Written by Correy Pelletier
Projector lamps primarily affect brightness. They are made of white light, which has a rainbow of colors. If you are experiencing color issues, it’s most likely the bulb is not the cause of these color problems.
The most common color problem is a complete washing of one color, such as pink, blue, or red. This problem is typically caused by a faulty prism in the projector or in the lamp housing. The lamp inside the projector projects bright white light, which projects through a series of prisms or pieces of glass that are designed to allow certain types of light or colors to come through.
There can be many prisms in your projector. In some projectors, there is also a prism attached to the front of the lamp module.
These prisms will heat up over time and change properties. They can also get burned or discolored, which causes the washing over effect of one color.
One solution to the washing of one color is you can go to a repair shop so they can diagnose the problem and replace the prisms in your projector.
Another solution is to replace the front glass prism at the front of the lamp module. If you were not experiencing this problem with your old lamp, try reusing your old prism and swap out the prism along with the new lamp.
There can be other reasons your projector is experiencing color problems, there may be liquid-crystal display (LCD) issues or it’s a color wheel problem. And fixing the LCD or color wheel issues can be costly. Your best bet is to see if it’s the prism first since it’s the cheaper and quicker fix.
Expert Tip: BenQ and Optoma projectors are known to use a prism at the front of most of their lamps. If you are experiencing color issues, call MyProjectorLamps support:1-888-785-2677. We can guide you through the process, so you don’t have to spend money on a repair that doesn’t necessarily need to happen.