Break out of the armoire: Trends and tips for displaying your TV
With the advent of wireless connectivity, the television is no longer relegated to the family room. Families today are enjoying their favorite sitcoms in the kitchen and catching the early morning news in their bathrooms. Here are a few suggestions to harmoniously work the TV into your living space—without cramping your style.
- Even if you have a wireless service, you’ll need to establish a place in your home to connect the network box. Consider a kitchen cabinet, entertainment center or buffet. Have an electrician run wires through the wall and feed out to componentry for a clean, no-wires display.
- Above the Mantle. The blank space above the mantle is a popular choice for mounting a TV. But be aware: The TV bracket must be anchored to a stud or other load-bearing platform—or the weight of TV could cause it to pull away and fall off of the wall. Consider cutting out a section of the wall above the mantle and shoring up the space with 2x4s to create a solid foundation for the mounting bracket. And always err on the side of safety: Consult building code requirements in your area. Many building departments require a minimum distance between the TV and point of combustion.
- Behind the Bar. If you have an entertainment area in your home—in a finished basement or living room—where you’d like to be able to view the TV from multiple vantage points, put the TV on a movable bracket. The convenient, swing-arm movement of these brackets makes it easy to position the TV to accommodate a crowd.
- Well Positioned in the Kitchen. Think about where you stand when you cook in the kitchen. If you like to watch Food Network while you’re prepping dinner, then having the TV behind you is not a good idea. Consider your sight line, as well as that of guests from the island, or your family from the table—and then select the ideal spot. You may also consider enclosing the TV in a custom cabinet to keep it protected and out of the way of the main traffic areas within your kitchen.
- Mirror, Mirror. The latest trend in TV mounts is the inconspicuous mirror TV—the new technology is available now from a number of manufacturers: It combines an ultra-thin LED ingeniously crafted into a mirror. Some of these decorative mirror TVs are suited for hanging in the family room, while other vanity mirror models are designed for the bathroom – complete with a waterproof remote.
There are no longer steadfast design rules about where you display your TV in your home. And because today’s TVs are lightweight with ultra-thin profiles, the possibilities for mounting and enjoying big-screen entertainment are seemingly endless.
