Mounting a Flat Screen TV to the Wall

April 19, 2010, By Craig J. Heimbuch 1 comment

Craig J. Heimbuch

Unlike building a cooling tower for a nuclear generating station, mounting a flat screen TV on the wall can be done by most homeowners who have some fundamental handyman skills and enough time to do the job right.  This isn’t a project that can be done in an hour. And since some flat screens can cost a month’s salary, the last thing you want to see is your 50-inch LG crashing to the floor, crumbling into a pile of cracked circuit boards and plastic shards.  Most warranties don’t cover stupidity.

For a long list of important reasons, think carefully about the size and weight of the TV you plan to purchase and where you plan to install it.  Some important pre-purchase questions:

1. Will sunlight streaming through a window strike the screen at an angle that will blind you?          
2. Will the TV be positioned so that it’s clearly visible from key viewing locations in the room?
3. Will it be at a height that won’t require you to purchase a neck brace after you’ve watched TV for two hours? This is a matter of personal preference. A general guideline is that the center of the screen, measured vertically, should be at eye level for viewers who occupy seats most commonly used for TV viewing.
4. Will the TV be close enough to an electrical outlet and a line for either cable or satellite TV?
5. Presuming that you don’t want those wires exposed, can they be hidden behind the wall or behind a cover that’s mounted on the wall surface?
6. Is the wall capable of supporting the mounting bracket and the weight of the flat screen?  Some experts say that steel wall studs used in some new construction will not support the weight of the bracket and larger flat screens.
7. Are the wooden wall studs (brackets for larger screens must be attached to at least two studs) in the right position behind the wall to support the bracket and the flat screen?
8. If you’re mounting the flat screen over a fireplace, will the heat from the fireplace affect operation of the TV?
9. Once the TV is installed, will you have easy access to ports on the TV where you might want to plug in a digital camera, a game console or another device?

After answering these preliminary questions, make a decision on a flat screen purchase and be certain to buy a mounting bracket designed to mesh with and support your TV. To complicate things further, there are three different types of brackets that are readily available. They range from the least expensive and easiest to install – the low-profile wall mount – to the tilting wall mount and the most expensive and difficult to install: the full-motion wall mount.

Take time to read the mounting bracket instructions carefully.  This overview of the installation process is not meant to replace instructions that come with the TV or the mounting hardware.  It’s intended, instead, to point out some of the common questions and common problems that are likely to arise during the installation process.

If the flat screen is being mounted on an interior wall, you will typically have a void behind the wall that will allow you to run a cable/satellite wire and an electrical cable up to a point where they can be tied into wall outlets that can be located near the bracket and behind the flat screen. If running cable to an electrical box and then making all the necessary connections sounds like it’s way over your pay grade, you may want to call an electrician. Do not sidestep this procedure by simply hiding the TV power cord behind the wall. This violates electrical codes and can be extremely dangerous.

An alternative to running the wires behind the wall is to hide them behind what’s called a cable management raceway. This hollow decorative cover conceals the wires as they drop down to the baseboard or floor. Many of these raceways can be painted to match the walls.

Craig Heimbuch is the Editor-in-Chief of ManoftheHouse.com and the author of "Chasing Oliver Hazard Perry." He is a Barefoot Proximity employee.