Help mounting TV on wall

[Chunk49]

Hi

I would like to mount my TV on the living room wall of my flat. However, this is an internal wall and I think it just flimsy plasterboard. Will this be strong enough to mount a TV to? If not, what is the best way to go about jobbing it?

Many thanks.

Edited by Chunk49 on Thursday 24th April 14:37

Edited by Chunk49 on Thursday 24th April 14:51

[Chunk49]

RC1 said:

how heavy is your tv?

I don't know exactly at this point. It's a standard 37inch TV - Toshiba - 4 years old - possibly on the chunkier side than some very slim ones I've seen recently.

[Chunk49]

BoRED S2upid said:

Your right plaster board is too flimsy you need to drill into brick. Whatever you end up doing make sure it's straight I hung one once and it was millimetres out annoyed me for years. Oh and channel the wires behind the plasterboard it looks so much better.

I don't think there will be any brick to drill into as it's an internal wall in a flat.

Do people put a plank of wood behind the plasterboard and drill into that?

Basically, if it is going to be a massive job I will probably give it a miss. But if there is a simple solution I'm missing it would be great if someone could share the wisdom with me!

Thanks

[Chunk49]

pidsy said:

Work out where you want tv.

Poke small holes in wall within the TV's edges working from the centre outwards until you hit a wooden stud.

Measure from the stud left or right (dependant on where your tv is going) the stud centres should be at 400 or 600 mm and poke holes around this area until u find your second stud.

Fix your bracket to both of these points, hang tv and enjoy.

Thanks a lot for the detailed explanation.

Basic I know, but what is a wooden stud? And is my wall guaranteed to have them? I've heard the phrase "stud wall" but never really known what it meant.

[Chunk49]

monthefish said:

Decent hollow wall anchors will probably do the trick.

I think what a lot of people forget is that gravity works downwards and not outwards, and unless it gets knocked, the majority of the forces acting on the TV will be downwards, and the fixings aren't going to slice through the wall.

I've used them for many years in some quite testing applications and never had any fail.

If you can locate one of the studs behind the plasterboard (they're usually no more than 600mm centres, so you should be able to find one roughly where you want to put your TV), for even one side of your bracket to fix to, then so much the better, but if it's not possible, don't worry.





But, worst case scenario and the TV lands on the floor, sounds like you could do with a new one anyway!

Thanks a lot for your input. That's good to know. i will try to find and then screw into the stud (not a phrase I've ever uttered before!) but if not sounds like hopefully will be ok.

Loving the TV man maths...!

[Chunk49]

Chaps and Chapesses of Pistonheads - just want to say a big thank you for all the advice/help given in this thread. I really appreciate it. The diagram especially helped me!

I will update in due course.

[Chunk49]

telford_mike said:

You don't need to actually attach it to the wall.

I had exactly the same problem - new flat, stud wall, 55" TV.

I bought one of these:

http://www.erard.com/en/tv-mounts/wall-mount-tv/do...

Sits flat to the wall and carries the cables to the telly. Made of steel and solid as a rock. You can get a smaller one if your TV is 52" or less.

Do you need to fix this to the wall or is it free standing? Also, I can't seem to see how/where I add it to cart and therefore can't see the price. How much was yours?

Edited by Chunk49 on Friday 25th April 11:09

[Chunk49]

By way of update: I went with the hollow plugs and tv mounting bracket recommended and it worked a treat. Looks great - thank you very much for your help.

I need your help again though as I now turn to mounting a great big mirror on the opposite plasterboard wall. However, having drilled one of the holes, there is a cavity only approx 4cm deep (I haven't measured it exactly) before I hit what I think is steel work (I am in a block of flats and that wall separates mine and next door). So what would you recommend that would hold a great big mirror safely in a plastboard wall but with only a narrow cavity to work with? Am assuming the hollow plugs need more depth? Also, I think there is only two fixing points on this mirror too. It's from Ikea and is this one: http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/5003821...

Personally I think this slightly smaller one would be better but the Mrs prefers the biggest one http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/9012598...

EDITED to add: I've just noticed that the slightly smaller TV is almost half the weight of the bigger one! Also, I do have some plastboard raw plugs which have a weight rating of 20kg - 50kg on them and so in theory (if the cavity is deep enough which I'm not 100% it is) both mirrors would appear to come within this weight rating. However, I am concerned by the fact that there would only be 2 screws on which the mirror is hung and the fact it is hung rather than screwed in.

Thanks for your help!

Edited by Chunk49 on Wednesday 16th July 10:26

Edited by Chunk49 on Wednesday 16th July 10:28

[Chunk49]

Bump. Grateful for your thoughts all. Thanks for your help.

[Chunk49]

mgtony said:

What fixings come with the mirror? A mirror being very shallow, means the weight is straight down and less likely to pull out of the wall than say a shelf or bracket of the same weight.
If you can find something like these over here, use one top and bottom and fix them with toggle bolts or hollow wall anchors it will be fine. If you don't mind seeing the fixtures, fit mirror plates using those fixings as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Cabinet-Hanger-Picture-Mount...

Problem is I don't think I have the cavity depth to use toggle/wall anchors. But you make a very good point about a mirror being shallow. I have some normal raw plugs which are rated 20kg - 50kg which in theory is more than enough but surely that would depend on how many of them you use. In the mirror there are only two holes for hanging on a screw - top left and top right. So do you think two of these 20kg - 50kg rated normal raw plugs is enough?

[Chunk49]

mgtony said:

Having seen the size of it, I'm not surprised most pictures show it leaning against the wall and not hung. I wouldn't risk that on two screws held just by plugs in plasterboard.
Not sure what else to suggest without having some studwork or brickwork to screw to. Spreading the weight by having four or six fixing points might be okay but cant think of any easy fixings to use.

Thanks for your honest appraisal. I think I will need to go for the slightly smaller one which weighs 10.4kg instead of the 19.4kg beast! Hopefully then with two screws with raw plugs rated 20kg - 50kg that should be OK?

[Chunk49]

mgtony said:

The smaller one on screws will most likely be ok. The only thing you'll have to be careful of is making sure the plug and screw are in nice and tight without deforming the plasterboard around as it will be visible by the edge of the mirror.That is a problem with the screw heads fitting in the hole on the back edge of the frame. The holes in the wall have also got to be near spot on.
With that type of keyhole fixing points in the frame as a fixing, toggles wouldn't be any good anyway. You don't need much room behind for hollow wall anchors, just making sure you set them to their maximum spread.
As a back up, you could also screw a batten to the wall to sit under the top rail of the frame at the back to take some of the weight. Get in on its regular fixing, mark a line across the top and then measure down the thickness of the frame, this is presuming the mirror glass is set in and there is room for a batten.

Thanks a lot for taking the time to advise. Much appreciated.

Ok so metal anchors better / stronger than plastic ones I assume? Do I get ones like these (but in the right length in order to fit in the cavity space):

http://www.screwfix.com/p/rawlplug-interset-m4-x-4...

or one like this?

http://www.screwfix.com/p/hollow-wall-anchor-5-x-4...


Batten is a very good idea :-) I will check to see if doable.

I will likely be back for advice!

Edited by Chunk49 on Monday 21st July 11:57