A TV wall can be a great way to bring your entertainment center into the center of the room. It also gives you more options for placing equipment, like a Blu-ray player or gaming consoles. But it’s important to do your homework before you decide to mount your television. You don’t want to end up with a wall mount that looks a bit off-center or that doesn’t fit in the space you have available.
1. Measure Your TV to Determine the Height of the Wall Mount
You’ll need to know how tall you want your TV to be so that it doesn’t block your view or annoy anyone in your household. To do this, use a tape measure to mark the wall where you’d like your TV to go.
2. Run Low-Stick Painter’s Tape Along the Wall and Test It out
If you have a television that’s a certain size, it’s easy to find the correct spot for it. But if you have a different model, it can be a little trickier. One method is to run a strip of low-stick painter’s tape from one corner of the screen to the opposite diagonal corner, then run a second strip from that same intersection to another corner.
3. Select a Weight-Bearing Wall
The wall you hang your television on should be able to support four times the combined weight of your TV and all of its accessories, including cable boxes, DVD players and gaming consoles. It should also be able to withstand heat, vibration and the flow of traffic.
4. Pre-Drill the Studs
Once you’ve picked a spot for your TV, you need to drill into the studs of the wall. This is a good idea regardless of the type of mounting you choose, but it’s particularly critical if you’re using a full-motion or articulating wall mount.
5. Use Hollow Wall Anchors or Bolts
If the studs of your wall are too far apart to allow for a standard drywall anchor, you can use hollow wall anchors or bolts instead. These are a lot like regular screws, but they have a butterfly toggle at the end of the thread. They are much stronger than drywall anchors, but they should not be used with full-motion or articulating mounts, as the force exerted on the bracket-arm when it’s pulled in and out can cause them to snap off your studs.
6. Mount Your TV With a Wall Mount Kit
Once you have the studs and wall hooks in place, it’s time to attach your TV. This is an essential step to ensure that your TV mount holds securely, so it’s essential to follow the manufacturer’s instructions and get the right type of mount for your TV.
7. Use an Electric Stud Finder
If you’re mounting your TV to a stud-based wall, you’ll need a stud finder to locate the studs in your walls. You can either use an electronic stud finder or manually run it across the top of a piece of paper to locate them.
