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! 

[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.