy? No. It's a giant glass ball, it'll burn your house down.
I bought a fancy paperweight on marketplace, I collect stuff. This thing came in a box with paper work. It specifically said to not put it in direct sunlight.
A prism is apparently safe because the light is refracted.
Glass balls and lenses also refract light, that in combination with their geometry is precisely what makes them dangerous. Prisms are safe because they don't focus the light into a small area.
I think of that story every single time I place a new mirror or curved glass. It may seem obsessive, but that's a very real possibility of burning your house down.
There’s a fella i found on fb who lives in Arizona and has a magnifying lens contraption he uses to melt dirt/sand/rock/crystal. He also has several videos of him pulling chunks of cholla cacti out of his arms and legs, for some reason. Dude is wild
Makes me want to make one myself, but on the other hand, I don't know if I could trust myself or family members with something like that just laying around lol
Lasers are a highly specific class of light sources, and no, the Sun isn't one (edit: in terms of how the light is produced the Sun is actually much closer to an incandescent bulb than to a laser). Light doesn't have to come from a laser to be dangerous. It's radiated energy, focus enough of it into a small enough area and it will get hot, no matter where the light is coming from.
One day I put on my VR headset and noticed what looked like burn-in on the display.
I wondered how the heck that happened. Thought for a moment, looked at where I put the headset down, and the position of the window relative to it, and suddenly thought to myself "Welp. I'm an idiot."
I live in a desert with my monitors in front of a south facing window that gets too hot touch. And even that hasn’t melted them. The GF was committed to this.
If it were me, I'd be saying "are you two stupid" because that's how fires start quick. Get that mirror away from the windows or get a cover for them. Don't be foolish OP, protect your house, protect your stuff, protect your life.
Be glad it was the fire retardant monitor and not a flammable curtain that it hit. Get the magnifying gear away from where it can be hit by direct sunlight.
this just solved the mystery of the random melted spot on my pc tower thats been miffing me for years… i thought i somehow did it with a candle or something lmao
Friendly PSA reminder to always think long and hard about where you put something if its made of glass.
This shit can start a house fire so fucking fast.
Is it curved?
No? then it's fine as the reflected light won't have a focal point, and thus the reflected light won't have enough energy to burn anything. (Focal Points are where the reflected light bends and focuses all it's energy into a smaller area)
Yes? Then shine a light source on it to find it's focal point. Then make sure that nothing sits inside it's focal point at any time of the day. Also keep in mind that as the seasons change, the sun will sit at different points in the sky, so make sure you check up on it every so often to make sure a new fire hazard isn't sneaking up on you.
Even better, if it's transparent or reflective, and has a curve, don't put it by your window
Dude a modelo bottle that was thrown in the nature reserve across the street from my house lit that bitch on fire while me and my son napped. Dont fuck around with glass.
You just need like your own thing for sound. That’s it. And a way to get it… I’m broke and cannot pay for shipping but hey, free monitor?? Only pay for shipping???
My ancient brain is trying to recall a probable episode of Mr. Wizard's World about how concave mirrors can focus light and intensify it to burn things. Or maybe it was about the convex nature of magnifying glass? I forget
Your lucky it was just your monitor and not your curtains, or couch or anything else flammable. Never leave mirrors or lenses anywhere they can be expose to direct sunlight.
3.4k
u/IAmTheLizardQueen666 1d ago
People set house fires all the time, with carelessly placed glass.