# Wall mounting a 46" TV problem. Please help



## santa (Jan 11, 2009)

Our wall has a very limited space where I can mount a new TV. The metal mounting device can't be placed on a stud so the plan is to screw two 1x4x48 strips onto the studs, and then attach the mount and TV to the wooden strips. My questions are: 1. Is a 1x4 thick enough for a 95 lb (TV plus heavy wall mounting hardware) load? I thought a 2x4 would be safer but a friend assures me a 1x4 will be plenty strong and my wife would prefer that. 2. The mounting device (swing arm) comes with 3" lag bolts meant to go into studs but that can't be done. What is the best method to attach the wall mount to the 1x4 strips that will be already on the wall? Using the 1x3 screws may be just fine but perhaps there is a better way? 3. Would buying a hard wood be any better than simple pine?


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## Rob (Oct 31, 2006)

If I'm reading this correctly, you are going to attach on the horizontal, two 1 x 4 strips and then attach the TV stand to that??
I go overboard a little with things like this but here is how I probably would attack the situation. 
I would use a 2 x 8 (pick the straightest, nicest, knot-free piece you can find)
I would mount my TV mount first to this board at the desired location.
Drill counterbore holes in the back large enough to accept a nut on a 1/4" bolt, so then you have nuts and bolts holding this stand to the board. Then, attach the board to the wall into the studs, using 2 lag bolts per end.
Maybe a little overkill but I'd sleep better. If you sand and dress up the board a little, with some paint, it won't look bad.


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## John in Tennessee (Jun 11, 2008)

*What does the instructions say........*

about mounting the bracket? Different mounts have different requirements. Also don't mount it to high. Crick city  Also are you going to run the cables in the wall? One other tip You DON"T need the high priced cables that the sales guys push





Rob said:


> If I'm reading this correctly, you are going to attach on the horizontal, two 1 x 4 strips and then attach the TV stand to that??
> I go overboard a little with things like this but here is how I probably would attack the situation.
> I would use a 2 x 8 (pick the straightest, nicest, knot-free piece you can find)
> I would mount my TV mount first to this board at the desired location.
> ...


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## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

What mount are you using?


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## johnjf0622 (Feb 8, 2008)

So the TV plus the bracket is definitely pushing a 100 lbs., I would trust the 2 by more then a 1x any day. And as stated you can always dress up the board. A Friend wants to dress theirs up by having me build them picture frame around it, you could also say it is like a big shadow box. You could do that and place a 2x in the construction, where the bracket would go and then you will definitely hit the studs for added support. If you were to go that way I would make sure you vent the top or place a small fan just to keep air moving around.


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## Majestic Builders (Nov 15, 2008)

since i couldnt find a bracket fr my tv locally. i ripped down a 2X6 lagged it in with 3, 6 inch timberlock bolts,and turned it into a french cleat. woorks out fine so far...And thats on a 42 in philips, couldnt tell you how much it whieghs.


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## lvlacgyver (Jan 4, 2008)

*2 ideas*

If you dont want any cleat showing at all you could cut into the drywall between two of the studs. Add 2 fireblock type braces between the studs, to hold the tv mount. Also, you could use toggle bolts to attach the tv mount to the wall. (Ones rated to hold 100+ lbs. of course.) I don't know what type of wall you have, but I believe these work plaster as well.


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

I would think that 2 1x4's would be plenty strong. If you have any concerns then change to a 1x6. In the configuration you are using the board it is not the thickness that is providing the strength, it is the width. I agree with your wife that the 2x would push the TV too far from the wall.

As already suggested you can reduce that spacing an extra 3/4" by inletting boards into the wall. You will not be cutting much of the stud as most of that 3/4" is taken up by wall board.

Use whatever length lag bolt you need to go through the mounting fixture and 3/4" board.

George


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## Bob Wingard (Jul 23, 2007)

I helped a friend do one of these a while back .. .. we used a piece of 1/2" Baltic Birch plywood, and cut away the drywall to set the ply directly against the studs. That made the face of the ply just about flush with the face of the drywall, and opened up the wall cavity to run all of his wiring. Looked pretty good when it was done, and it was plenty strong. He installed a Samsung 52" LCD TV and one of those fancy pullout tilt'n'swivel mounts. The whole thing must weigh about 150# or more .. no problems yet.


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## John in Tennessee (Jun 11, 2008)

Just follow the instructions. Second *guessing*​ get you in trouble. Trot your self tohttp://www.highdefforum.com/ It's the same type forum as this one and you can get help from people that have done this 1000's of times.


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

Bob Wingard said:


> I helped a friend do one of these a while back .. .. we used a piece of 1/2" Baltic Birch plywood, and cut away the drywall to set the ply directly against the studs. That made the face of the ply just about flush with the face of the drywall, and opened up the wall cavity to run all of his wiring. Looked pretty good when it was done, and it was plenty strong. He installed a Samsung 52" LCD TV and one of those fancy pullout tilt'n'swivel mounts. The whole thing must weigh about 150# or more .. no problems yet.


This would work very well also.

George


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## moondawg (Dec 17, 2008)

santa said:


> Our wall has a very limited space where I can mount a new TV. The metal mounting device can't be placed on a stud so the plan is to screw two 1x4x48 strips onto the studs, and then attach the mount and TV to the wooden strips. My questions are: 1. Is a 1x4 thick enough for a 95 lb (TV plus heavy wall mounting hardware) load? I thought a 2x4 would be safer but a friend assures me a 1x4 will be plenty strong and my wife would prefer that. 2. The mounting device (swing arm) comes with 3" lag bolts meant to go into studs but that can't be done. What is the best method to attach the wall mount to the 1x4 strips that will be already on the wall? Using the 1x3 screws may be just fine but perhaps there is a better way? 3. Would buying a hard wood be any bettehan simple pine?


Curious about why the mount isn't able to attach to the studs? all the one's I've seen are at least 24" wide, and have long slots so that you can place at least one set of bolts directly into studs. 

Do you have a picture of the mount, and the wall you're mounting to? 

I get the feeling you're missing something.


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## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

moondawg said:


> Curious about why the mount isn't able to attach to the studs? all the one's I've seen are at least 24" wide, and have long slots so that you can place at least one set of bolts directly into studs.
> 
> Do you have a picture of the mount, and the wall you're mounting to?
> 
> I get the feeling you're missing something.


I think it is a swing arm that only mounts on one
stud.

Like this?


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## Howard Ferstler (Sep 27, 2007)

santa said:


> Our wall has a very limited space where I can mount a new TV. The metal mounting device can't be placed on a stud so the plan is to screw two 1x4x48 strips onto the studs, and then attach the mount and TV to the wooden strips. My questions are: 1. Is a 1x4 thick enough for a 95 lb (TV plus heavy wall mounting hardware) load? I thought a 2x4 would be safer but a friend assures me a 1x4 will be plenty strong and my wife would prefer that. 2. The mounting device (swing arm) comes with 3" lag bolts meant to go into studs but that can't be done. What is the best method to attach the wall mount to the 1x4 strips that will be already on the wall? Using the 1x3 screws may be just fine but perhaps there is a better way? 3. Would buying a hard wood be any better than simple pine?


I hate to come up with an answer that is too simple, but if you have a bookcase or even a conventional TV stand of some kind on that wall why not just place the set on it? (The sets always come with a stand/bracket for that kind of placement.) That way, down the line when it comes time to replace the set with a still bigger and still better model all you have to do is remove it from the bookcase top and put the new set in its place. No cutting, drilling and the like, and no worries about something tearing loose, or having out of position holes in the wall with a new set's replacement bracket being different.

Attached is a photo of my 56 incher sitting on a bookcase I made. The bookcase itself is a foot deep, but the back panel is mounted five inches inboard to act as an interior spine. The shelves are therefore only 7 inches deep - good enough for most books.

Howard Ferstler


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## moondawg (Dec 17, 2008)

BHOFM said:


> I think it is a swing arm that only mounts on one
> stud.
> 
> Like this?



So I should edit my post to say "I get the feeling *I* am missing something? :^)


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## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

moondawg said:


> So I should edit my post to say "I get the feeling *I* am missing something? :^)


No, just stand in the corner for the rest of the class.:laughing::laughing::laughing::laughing:

The clue is "mounting device can't be placed on *a stud* "


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## santa (Jan 11, 2009)

*thanks everyone*

After receiving the wall mount and measuring with the template, we found that if we shifted the mount a few inches we could indeed hit a stud. When attaching the TV to the mount, it can be slid so it is not directly on center. That will allow us to push it back to the wall without overlapping a window. I hadn't taken that into account. The TV has yet to arrive but the wall mount it up and it is incredibly strong. After some some simple adjustments it also swings out smoothly. It's stupid expensive but looks like it will work just great. Again, thanks for your suggestions and help.


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