FIREPLACE & TV ON THE SAME WALL ??

[Karen Margrave]

Have any of you installed a gas fireplace and had a tv on the same wall above it? I see it done on Houzz, and in magazines all the time, however; how practical is it? Is the TV too high?  Is there too much heat off the fireplace for the TV? (I understand we have to take extra precautions etc. insulating for wiring, etc.) 

It's just for looks, we are in southern California after all!  I'm thinking of one of the linear fireplaces since we're building modern style. Your opinions and experiences are appreciated.

@J Scott @Will Barnard @John Blackman@Jon Klaus @Lynn Currie 

Others, please chime in with your thoughts and suggestions! 

[Jonathan Wilks]

@karen

I have done this many times in doing renovations and helping friends, and have never had an issue.  

The heat it usually not a issue, because of the distance between fire place and the television especially if a mantle is built for the fire place. 

The only issue we have ever had is having enough bracing for the weight of the television. 

We also make sure to recommend a forward tilt and pull out tv holder, it makes the height view to be adjusted. 

[Karen Margrave]

@Jonathan Wilks That's what I thought too, but then talked to a salesman of fireplaces and he narrowed down the brand to one that would work. What brand do you use? 

Thank you for your response. I meant to @mention you! and @Kenneth Bell too! 

[Jonathan Wilks]

In doing renovations it was usually what already existed, so i can't really respond to what brand.  

We would run 2 in. conduit behind the wall to protect the wires, and in to make it easy if a hdmi cable went bad. 

[Jon Holdman]

I have exactly this setup in my house.  It works OK for us, but its not perfect.   Mostly its just the two of us and we don't watch all that much TV.  We have two identical couches and a coffee table.  The coffee table is right in front of the fireplace and the couches are on either side.   So mostly we lay on the couches with our heads away from the TV.  We're looking up, but it works OK.  We do have the TV tilted slightly downward.

The problem is when other people are over and we're watching TV with a larger group.   If you sit properly on the couches, the TV is off to the side.  So, not comfortable if a bunch of people are sitting on the couch and watching TV.  But that's a rare occurrence in our house.

Our fireplace is wood burning, and it doesn't get much use.  But haven't noticed any heat problems on the rare occasions when we do have a fire.  Most of the heat goes straight up the chimney.

[Karen Margrave]

@Jon Holdman Thanks Jon. But, come on, you have to watch the Broncos! 

[Landon Elscott]

What's odd is this is so common, and I actually like it, but when I took architectural classes it was always considered  aesthetic no, no.  The architectural instructor said it was too many focal points on the same wall.  Whatever...

[Kenneth Bell]

@Karen Margrave 

Actually we are doing it in my project that I just crowdfunded. We are usuing a gas burner with glass media and adding electrical and extra support above for flat screen TV. I will get you the brand name.

[Nicole A.]

My dad has a gas fireplace with TV mounted above. Seems to work fine and I enjoy hanging out with him there.

At my own home, we have a wood-burning insert which heats the entire house wonderfully. I think a TV above it would still be okay too because the heat is blown outward rather than straight up.

[Shane Woods]

Hey @Karen Margrave , in my past life as an A/V guy, I hung a 60" LED/LCD on my boss's wall a little above the fireplace...this one had a mantle & we were about 6" over it.  This was for the  owner of the AV company I worked for.  His fireplace was gas.  The way his was designed, threre was a large rectangular "hot space" that went from the attic floor to the foundation, with a round metal "chimney" in the center, going up to the roof.  Most of the heat stayed near the metal shielding going up.  Plenty of "box" space full of nothing but air to run the cables down to the TV from the attic.  We secured the cables in the front corner of the "box" so that they would hang down next to the "wall" side of the empty "hot space".  Also secured the cables on the outside of the wall behind the TV, so they stay tight inside the "hot space", next to the wall and not moving closer to the metal shield going up.

In his house, it worked well.  He had vaulted ceilings and the couch was about 10-15' from the fireplace.  Any closer and the TV wouldn't have worked there.  Neck-stretch would have been an issue.  I'll see if I can find a picture.

[Nick Coonis]

@Karen Margrave  Hello Karen, I have this setup in my home and it works great! My living room is long, about 20', and we used to have the TV on one wall and the fireplace was always behind our backs. Now we mounted it above the TV and on those cold winter nights, you know the two or three we get in So-Cal, we can watch TV and enjoy a fire at the same time. We've never had any issue with the heat, and we have a gas/wood fireplace. Most of the heat goes straight up. I could see how the TV being too high would be an issue if you had a small living room, but ours is far enough away from the couch to where you're not looking up at it. 

I mounted mine through the stone tile that is on the wall above the fireplace, and into the framing with a heavy duty mount and I've never been worried about it structurally. I also ran my cables through a sleeve I found at home depot, mainly because it looks nicer than having a bunch of separate cords hanging down.

[John Blackman]

<personal opinion>I hate fireplaces.  They are relics of an inefficient heating system and take up a ton of space.  I never put TVs and fireplaces on the same wall because I never install fireplaces.</personal opinion>

That being said, people love fireplaces.  They are romantic and make a room feel like a ski lodge.  For cold areas I could see doing more of them purely for aesthetic reasons.  Most of a fireplace's heat is lost through the chimney so they aren't efficient at heating.

I wouldn't put a TV and fireplace on the same wall if I could avoid it.  I think it does make that wall too busy, but lots of people like it, so it's all going to come down to the buyer.

We do primarily urban infill in Texas where most of the year it is HOT.  So fireplaces have less utility here.

[Account Closed]

@Karen Margrave  just saw this recently on a house I toured.  

[Karen Margrave]

Thanks everyone for all the feedback. I personally would rather not have the TV above the fireplace, but there's really no better way to set up the room. Though, I think it should be covered by one of the automated covers that is a painting or ? 

Here in southern California we don't have winters, so it's not a feature that is functional, but for looks only. 

[Lynn Currie]

I would always put another logical place for the TV. That way, if someone wants to put a TV over the fireplace, they can. If not, they don't have to.

Personally, I don't like TVs over fireplaces. It's too high.

[Robert Chuang]

@Karen Margrave 

We have the same set up in our Patio/Gazebo. The height of the TV does not seem to bother my parents (Outdoor couch 6-9 ft away), since they are out there all the time haha

[Mark Del Grosso]

This has been a Hot debate in my house (pun intended). My wife wants the TV above the fireplaces. Our home is a 1937 Spanish Villa style with a brick open fireplace that we use a lot (it's been know to get cold here). Because the wall is stucco covered brick running the wires would be interesting and the heat always scared me. The TV is on the opposite wall for now but if I know my wife some day I will be moving it.

I've always wondered what the TV manufacturers recommend.

[Kenneth Bell]

@Karen Margrave 

We are using Boulevard Linear models for the ones I am currently doing

[Karen Margrave]

@Kenneth Bell Thank you, I'll check that out. Are you using the direct vent or vent free? 

I was looking at the Napolean, then they said to look at the Rhapsody model, as it works better with a tv over it. I will be checking on that though, from what I see, it's really not that big a deal. Could be salesperson gets better commission off one over the other. 

[Account Closed]

@Karen Margrave 

How about saving space and putting the T.V. in the fireplace?

[Account Closed]

@Karen Margrave 

Personally, I think that you're combining two functions in one space, which will consciously or unconsciously confuse people.   It would be preferential to have separate spaces for TV watching and the fireplace.  Maybe it will force you to get rid of the TV all together, which wouldn't be a bad thing, which is what I did several years ago.

[Account Closed]

@Karen Margrave 

Is it possible to recess the TV into the wall above the fireplace and have it covered when not in use?  This way it would be more clean and fung shui.  I would think that MOST reputable interior designers would advise you against having both on the same wall.

[Karen Margrave]

@Account Closed My thoughts would be something like this Art that hides TV In the house there's just the one living area downstairs, then a loft area upstairs. 

[Account Closed]

@Karen Margrave 

Another alternative is setting up the TV and having it lower down from the ceiling.  If you don't have the ceiling clearance, a projector with screen might be a better fit (minimum ceiling clearance required).  Have it placed in the ceiling in front of fireplace.  Click a button and the projector screen will drop.  I don't watch TV, but enjoy movies, so this is a project I'm planning to work on for one of my vacation homes.

[Curtis N.]

I actually mounted my tv in our new house above a wood burning stove which cranks out the heat. And I have no worries about the heat bothering the TV. I ran some tests before doing it and the temperature only got into the 80's directly above the stove. This is because what I was hoping is actually true. When the heat comes off the stove or fireplace, it naturally gets pulled up to the ceiling and out - away from the wall. So don't worry about the heat, especially on a gas fireplace that most likely will have a blower.

The only bad part is that it is usually not in the ideal viewing position. We were in a similar situation to you however, where we didn't have a choice. That was the only place that made sense. Unless you completely removed the stove and chimney.

[Jon Holdman]

At the risk of exposing my messiness, here's my arrangement:

I like @Account Closed idea of motorizing it, though I would have to have it pull it flat against the ceiling when not in use.  We have a hip roof and this is an exterior wall, so there's no clearance above it.  That would allow a larger TV, too.  This one was specifically chosen to fit right in this space.

It is higher than ideal, but there's just no other location for it.  When its just the two of us laying on the couches its OK.  Often my wife sits in the chair and spins when she watches TV.

That's @Brandon Turner's book there on the table :-).