God, that OP reads like the musings of someone who’s been drinking Robitussin. I just couldn’t think of a better headline.
Here’s what I need: something that will fit into a small space (four inches or so) that I can crank until it’s pressing on both sides of that small space.
The actual situation: I have a TV that’s developed that irritating whine. The whine goes away when I press on a spot on the back of the TV but returns the moment I stop pressing on it. I’d like to put something between the wall and that spot on the back of the TV that I can then crank or otherwise adjust until it’s pressing in that spot on the back of the TV and stopping the whine.
Get yourself a half inch bolt, about 3" long, a couple of nuts to fit, a washer, and a small length of pvc pipe. Put the nuts on the bolt, then the washer, then the pipe. Adjust the outer nut to give the correct pressure against the set and wall. Tighten the inner nut against the outer to keep things from getting loose over time.
You might want to put some rubber or felt pads on both sides of the construct to increase friction, and prevent gouging the wall/TV set.
Squink’s device sounds solid. Also, if you happen to have a triangular piece of scrap wood, you can drop it into the space. Its weight will keep the pressure, and if the space gets bigger, the wedge will slide down to fill it.
Surely, there are many fixes, and now you have two of them.
Stop watching reruns of “Saved By The Bell” and see if that doesn’t make the whine go away.
Side note of absolutely no consequence to the o.p.:
When I was at university one of the cable networks–I think it was USA–started showing reruns of “Miami Vice”, making me realize just how awful that show was. (And this was in the early Nineties, so we didn’t even have better stuff to compare it to.) Anyway, my roommate at the time had a television that would buzz loudly any time Don Johnson appeared on screen wearing one of those salmon and turquoise outfits he favored, and wouldn’t stop until he left. That think hated Don Johnson. It was a great television and there was much sadness when it finally died. (Of course, it also buzzed when the titles for “Star Trek: The Next Generation” came on, too, and it didn’t seem to have any beef with Gilbert Godfrey, so it was not all that discriminating, I guess.)
How about a simple spring, or a ball wedged in there? Or something kinda straight but flexible that you can cut to the right size and wedge in there with a little bend to it. Or take some tape and tightly tape a pen cap or something to the back of the TV? Or some polystyrene foam like a company might pack a computer or stereo in. Cut it to a column just slightly longer than the gap, pull the TV out slightly, insert the foam, and jam the TV back against it. Just go looking through your basement, attic, garage, and junk drawers and you should be able to rig something together.
-Use a plastic clothes-hanger.
-Cut off one side so that it resembles a (sideways) V.
-Place the closed end of the V against the spot and widen the other end until it fits between the wall and the television.
-The tension will keep it in place and should press hard enough to eliminate the whine.
I’ll second hitting the toy store for a foam rubber nerf type ball. Or one of those pool float foam things that you can slice a piece off of exactly the right length
I was going to suggest something similar. Take a bicycle innertube and cut it so that 10 inches of tube are on either side of the valve. Tightly knot the ends and inflate as needed with a hand pump. It should expand 4-6 inches in diameter.
I think the foam or fabric ball is the best idea, but if you are desperate to apply tension, pick up a small turnbuckle at the hardware store, screw it as closed as possible, then simply unscrew it open.
To seriously over-engineer the problem, by a tiny C-clamp, take it to your local farrier or ironworker, and have him heat up the ends and twist them around so that the clamp faces point outward. (Go with the foam wedge or ball.)
Get a small piece of wood just slightly shorter than the space. Get two wood shims (avail from any home supply stores about a $1.50 for a whole package)
Put the wood against the set, and the shims narrow end against narrow end at the end of the piece of wood.
As you press the shims toward each other they get thicker and take up space. You can adjust the shims to apply as much or as little pressure as needed.
I think you might need a different solution, since the TV may get gently pushed away from the wall and the tension would be released. What you need is a belt of some sort to go around the front and hold the tension against the TV itself. That way it shouldn’t loosen too much. If you use an object at the right spot on the back you could cinch the belt up until the whine disappears. It also allows you to adjust it from the front a little easier. If you don’t have a spare belt of some sort around, you could get a length of nylon strap and a plastic buckle from the hardware store or camping/outfitters to accomplish the same thing.
