Flat screen TV mounting over a fireplace?
Ok I live in a condo that has a funny layout. The fireplace is kind of in a corner and above it is the "media" area. There is a whole cut out in the wall where a normal old school type tv fits and a small shelf where the dvd player sits. I’m in the market for a flat screen…possibly plasma tv. I have measured it and the actual hole is 35 inches (corner to corner) and 39 1/2 inches from the top of the wall down to where the dvd shelf is built in. I wanna mount the tv brackets on the outside of the hole area and situate the tv there. I don’t want to see the hole, I don’t want to have another hole drilled in the wall to run cables/wires, I don’t want to have to purchase a stand and go through the trouble of rearranging the furniture for that. Is this possible. I don’t see why not. I seen a mounting bracket at best buy that will expand up to 80 inches. I have used the stud finder and there are studs on both sides of the tv hole. Why would this be a bad idea? Shouldn’t it be possible? Also….is there any store that offers free installation? Best buy said they would install it for 349.00….which I think is a bit much since the tv itself is gonna cost around a grand, plus 250 for the bracket.
I never use the fireplace. And the TV hole is actually cut out inside the wall above the fireplace where the current tv sits.
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Not sure I understand the layout of where you want to place the TV, but if you’re looking to buy a plasma and not an LCD (I would recommend the latter), you’ll need to make sure the TV has sufficient ventilation, as plasma TVs get considerably hotter than their LCD cousins.
As for mounting the TV, if you took a picture and brought it along with you to a local Home Depot or Lowe’s, there’s usually someone in customer service who’d be willing to talk with you and explain how you might go about mounting the bracket safely. Most Home Depot or Lowe’s hardware stores offer free workshops that teach you these sorts of things. You can call your local Home Depot or Lowe’s or look at their website for information on these workshops.
It’s a fine idea as long as you don’t use the fireplace.
I would worry about how hot the tv would get if you lit the fireplace? Also some smoke would make its way out of wood fire places from time to time, and if you have a wood fire place I would worry about smoke damage.
I am going to being with my usual mantra of not mounting TVs above fireplaces. Not because of heat, but because the TV will be too high to comfortably watch.
That said, what I would do is get a carpenter to make a frame out of 2×4s to fit just inside your hole width, height and strong enough to attach a TV mount to. Pain it to match your wall, to be less noticeable. You would the lag bolt that to the existing structure.