One of the layouts used the smaller part of my lounge, that had formerly been the dining area as a TV snug. This appealed to me, as most of the time, it is only me (or at most 2 people) watching TV – if I have people round, the TV is normally off.
I had two reservations – one was what if I did have a crowd of people who wanted to watch something, and secondly, whether that small space would be sufficient to use my Wii – in particular the WiiFit board.
Having checked out how to fix a LCD screen to the wall (this is new to me, as my existing TV is an old CRT), I now know that you can get mountings that swivel outwards from the wall. This means that I can have the TV flat against the wall for normal use, but I can angle it if I have guests, or to give me more room for the WiiFit.
As a result, I am pretty certain this is what I am going to be doing, eventually.
A word from the wise:
If you go with the swivelling stand, make sure that you *always* put it flat back against the wall after using it, and never extend it to the end of the play on the arm.
We had a customer very astonished when their HUGE LCD tv pulled the whole bracket off the wall and landed with a very loud and expensive crash on the floor. Turns out that the TV had been permanently pulled out at the extent of the arm at a weird angle and never stored back against the wall.
I can only suspect that they didn’t get their Physics GCSE (including gravity & leverage 101).
The brackets are fine for occasional angling – which is what I’m reading from your post – but I’d hate to see you lose a TV!
Eep! =8o{
A bracket that can be extended that far ought to have a mounting plate large enough and sturdy enough to prevent that happening. Or had they boobed and fitted the king-sized TV to a bracket meant for something smaller? (There’s a reason they have all those different sizes and ratings…)
Mounting plate stronger than the brick and plaster, unfortunately! Ripped the actual wall away, as I understand it. Suffice it to say, these brackets are meant for *occasional* use!
Ah! Hm. Yes… Possibly needs an extra step adding to the start of the instructions: “First, build a much stronger wall.” =:o}
Thanks for comments.
It would actually be inconvenient to have it swivelled when not in use that way, as it will partially block the door into the conservatory (or at least require that you walk around it). So occasional use, definitely.
Also, I am not planning to get a mega-TV; at the moment, I am still considering 28-32″. My only reason for going higher than this would be to go down the 3D route, where the smallest TVs are 40″, but I am not convinced that there will be enough opportunity to watch in 3D to justify it. I do not have (and am not planning to get) Sky, nor am I a sports fan, so the only use I would get out of a 3D model would be the odd film. Even so, the technology intrigues me, and it is getting cheaper all the time (until you add in the cost of the active glasses)