Easy LCD wall mount and plasma screen mount directions

These LCD wall mount and plasma screen mount instructions will help you with your LCD monitor wall mount or plasma TV wall mount. They are easy to follow and basically common sense. The first thing you need to decide is where you want the plasma TV wall mount (or LCD monitor wall mount) and where the STB’s (set top boxes) are going to be located.

Mine are right underneath my plasma TV so I’ll relate my experiences as they pertain to that. Be aware, an LCD wall mount (or plasma screen mount) on an exterior wall (i.e. one with insulation in it) will be more difficult than an interior wall if you plan on running the wires inside the wall space.

Once you choose the wall for your LCD wall mount you then need to find the studs for the lag screws (I used 3/8x2½” to account for the thickness of the drywall and the TV wall mount so I could still get a good “bite” into the stud).

I highly recommend that you find the studs in the wall first as not every LCD wall mount (or plasma screen mount) will be setup to account for offsets from the center of the wall. There are mounts available that you can adapt so that the unit will still be centered even if the studs do not line up that way.

Once you find the studs, I would then recommend that you cut out a template from a piece of cardboard the size of the panel that you are getting to be able to get the proper height of the display. For example, we have a peerless flat wall mount, the holes for the screws that go into the plasma are 6 ½” from the bottom of the display.

I wanted the bottom of the display to be at ~ 40” for the center of the unit to be eye-level. Just take 40” and add 6 ½” to it and you’re pretty close to the height that the mount has to be placed on the wall for the PDP to be at the level you prefer.

Make four holes in the cardboard template to make marks on the wall where the lag screws will go for the mount ensure that these holes line up with the mount. Place the cardboard template at the height you want (make sure it’s level) and mark the holes on the wall over the studs.

Now you need to decide if the wires are going inside the wall or on the outside. If on the outside, there are wire/cable management raceways available that will attach to the wall with a cover that snaps into place. If the wires (NOT POWER) are going to be run on the inside of the wall you will then need a drywall saw/utility knife to be able to cut holes in the sheet rock.

Every LCD wall mount I have seen will have punch-outs in the sheet metal for the owner to run the cables. Line up your mount with the screws and trace the opening that you have decided on for the cables then using the level make another hole at the bottom of the wall.

To pretty up the holes you can use two low voltage in-wall cabling boxes and Levitron modular plates. They make inserts for these wall plates for composite, RCA, telephone, etc. They look very professional.

NOTE: You should not run the power cord inside a wall cavity as it is against NEC (National Electric Code) and can be a potentially dangerous situation, not to mention that you will probably void your homeowners insurance if something were to happen.

People have gotten around doing this by either having installed/installing a “clock outlet” behind the plasma mount and getting a shorter power cord or running a wire conduit on the outside of the wall and putting the power cord through that to the wall plate. Mine is run down the outside of the wall in a raceway with the video cables on the inside of the wall.

Get ready to mount the mount, sorry about that one, by pre-drilling the four holes for the lag screws (if using 3/8” dia screws use a ¼” drill bit for the pre-drilling).  Make sure you go deep enough but not too deep as you don’t want a hole all the way through the stud. Put the mount up and hold in place by using a lag screw in opposite corners.

Don’t tighten at this point as it’ll be easier to line up the other holes. Once all the lag screws have been turned in a tad, tighten ‘em down. Screw the mounting bolts that came with the LCD wall mount or plasma screen mount)into the LCD TV ( or plasma TV), take off the handles and have someone assist you into lifting it onto the mount. It should drop down a tad to lock the mounting bolts into slots on the mount. Hookup the cables/power and finish everything off (hook-ups to STB's installing wall plates, etc.)
 

That’s about all there is to it. It really isn’t that difficult. Probably the most difficult part is making sure the LCD wall mount is level and at the correct height.