# Need advice on "hanging" a flat panel TV in a cabinet



## Sonicendeavor (Nov 13, 2008)

Hi All,
I've just finished the carcass and face frame for a 84"h x 67"w built-in entertainment cabinet and now need to construct a small wall in the TV section of the cabinet to hang a 52" flatscreen TV. I'm hanging the TV because I want the face of the TV flush with the front edge of the faceframe, then I'll trim it out with speaker grills on the side and a trim piece on the top.

My plan is to build a 34"h by 24"w stud wall with two studs 16" on center and two studs at the ends that fits tightly in the TV section of the cabinet, then attach the top plate to the top of the tv section (2 sheets of 3/4 birch ply laminated together) with 2 1/2" lag screws and attach the bottom plate to the shelf (also 2 sheets of 3/4 birch ply laminated together) with hex bolts fastened to nuts on the underside of the bottom shelf inside the lower cabinets.

To build the stud wall I'm thinking of standard stud wall construction but since it will be built outside the cabinet I'd build it by screwing through the top and bottom plates into the top and bottom of the studs with 2 1/2" #12 screws (2 per stud on each end) and using glue to help strenthen the joints. 

Does this seem like an adequate design to support hanging a 60 pound TV? Should I add heavy duty L brackets to make it stronger?
(I'm having a professional installer install a flat screen mount to the wall and hang the TV).

Thanks for your help,
Bill


----------



## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

> (I'm having a professional installer install a flat screen mount to the wall and hang the TV).


I would love to help, but the person that is installing
the TV is the one you need to talk to.


----------



## Sonicendeavor (Nov 13, 2008)

BHOFM said:


> I would love to help, but the person that is installing
> the TV is the one you need to talk to.


He's in the loop, but he and most installers typically don't have this kind of expertise which is why I asked the construction question here.


----------



## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

Sonicendeavor said:


> He's in the loop, but he and most installers typically don't have this kind of expertise which is why I asked the construction question here.


It sounds like you are over building by about 10
times. A 2'x3' 3/4" piece of ply will hold 60lbs
with out any other members. just frame the
out side to fit the opening.

A picture of what you have done would help,
or even a rough drawing?


----------



## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

BHOFM said:


> It sounds like you are over building by about 10
> times. A 2'x3' 3/4" piece of ply will hold 60lbs
> with out any other members. just frame the
> out side to fit the opening.
> ...


I totally agree. That was my first thought as I was reading this. The installer will have an adequate hanger. 

George


----------



## Sonicendeavor (Nov 13, 2008)

BHOFM said:


> It sounds like you are over building by about 10
> times. A 2'x3' 3/4" piece of ply will hold 60lbs
> with out any other members. just frame the
> out side to fit the opening.
> ...


Yeah, I have a tendency to overbuild things. My first thought was to use 3/4 ply and use heavy duty L brackets to attach it to the ceiling and floor of the TV section of the cabinet, but if I understand your idea correctly, I like your idea better. Are you talking about attaching the plywood to a 2' x 3' frame made of 2x4's?
I'll attach a picture of the work in progress.
Thanks for your help,
Bill


----------



## Sonicendeavor (Nov 13, 2008)

GeorgeC said:


> I totally agree. That was my first thought as I was reading this. The installer will have an adequate hanger.
> 
> George


Yes he will take care of that, but he needs a sturdy surface sitting 6 inches back in the cabinet to attach the flat screen mount to, then the TV will latch onto the mount.

Mount:


----------



## Gus Dering (Oct 14, 2008)

I think you are going to be able to hang a TV that weighs alot more than #60, but better safe than sorry.
I wish I had a shot of this detail But I'll try to explain.

When we build cabinetry for these new TV's with a mounting bracket like yours or a swing arm one, we bolt the mounting bracket to a small "trap door" in the middle of the larger wall that you are describing.

Then along the perimeter of that small panel we drill holes for through bolts that screw into "T" nuts that are on the back side of a sub structure that overlaps into the opening for that small panel.

This way you will always be able to access that cavity behind your wall in the event of changes in components or a new TV or what ever. You just pop the TV off the bracket and back out those through bolts and you have about a 20" square hole to stick your head into.
Options are always good. I just hope it made sense.


----------



## Nate1778 (Mar 10, 2008)

I did the same thing that you are doing now. I used the exact mount that the was shown a couple post above. Mine was a 51" LCD and I remember it being heavier than 60# but I may be wrong. It is recommended to have a minimal 2" opening surrounding the TV for air flow. I did the install myself, ran 1 HDMI cable and power cord to the TV, everything is switched though the receiver. Here is a couple pics of my project. We finished it last winter.


----------



## goingenoan (May 24, 2008)

Sonicendeavor said:


> Hi All,
> I've just finished the carcass and face frame for a 84"h x 67"w built-in entertainment cabinet and now need to construct a small wall in the TV section of the cabinet to hang a 52" flatscreen TV. I'm hanging the TV because I want the face of the TV flush with the front edge of the faceframe, then I'll trim it out with speaker grills on the side and a trim piece on the top.
> 
> My plan is to build a 34"h by 24"w stud wall with two studs 16" on center and two studs at the ends that fits tightly in the TV section of the cabinet, then attach the top plate to the top of the tv section (2 sheets of 3/4 birch ply laminated together) with 2 1/2" lag screws and attach the bottom plate to the shelf (also 2 sheets of 3/4 birch ply laminated together) with hex bolts fastened to nuts on the underside of the bottom shelf inside the lower cabinets.
> ...


I did something very similar for a client last year. He had bought this flat screen mount that articulated out of the cabinet space and then could rotate to the left or right so he could view his big screen from any location in the sitting room. I decided to go ahead and build a 2x4 wall behind a piece of 3/4" stained plywood to match the cabinet. I wanted to make damn sure that when he extended that massive tv out of the cabinet space that it wasn't going to do a face plant on the floor in the middle of a Superbowl game! I also reinforced the cabinet to wall connections so the whole thing didn't rip away from the wall and come crashing down like something out of a comedy movie. I figured over-building was cheap insurance compared to having to replace the guy's big screen and/or a big screen and an expensive custom cabinet!


----------



## Sonicendeavor (Nov 13, 2008)

goingenoan said:


> I did something very similar for a client last year. He had bought this flat screen mount that articulated out of the cabinet space and then could rotate to the left or right so he could view his big screen from any location in the sitting room. I decided to go ahead and build a 2x4 wall behind a piece of 3/4" stained plywood to match the cabinet. I wanted to make damn sure that when he extended that massive tv out of the cabinet space that it wasn't going to do a face plant on the floor in the middle of a Superbowl game! I also reinforced the cabinet to wall connections so the whole thing didn't rip away from the wall and come crashing down like something out of a comedy movie. I figured over-building was cheap insurance compared to having to replace the guy's big screen and/or a big screen and an expensive custom cabinet!


Thanks. That was my thinking too.
I went ahead and built a 24" wide stud wall attached to the base and upper cabinets with lag screws. I secured the studs (placed at 16" and 18" on center) with screws through the top and bottom sills and used glue for added security. It's extremely sturdy and a bit of overkill, but like you said, cheap insurance and peace of mind that
the TV isn't going to budge. An hour to build, 30 minutes to make sure it's plumb and square to the face frame and I never have to worry about it.
Thanks everyone for your responses.


----------

