Urgent Assistance Required: Recurring Issues with Sky Puck Remote

[Diddlesom]

I am writing to express my deep concern and seek immediate assistance regarding a recurring issue with our Sky Remote, which has significantly impacted our family's television experience.

Last evening, as my family gathered to enjoy some television time together, we encountered an unexpected issue: our Sky Remote was unresponsive. Believing it to be a minor hiccup, I checked to ensure that the device was properly connected and outputting to the TV. To my dismay, this was the second instance of remote malfunction since September.

Upon further inspection, I discovered that the batteries within the remote had not only failed but had exploded and leaked internally.
This incident aligns with an occurrence my wife noted the previous night – a distinct pop/crack sound emanating from the shelf where we store the remotes. At the time, she was engrossed in her reading and did not investigate further.

Now, with the holiday season upon us, we find ourselves in a predicament devoid of television access as we await the delivery of a replacement remote from Sky. This situation is particularly disheartening considering our previous request for an alternative solution, such as a control application, was met with a negative response from your team.

In light of these circumstances, I am reaching out to seek any possible advice or interim solution that would enable us to utilize our television without the remote.
While we resorted to playing a board game last night, which indeed was enjoyable, the desire for varied entertainment, including watching TV, remains strong within my family.

I appreciate your prompt attention to this matter and look forward to a swift and effective resolution.

Merry Christmas

Didds

[MarkGoldsmith]

@Diddlesom FYI for aren't and indeed can't talk to sky customer services via this forum. This is the Sky Community forum for other customers to offer advice and assistance.

This is indeed a known and well reported issue with some of the Sky streaming remotes and likely because they are quite cheap bits of kit. All you can really do whilst you wait for the new remote is to remove the exploded batteries and clean the remote thoroughly. Replace the batteries and see if that brings life to the remote. If this doesn't help you can try holding the remote and gently twist it like you are wringing out a towel, this also has helped fix broken remotes in the past.

the last option if you have an old Sky Q remote is to use that until the replacement arrives.

[Diddlesom]

@MarkGoldsmith  Thanks for the speedy reply.

I work with electronics and this morning I cleaned the battery compartment with isopropyl alcohol, put new batteries in but no joy.

This is the first time we have had Sky TV so unfortunately, we do not have any other Sky equipment here.

By twisting the remote... does this mean there could be dry solder joints? I might take it apart and reflow the joints.

Hopefully, I can borrow a friend's Firestick today so at least we have something.

I'm really not happy about this, though. How many more remotes will I need? Maybe I can order some in advance to put in the cupboard, ready for when the next one breaks!!

[MarkGoldsmith]

The twisting thing is wierd but if you search this forum you will find many a fellow customer whose remotes have suddenly started working after this method.

[Diddlesom]

Below is a photo.
I removed the board from the remote and put it under my microscope.
The pad, which is circled, was half burned. In the photo, I had already started to clean it before I thought I should take a photo for this forum.
I continued to clean the pad. And tested continuity around the board. All looked good.

Put new batteries in, and bingo, tested with the puck, and working fine.

I am happy I can now get some TV, but come on, Sky, we pay a lot for this service, yet you give us poor equipment.

Merry Christmas, everyone