Mounting your TV on a wall takes up less space in your floor plan, allows for better viewing angles and can help make your entertaining space look clean and tidy with proper cable management. We’ll show you how to mount your TV and hide the cords in a few simple steps.
There are 8 steps to completing this project:
Depending on where your TV will go, you’ll want to choose either a standard TV wall mount bracket or a swivel mount. If your couch or sitting area directly faces the TV, a standard mount should be fine. If your TV needs to be angled for a better view, a swivel mount is the mount of choice. It also allows your TV to be put back flush with the wall so it’s out of the way when you’re not using it.
Your TV should be mounted in a place that makes it easy to look at for long periods at a time. If your TV is mounted too high, you’ll strain your neck staring at it while watching your favourite shows. Have two friends hold your TV for you and slowly raise it up while you stare at it. Find a comfortable spot and mount it at a height based on that.
Once you’ve got your location and your desired height, you’ll need to locate the studs behind your drywall. These are important as your mount will be the most sturdy when it’s anchored to studs rather than your drywall, which isn’t designed support the weight of a television. Use a stud finder and run it across the wall, marking where the studs are located. Use masking tape and write on top of it if you don’t want to write directly on your walls.
Once you’ve located the studs, you’ll need to mark your pilot holes. Using the TV mount and a level, line up the holes with the studs and mark where they intersect, keeping the mount level while you work. These will be the location of your pilot holes. Drilling pilot holes allows the screws to go into the wood without cracking or damaging it, ensuring a smooth installation process.
Once your pilot holes are drilled, it’s time to mount the base of your TV mount to the wall. Line it up with the pilot holes and secure it in place using the provided screws and washers. Make sure it’s sturdy once mounted.
Attach your mounting plate to the back of your TV. The holes in the mounting plate should line up with the holes on your TV. If your TV is really thin, you can use the long metal spacers provided to ensure that it will mount flush with the wall.
Attach the mounting plate to the wall mount and ensure that all screws are tight and secure. If your mount is flush to the wall, this means simply placing the TV onto the wall mount and securing the bottom screws in place. If it’s a swivel mount, check to make sure that once you’ve connected the mounting plate to the arm(s), it swivels to both sides and moves the way you’d like it to.
You can easily hide the cables from your TV by either running them behind the wall or by hiding them along the wall with a paintable cable cover.
If you’re running them behind the wall, create two holes – one behind your TV and one where your cable box or entertainment system will go. Use fish tape to feed the cables together behind your drywall from the top hole to the bottom. This will allow you to hook everything up with your cables neatly tucked behind the wall. If you prefer not to cut into the wall, you can hide the wires on the wall using a cable cover. These can be painted to match your wall for ultimate invisibility. View this guide and video if you would prefer to use this method.
