Mount a Flat Screen TV on Drywall

If you have recently purchased a flat screen TV, you are probably ready to sit down with your family and watch a ball game or the latest romantic comedy. Although some people like to place their TV on a media stand, you may prefer to mount your TV on your wall for a more clean, modern home theater aesthetic. While your best bet is to follow the manufacturer's instructions (especially since many people get hurt with improperly mounted flat screen TVs falling off of walls), this article will provide an overview of the process along with some helpful tips.

Steps

Preliminary steps

  1. Check the package contents. Check contents against the packing list and carefully examine each of the hardware components for defects. Some brackets might be bent, holes not tapped, holes partially punched or some items might have other defects which you will notice by handling the pieces and comparing them against the packing list.
    • Realize that sometimes mounts come with incorrectly-size bolts. Be alert to this and be ready to change to a different piece of hardware if something seems to be slipping threads as you hand tighten it or is too long, too short, too thick, or too thin.
  2. Dry assemble everything before you ever mark your layout or drill a hole. Dry assemble the brackets to the TV and the attached brackets to the wall mounts, finger tightening everything. By going through the dry assembly process, you will be alerted to potential problems and can make needed adjustments to hardware and your visualized layout. The dry assembly process will also get you used to how things go together so you can plan properly.
  3. Visualize the space in the room. Think about the TV location that best fits your family's style and ongoing needs. Do not restrict your thinking to the current arrangement of the room. Rather, open your mind to considering different arrangements of furniture. Ask household members what they think about your plan and, together, decide on the preferred location for the TV.
  4. Consider the wiring and the peripherals. You will need to get power to the unit as well as the video signal(s). In addition to cable or satellite, you may want the capability to display images from your computer and other video devices such as a DVD, Wii, and DV-R. Also, you will have to consider the audio and visual out signals that you may want— now or in the future. Your household might really be thrilled if you were to install and hook up a surround sound system.
    • You can go in-wall with your wiring or can conceal it in somewhat attractive wall-mounted conduits.
    • Sketch everything out and have contingency plans in case you are not able to make things work exactly as planned. You will need cubbyholes, shelving, or cabinetry for the associated electronic devices and, probably, storage for your media. Do detailed planning before you proceed and make sure to get the spouse, kids, and roommates on board with all elements of the plan.
  5. Determine your wall construction. Although walls may look similar, they can actually be built from a variety of materials using differing construction methods. It is most likely that your home is of wood framed construction with wood studs in the walls on 16" centers. You will need to verify the construction in order to form a reasonable approach to mounting the flat screen TV. If your wall has studs, follow the section below for "Mounting with studs." If not, skip down a bit to learn how to hang your TV on a wall without studs.

Mounting with studs

  1. Find two studs in the location you have targeted. You can do this by using a stud finder. Some stud finders find the edge of the stud, others find the middle of the stud. It is important for you to know which type you have.
    • Additionally, it is important to know if your wall is built using metal or wooden studs. You can find this out by locating a stud and drilling a tiny hole through wall finish in a location that wouldn't be noticeable.
  2. Make sure the studs align properly. Using your stud finder, make sure that you have two available studs that are aligned properly in order to ensure a successful mount. Make sure that you have two that are close enough to each other to provide proper mounting points.
    • After you find the studs with your stud finder, double check them using a hammer and a small nail. This will also assure you that they are wood (not metal).
    • Mark the studs by drawing a line in light pencil on the wall, along the edges or center of each stud.
  3. Attach your brackets to the TV. Before making any holes in your wall, make sure that you can properly attach your brackets to your TV. Most TV mounting kits will come with a set of mounting hardware that you can use for this.
    • To begin, lay your TV glass-side down on a soft surface, such as a blanket or a pillow.
    • You should see three or four threaded holes on the back of your TV.
    • Once you find these holes, take your brackets and line them up on the holes, then bolt them so they are equally spaced.
    • Then you just secure the brackets using a Phillips-head screwdriver.
  4. Measure the wall space and determine where you want the TV to hang. Pick a visually appropriate location and, if you are centering the TV on a space, mark the calculated edge positions, then have someone hold the TV in place while you judge if the location needs to be adjusted. Take a measurement from where the bracket will touch the mount on the wall, to the bottom of the TV. This will help you determine the proper wall mount height (vertical location).
    • Make sure that the holes line up with the lines that mark the stud location.
  5. Drill into your studs to create the upper holes for the mounts. Next, based upon the measured location of your TV, drill a hole into your stud that will be used to attach the mount. Once you drill the first hole, use a level to make sure the next mount hole is horizontally aligned with the one you just made. Mark the next hole, then double check with the level, adjusting the mark if necessary.
    • Remember, unless you want your TV to hang crooked, use a level to ensure proper alignment.
  6. Mark and drill the lower mounting holes. Moving vertically, down from the two holes that you just drilled, determine where to drill the two lower mounting holes. These should be directly underneath the two upper ones, along a plumb line. Mark where you will drill the two holes, and double check with your level that these two holes are horizontally aligned. Drill the holes.
  7. Attach the mounts to the wall. Using the holes that you drilled, attach the mounts to the wall. The TV will hang from these, so verify that each mount is plumb and that none is crooked.
    • It will be clear if your screws are going into the stud properly. You will feel them "biting" into the stud, rather than just spinning loosely as when you have missed the stud. Eventually, the screws should tighten and stop turning. If not, try a different location. It is important that the mounts are secure because they will be supporting substantial weight.
  8. Install the TV on the mounts. There are usually hooks on top of the brackets attached to the back of your TV. Hang the TV on the wall mounts.
    • There are usually two screws that need to be tightened that will secure each bracket to a mount. Make sure these are installed and properly tightened.
  9. Double check your work.Make sure all the hardware is tightened and visually check the TV's alignment from afar. If you have installed the mounts properly, the TV should look completely level. If not, check the horizontal alignment with a level. If the level shows that the TV is indeed level, find out which horizontal line in the room is making the TV appear crooked. You may decide to rehang the TV, splitting the difference between what you see and what the level says. Remember that it does not really matter whether the TV is level or not.— It matters what your eye perceives.

Mounting without studs

  1. Attach your brackets to the TV. Before making any holes in your wall, make sure that you can properly attach your brackets to your TV. Most TV mounting kits will come with a set of mounting hardware that you can use for this stage.
    • To begin, lay your TV glass-side down on a soft surface, such as a blanket or a pillow.
    • You should see four threaded holes on the back of your TV.
    • Once you find the four holes, take your brackets and line them up on the bolt holes so they are equidistant from one another.
    • Then you just screw your brackets in using an appropriate screwdriver.
  2. Take measurements of the wall to determine where the TV will hang. Take a measurement from where the bracket will touch the mount on the wall, to the bottom of the TV. This will help you know where the TV will be located on the wall.
  3. Trace the holes in the mount. Hold your mount against the wall. Use a pencil to trace the holes of the mount. Then, remove mount from wall, leaving behind several pencil marks on wall that denote where the holes or grooves in the mount are.
  4. Drill {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} holes into your wall to create the upper holes for the snap toggles. Based upon the measured location of your TV, drill a {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} hole into your wall that will be used to attach the mount. Once you drill your first hole, use a level to make sure the next mount hole will be horizontally even with the one you just made. Mark the next hole after double checking with the level.
    • Remember, unless you want your TV to hang crooked, use a level to ensure proper alignment.
  5. Drill your lower mounting holes. Moving vertically, down from the two holes that you just drilled, determine where to drill the two lower mounting holes. These should be directly underneath the two upper ones, in a straight line. Mark where you will drill the two holes, and double check with your level that these two holes are horizontally aligned. Drill the holes.
  6. Insert your snap toggles. Your {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} holes will accommodate your snap toggles. To use them, first bend the top part of the metal portion so that it is flush with the plastic tail. Then, insert your snap toggles into the holes. Finally, manipulate the tail by pushing, until the metal part becomes horizontal.
    • Make sure to put all four of your snap toggles in.
  7. Push the sleeve down against the outside of the wall to tighten the toggle. In order to secure the snap toggle to the wall, slide the plastic sleeve down the plastic tail that is protruding from the wall. This will squeeze the surface of the wall in between the flat metal "T" head of the snap toggle, and the plastic tail, securing the toggle. Additionally, this pushed down piece of plastic will provide a hole for the bolt to go through.
    • Then, snap off the plastic ends of the toggle in order to create a flush surface with the wall.
    • In order to ensure that the toggles are installed properly, make sure the plastic mounts on the outside of the toggles are level. Keep them loose while you make sure that they are level, tightening them one at a time.
  8. Put the bolts through the snap toggles. Once the plastic portion is pushed down and tails have been snapped off, insert bolts into the snap toggles. The bolts will go through the center of the plastic portion of the snap toggle, and then will secure themselves in the metal "T" section of the toggle that is within the wall. Screw the bolt tight, forcing the metal "T" to tighten against the wall. This will secure the mounting bolts.
  9. Install the TV on the mounts. There are hooks on top of the brackets that you attached to the back of your TV. Hang the TV brackets onto the mounts that you installed in the wall.
  10. Double check your work. Make sure all the hardware is tightened and visually check the TV's alignment from afar. If you have installed the mounts properly, the TV should look completely level. If not, check the horizontal alignment with a level. If the level shows that the TV is indeed level, find out which horizontal line in the room is making the TV appear crooked. You may decide to rehang the TV, splitting the difference between what you see and what the level says. Remember that it does not really matter whether the TV is level or not.— It matters what your eye perceives.



Things You'll Need

  • Mounting hardware (should be included with the TV)
  • Drill
  • Screwdriver (generally a #2 Phillips will work)
  • Stud finder
  • {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} drill bit (if mounting without studs)
  • Level
  • Measuring tape
  • Hammer

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