Ideally looking for someone who has done this before and can offer
pictures or advice...
Because of my living room layout, the best place for the TV is where the
fireplace is located. (I'm in S. Texas, and NEVER use the fireplace.)
It's a brick fireplace with a relatively cheap, builder-installed
mantle. The brick extends all the way up to the ceiling. There is a
fairly typical brick base in front of the fireplace about 10" tall. It
protrudes away from the face of the fireplace about 24".
The TV will be a new flat-screen type, so it won't be very deep.
I'm thinking of three options:
1) Remove the mantle and construct a small base cabinet (~18" tall) that
sits on top of the brick base. The TV would sit on top of the cabinet.
For this option, I would probably go with some type of stained finish.
Advantages: Low investment in time and materials. Disadvantage: I
have a feeling that it would look really bad.
2) Remove the mantle and construct a large cabinet to completely hide
the brick. It would be ~8' tall and extend all the way up to the
ceiling. The bottom of the large cabinet would wrap around the brick
base. Construction would be hardwood plywood, which could be stained or
possibly just painted white. I would do some shelves or something
(mantle?) above the TV, so there wasn't just a big blank space up there.
I could apply moldings, etc, to dress it up. It would not look like
a simple plywood box.
Advantages: Could look nice if done correctly. Disadvantages: Big time
investment in both time and material, could look crappy if not done properly
3) Kind of a hybrid between options one and two. Build a medium-sized
cabinet that wraps around (and hides) the brick base and fireplace. But
leave it short, so that the brick will be exposed behind the TV all the
way up to the ceiling. Advantages: medium investment . Disadvantages:
unsure of how it will look.
I'm a fairly accomplished woodworker, so any of these options are within
my skills. I really need some design input to give myself the best
chance for success on the first try!
I think option 1 will be ugly. Option 2 will be a big job. Option 3 has
potential to look good or look ugly.
At this point, I'm thinking of starting with Option 3, and then morphing
into Option 2 if needed to make it look nice.
Thanks, Stan
ps: I could post a picture of the fireplace on the binary newsgroup if
needed.
Hi Stan,
I have seen (tried to enjoy) plasmas above
a fireplace. I think that it is the LAST place
to put a HD TV. Imagine your head cocked at that
angle for a typical film (2 hrs or so). It's
like sitting in the front row when you were a kid.
We know better now.
Living in the NE (USA), we enjoy a nice fire
to the right of a TV about 30 inches above the
floor in our FR. Someday, we'll get one of
those 62 inchers (DLP.)
I would put it a little left/right if possible.
(I have posted some pics of my project on ABPW.)
Lou
"No Spam" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Ideally looking for someone who has done this before and can offer
> pictures or advice...
>
> Because of my living room layout, the best place for the TV is where the
> fireplace is located. (I'm in S. Texas, and NEVER use the fireplace.)
> It's a brick fireplace with a relatively cheap, builder-installed mantle.
> The brick extends all the way up to the ceiling. There is a fairly
> typical brick base in front of the fireplace about 10" tall. It protrudes
> away from the face of the fireplace about 24".
>
> The TV will be a new flat-screen type, so it won't be very deep.
>
> I'm thinking of three options:
>
> 1) Remove the mantle and construct a small base cabinet (~18" tall) that
> sits on top of the brick base. The TV would sit on top of the cabinet.
> For this option, I would probably go with some type of stained finish.
> Advantages: Low investment in time and materials. Disadvantage: I have a
> feeling that it would look really bad.
>
> 2) Remove the mantle and construct a large cabinet to completely hide the
> brick. It would be ~8' tall and extend all the way up to the ceiling.
> The bottom of the large cabinet would wrap around the brick base.
> Construction would be hardwood plywood, which could be stained or possibly
> just painted white. I would do some shelves or something (mantle?) above
> the TV, so there wasn't just a big blank space up there. I could apply
> moldings, etc, to dress it up. It would not look like a simple plywood
> box.
> Advantages: Could look nice if done correctly. Disadvantages: Big time
> investment in both time and material, could look crappy if not done
> properly
>
> 3) Kind of a hybrid between options one and two. Build a medium-sized
> cabinet that wraps around (and hides) the brick base and fireplace. But
> leave it short, so that the brick will be exposed behind the TV all the
> way up to the ceiling. Advantages: medium investment . Disadvantages:
> unsure of how it will look.
>
> I'm a fairly accomplished woodworker, so any of these options are within
> my skills. I really need some design input to give myself the best chance
> for success on the first try!
>
> I think option 1 will be ugly. Option 2 will be a big job. Option 3 has
> potential to look good or look ugly.
>
> At this point, I'm thinking of starting with Option 3, and then morphing
> into Option 2 if needed to make it look nice.
>
> Thanks, Stan
>
> ps: I could post a picture of the fireplace on the binary newsgroup if
> needed.
if it's a plasma screen, why not just hang it on an appropriate bracket
that's attached with tapcons into the mortar?
No Spam <[email protected]> writes:
> Ideally looking for someone who has done this before and can offer
> pictures or advice...
If you want comments on Intelligent Design, you came to the right
place!
(Ba-rum-bum. Cymbal)
--
Sending unsolicited commercial e-mail to this account incurs a fee of
$500 per message, and acknowledges the legality of this contract.
My neighbor has a big, honking plasma screen hanging on the brick above his
fireplace. It looks great and is fine for viewing if you keep the furniture
moved back. Otherwise, you're straining your neck to look up.
Bob
"No Spam" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Ideally looking for someone who has done this before and can offer
> pictures or advice...
>
> Because of my living room layout, the best place for the TV is where the
> fireplace is located. (I'm in S. Texas, and NEVER use the fireplace.)
> It's a brick fireplace with a relatively cheap, builder-installed mantle.
> The brick extends all the way up to the ceiling. There is a fairly
> typical brick base in front of the fireplace about 10" tall. It protrudes
> away from the face of the fireplace about 24".
>
> The TV will be a new flat-screen type, so it won't be very deep.
>
> I'm thinking of three options:
>
> 1) Remove the mantle and construct a small base cabinet (~18" tall) that
> sits on top of the brick base. The TV would sit on top of the cabinet.
> For this option, I would probably go with some type of stained finish.
> Advantages: Low investment in time and materials. Disadvantage: I have a
> feeling that it would look really bad.
>
> 2) Remove the mantle and construct a large cabinet to completely hide the
> brick. It would be ~8' tall and extend all the way up to the ceiling.
> The bottom of the large cabinet would wrap around the brick base.
> Construction would be hardwood plywood, which could be stained or possibly
> just painted white. I would do some shelves or something (mantle?) above
> the TV, so there wasn't just a big blank space up there. I could apply
> moldings, etc, to dress it up. It would not look like a simple plywood
> box.
> Advantages: Could look nice if done correctly. Disadvantages: Big time
> investment in both time and material, could look crappy if not done
> properly
>
> 3) Kind of a hybrid between options one and two. Build a medium-sized
> cabinet that wraps around (and hides) the brick base and fireplace. But
> leave it short, so that the brick will be exposed behind the TV all the
> way up to the ceiling. Advantages: medium investment . Disadvantages:
> unsure of how it will look.
>
> I'm a fairly accomplished woodworker, so any of these options are within
> my skills. I really need some design input to give myself the best chance
> for success on the first try!
>
> I think option 1 will be ugly. Option 2 will be a big job. Option 3 has
> potential to look good or look ugly.
>
> At this point, I'm thinking of starting with Option 3, and then morphing
> into Option 2 if needed to make it look nice.
>
> Thanks, Stan
>
> ps: I could post a picture of the fireplace on the binary newsgroup if
> needed.
>
>
No Spam wrote:
> Ideally looking for someone who has done this before and can offer
> pictures or advice...
>
> Because of my living room layout, the best place for the TV is where the
> fireplace is located. (I'm in S. Texas, and NEVER use the fireplace.)
> It's a brick fireplace with a relatively cheap, builder-installed
> mantle. The brick extends all the way up to the ceiling. There is a
> fairly typical brick base in front of the fireplace about 10" tall. It
> protrudes away from the face of the fireplace about 24".
>
> The TV will be a new flat-screen type, so it won't be very deep.
>
> I'm thinking of three options:
>
> 1) Remove the mantle and construct a small base cabinet (~18" tall) that
> sits on top of the brick base. The TV would sit on top of the cabinet.
> For this option, I would probably go with some type of stained finish.
> Advantages: Low investment in time and materials. Disadvantage: I have
> a feeling that it would look really bad.
>
> 2) Remove the mantle and construct a large cabinet to completely hide
> the brick. It would be ~8' tall and extend all the way up to the
> ceiling. The bottom of the large cabinet would wrap around the brick
> base. Construction would be hardwood plywood, which could be stained or
> possibly just painted white. I would do some shelves or something
> (mantle?) above the TV, so there wasn't just a big blank space up there.
> I could apply moldings, etc, to dress it up. It would not look like a
> simple plywood box.
> Advantages: Could look nice if done correctly. Disadvantages: Big time
> investment in both time and material, could look crappy if not done
> properly
>
> 3) Kind of a hybrid between options one and two. Build a medium-sized
> cabinet that wraps around (and hides) the brick base and fireplace. But
> leave it short, so that the brick will be exposed behind the TV all the
> way up to the ceiling. Advantages: medium investment . Disadvantages:
> unsure of how it will look.
>
> I'm a fairly accomplished woodworker, so any of these options are within
> my skills. I really need some design input to give myself the best
> chance for success on the first try!
>
> I think option 1 will be ugly. Option 2 will be a big job. Option 3 has
> potential to look good or look ugly.
>
> At this point, I'm thinking of starting with Option 3, and then morphing
> into Option 2 if needed to make it look nice.
>
> Thanks, Stan
>
> ps: I could post a picture of the fireplace on the binary newsgroup if
> needed.
>
>
To a large degree, how you proceed depends upon the primary usage of the
room. I have seen TVs built into spaces above fireplaces. Should be easy
with a flat screen TV. Looks like storage space above the mantel. Most
of the time you don't even see the TV (and guests would not know its
location) until the doors are opened.