Has anyone here mounted an HDTV on the wall???

[Orchidflower]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RunningBum I'm with Rich, is there really a need to mount it?

Nothing like that is necessary, but it would give me some more floor room and be out of the way.

The only negative with the tv stands I have looked at on the net since Rich made that suggestion is they look so short. My darn bed with this new mattress that Macy's is selling lately (fake/generic type of Temperapedic ) is really higher than a normal bed I find. My Ralph Lauren sheets just barely cover the mattress, which means this mattress is much thicker than normal for sure, so it sits pretty high. Course, I could just put the tv on a stand and look down I suppose at it....not ideal, tho.

I'll "suffer" tv stands which look to run somewhere in the $100+ range each before I'll spend $760+tax to get two tvs mounted, tho. I'm sure plenty of people pay that, but, personally (and you can call me cheap), I think that's an insane amount of money to pay for what it is.

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Orchidflower The only negative with the tv stands I have looked at on the net since Rich made that suggestion is they look so short. My darn bed with this new mattress that Macy's is selling lately (fake/generic type of Temperapedic ) is really higher than a normal bed I find. My Ralph Lauren sheets just barely cover the mattress, which means this mattress is much thicker than normal for sure, so it sits pretty high. Course, I could just put the tv on a stand and look down I suppose at it....not ideal, tho.

You could always install a big mirror on your ceiling...

[Orchidflower]

At this point, if I installed a mirror on my ceiling, REWahoo, it would be just to look at how much weight I have to lose right now..ha! Not a pretty sight. It would scare little children and animals away.

[M Paquette]

Wall mounts are good. I suggest the following supplies:

Stud finder (No! The kind that find wood studs in walls. Sheesh.)
Drill
4 1/4 to 3/8 inch diameter lag bolts (some mounts come with these)
Socket wrench for the lag bolts
Level
Pencil to mark layout on the wall
Second person to assist in holding the mount up while the bolts go in, and to help lift the TV onto the installed mount.

I suggest getting a tilting/swiveling mount, even if the TV will be flat against the wall, because these let you pull the TV out to hook up or change the wiring.

The best/cheapest source for good wall mounts that I know of is Monoprice. They're also a great source for cables. Why pay BestBuy $35 for a $3 cable?

Wall Mount Brackets

I bought one of these to hold a 55" set I recently installed. It's very, very solid.

The Monoprice mounts come with the lag bolts and other similar hardware, and I didn't have to drill the backplate or anything odd like that to fit my wall location. It comes with Ikea-like instructions, and slightly broken English descriptions (like most of the mounts out there).

The plate on the right side of the picture is fastened to two studs in the wall using lag bolts through one of the four elongated holes in each corner of the plate. The two long vertical pieces in the left side of the picture are removed from the mount and fasten onto the back of the set. The set is then lifted by two people and the hooks on the long pieces drop over the top of the big black rectangular piece. Locking screws on the lower part of the long pieces are then tightened to keep the TV secure.



They also carry cheap HDMI cables in various lengths. I'd suggest finishing off with a cable raceway, a paintable plastic thing that is stuck on the wall, and holds the cables hidden under a snapped on cover. Local hardware stores usually carry these pretty cheap. Monoprice sells them in boxes of 25, which is a bit too silly and expensive for doing 2 TVs.

[Gumby]

Quote:

Originally Posted by M Paquette Wall mounts are good. I suggest the following supplies: Stud finder (No! The kind that find wood studs in walls. Sheesh.)

Actually, they find the nails in the studs.

Anyway -- good checklist and references.

[harley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gumby Actually, they find the nails in the studs.

Obviously some of us still use previous century tools. Magnetic stud finders are so 1980.

The newer ones use either radar or some sort of capacitance differential that I don't quite understand. But they find the edges and the center of the stud, with nails or without.

You probably use one of those levels with the water and the bubble, too. The future is lasers, kid!

[Nodak]

I have a 50 inch plasma on a wall mount. It's not hard to do as long as you can locate the wall studs. Definitely a two person job for a large TV.

[Gumby]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley You probably use one of those levels with the water and the bubble, too. The future is lasers, kid!

Why yes, yes I do. I have a very nice Stanley model 42-321 24 inch brass bound hardwood level. It works like a champ. http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/poe512000_2126_51175473

Recently, the level vials dried out. I emailed Stanley and they sent me replacements for free.

[haha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa An alternate solution: they sell small TV stands that are only 8-10" deep, wood, and give lots of space to store system components, DVDs, etc. The flat panel tv sits on top without any wall mounting, and they're about the right height for viewing. Especially nice if you might want to move it around some day, and gives you a place for your DVDs, etc. Not quite as elegant as a clean wall-mounted arrangement but worth a thought.

Rich, could you link to one of these? I have been wanting to get rid of the Ethan Allen type stand that I now have and I really don't want to be mounting heavy stuff on my apartment wall. How much do they cost?

Ha

[dex]

Quote:

Originally Posted by haha Rich, could you link to one of these? I have been wanting to get rid of the Ethan Allen type stand that I now have and I really don't want to be mounting heavy stuff on my apartment wall. How much do they cost? Ha

TV stand 8 10" - Google Product Search

I would get one of these rather than a wall mount.

[Orchidflower]

Well, it can't be all that difficult it I actually understood M Paquette's explanation. Sounds relatively simple...heavy to lift the tv maybe but certainly not complicated the way it reads.

[wolf]

OP:

One suggestin to all. I would mount a horizontal piece of wood, to "snag" at least 3 studs. Then attach the TV mount to the horizontal piece of wood.

This would give you some room to "adjust" the location of the TV on the wall.

I would also use at a minimum " 2 " screws per stud. For a total of 6 screws. minimum. (I would probably use a few more, overkill better).

If you have ever looked a vertical stud, only 1 1/2 inch thick, unless you hit it dead on center, could be a weak attachement.

By using a "horizontal " piece of wood, would be a very strong.

Not sure if I'm explaining this very clear, any handyman, should be able to understand.






.

[W2R]

I vote for a higher TV stand because to me this solution seems easier and more flexible.

[harley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wolf OP: One suggestin to all. I would mount a horizontal piece of wood, to "snag" at least 3 studs. Then attach the TV mount to the horizontal piece of wood. This would give you some room to "adjust" the location of the TV on the wall. I would also use at a minimum " 2 " screws per stud. For a total of 6 screws. minimum. (I would probably use a few more, overkill better). If you have ever looked a vertical stud, only 1 1/2 inch thick, unless you hit it dead on center, could be a weak attachement. By using a "horizontal " piece of wood, would be a very strong. Not sure if I'm explaining this very clear, any handyman, should be able to understand.

This would be strong, but it is overkill IMO. If you mount the bracket to a stud you have all four screws in wood, and that's pretty strong. The only reason I would go with this suggestion is if you want to center the TV between studs, and even then running a support piece between the two studs would be plenty. I can understand wolf's reasoning for this, but I've seen a bunch of TVs mounted on walls, and AFAIK there isn't an epidemic of brackets ripping out the drywall and the stud and dropping the TV on the floor. I'm sure there are a few, but I suspect they tried to mount in drywall with plastic anchors or something. A 42" TV isn't that heavy. Maybe if you were going to a 55" or something.

Having said that, I tend to agree with Rich and the stand people. It's a lot easier, more flexible, and if you have peripherals (cable box, dvr, dvd player, wireless headphone base unit, etc) you're going to need somewhere to put all that stuff anyway. Most people mount their TVs too high and end up with neck aches. If you do mount it, Crutchfield has all sorts of good info on distances, heights, TV sizes, etc.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Orchidflower They want $247 x 2 they said to come to your house

(plus the cost of the mount)

I does seem high, but how far are you from the store? Figure 2 guys, a truck, may half-hour each way? It really should only take an hour for two guys who have done it before to get both installed. Maybe a bit more if they need to spend some time with you confirming the placement, maybe moving some furniture, etc.

Then add some profit overhead, liability ins, etc. Hmmm, still seems high in the middle of a recession and high unemployment for a job that requires pretty minimal skill. Four work-hours @ $100/hour leaves another $100. They are free to think differently on this, but if I ran BestBuy, I would not be looking to make a big profit on this - providing the service at a fair price will increase sales of TVs and stands. Now, if you called them and said you bought the part on the internet and just want it installed, they need to go for more profit - but again, in this economy, I wouldn't turn the job down for a reasonable price.

Did this price include doing anything with the cables? As others mentioned, that can add up fast.

-ERD50

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronstar I have mounted 4 of them. I ran the electrical cord and coax through a grommet in the wall ...

Just FYI, but I think that is probably against code to run an electrical cord through a wall like that. Since you did it and are aware of it, I don't consider it much of an actual safety issue at all. But if a squirrel chewed through it or some other issue and you had a fire, your insurance company might see things differently?

Slim-to-no chance of that happening, I think the code is there to keep people from doing it willy-nilly all over their house and esp having something in one room and the plug is in another room with the cord going through the wall. That would make it tougher to unplug in an emergency (not that there aren't plenty of cases like that already - codes are there to improve the odds as I see it).

-ERD50

[M Paquette]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 Just FYI, but I think that is probably against code to run an electrical cord through a wall like that. Since you did it and are aware of it, I don't consider it much of an actual safety issue at all. But if a squirrel chewed through it or some other issue and you had a fire, your insurance company might see things differently?

Yup.

Electric cords in the wall is Right Out. There are a few good reasons for this.

Besides rodent damage, the material used for a flexible cord ages differently than the stuff used for house wiring. The cord's plastic jacket and the insulation on individual wires tends to become brittle with age and warmth. Zip cord is the worst offender. I've pulled zip cord out of walls that just crumbled into bare wires and dust.

The cords also break down differently than Romex/NM/BX/TECK house wiring in a fire, and have rather different fire resistance. (Like, little to none!)

Flexible power cords are assumed to be visible, checked by the user, and replaced when damaged. When hidden in a wall it hard to do this.

There are some simple gadgets to make safe in-wall wiring of power to a wall-mounted TV easier. I haven't used these as my wall-mounts were done in a fit of remodeling, and electrical runs to surge-protected outlets were made to code, inspected, and signed off.

The AV cables run through those in-wall chases should all be marked CL2 or CL3 to meet most local fire codes. In some communities, the AV cables must be 12" from the power wiring, or in a different stud bay.

It's easier to just use paintable wire molding for most DIY installations, which is why I suggested that to orchidflower.

[M Paquette]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 Slim-to-no chance of that happening, I think the code is there to keep people from doing it willy-nilly all over their house and esp having something in one room and the plug is in another room with the cord going through the wall. That would make it tougher to unplug in an emergency (not that there aren't plenty of cases like that already - codes are there to improve the odds as I see it).

Any sort of thru-the-wall install has to be done just right. This particular installation has a door installed for easy access.

[Ronstar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 Just FYI, but I think that is probably against code to run an electrical cord through a wall like that. Since you did it and are aware of it, I don't consider it much of an actual safety issue at all. But if a squirrel chewed through it or some other issue and you had a fire, your insurance company might see things differently? Slim-to-no chance of that happening, I think the code is there to keep people from doing it willy-nilly all over their house and esp having something in one room and the plug is in another room with the cord going through the wall. That would make it tougher to unplug in an emergency (not that there aren't plenty of cases like that already - codes are there to improve the odds as I see it). -ERD50

Thanks - I really never thought about codes when I did it. The Tv is high on the wall so the cord is only in the wall for about 2' (probably still against code). Its probably also against the code to have my receptacle and Directv receiver above the drop ceiling panels, but I can get to these if when I have to.

[Automatika]

And yet another option- get a piece of wood just larger than the TV mount. Sand it, stain it, make it look nice - attach the mounting kit to the wood. Put about 6 holes in the wood big enough for toggle bolts. use a stud finder and locate the studs, then put the wood on the wall and mark the holes where the studs aren't. Use the toggle bolts to attach the piece of wood to the wall, mount the tv to the mounting kit. This has several advantages: if you do have connections on the back of the TV you can build a stand-off made out of wood into your board, mount cable routing pieces to it, etc. You also don't have to try and align the mounting holes with the studs if you use toggle bolts. Very easy to fill the holes with drywall compound if you remove the wood later. I have an art piece that weighs about 500lbs mounted to the wall using 12 toggle bolts and wood and its held well for years.