"Most electronic devices simply operate best and most reliably at lower
temperatures. Beyond that, excessive heat can cause
temperature-sensitive materials to degrade quickly, and conductive
materials can even sprout little metal whiskers, causing shorts within
the TVs circuitry.

Televisions already generate plenty of heat on their own, but by
stifling the natural dissipation of heat with smoke, or introducing
higher-than-normal levels of heat from below and behind the TV, you are
significantly reducing your TV’s lifespan at best, and a dooming it to
sudden death at worst.

Read more: http://www.digitaltrends.com/home/please-dont-mount-your-tv-over-the-fireplace/#ixzz3syisA2t1

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If you use your fireplace a lot, I wouldnt do it.

Will just add that my sister has that set up in her home & I always get a bad crick in my neck trying to watch TV w/ them...

I also get a crick in my neck when having to look up. I think if you watch much tv or movies etc. You should be at eye level of the tv.

The only reason to put a TV over a fireplace is if it is the last resort, and there is just no other place to put it. Just my two cents, of course.

You are building a brand new home and can arrange it however you like

We put ours over the fireplace. There really isn't another place for it. (We don't have any problems watching it in this location.).

We don't use our fireplace but the guy who installed it owns a company doing basically this--hiding wires, etc. He said that the only time his customers have complained about the heat damaging a television is when there is no mantel. I guess the mantel diverts the worst of the heat. He pretty much made me promise that if we started using the fireplace we would install a mantel first.

Our tv is above our fireplace, and we do have a mantel. We've been using the gas fireplace quite a lot these past few days, and it does throw some heat - but I can't detect any up above the mantel where the tv and sound bar reside. We were cautioned that we'd get tired of looking up and it was suggested that we hang the tv on the wall next to the fireplace, but I wanted that wall space for a very large painting instead. I don't find that my neck suffers at all. When I'm seated, it's my eyes that are going upward slightly. I really don't hold my head any differently than I would if viewing the tv straight ahead. I also like being able to view the tv from the kitchen while standing to cook. (Our living and dining spaces are open to one another.)

Does anyone know where to find a good selection of flat screen TV wall cabinets? The wall hung cabinet houses the flat screen via an open back and has doors that fold back to reveal the TV. It's the perfect thing (like a piece of art) to hide the "big black hole" of a TV when it's not turned on for watching. The Houzz shop only has a couple styles -- mostly oriental in design. Looking for more choices...

I made sure that the house we bought did NOT have a fireplace, as they are a big waste of space, and chimneys are notorious for falling down in earthquakes and therefore cause home insurance to be more expensive. Fireplaces do not make sense in my neighborhood since even the coldest days are still in the 60s, with very rare exceptions in the coldest years. If I had a fireplace, I would take it out, but I did like having one in San Francisco, since it was always cold there.

I think the light from the fireplace would be distracting if the TV and fireplace are both on at the same time. I don't have a problem with the angle, as I like to recline somewhat when I am watching TV, and so having the TV a bit higher is better to me. I think I will mount my next TV on the wall, but I am waiting for 3D TV before I buy another one, and I'm not in a hurry for that.

This is what we're getting for our TV over the fireplace. Mantle Mount

I am not in the market currently but suspect within a year or two and a move, I might be entertaining this. cpartist- that mantle mount looks like a great solution. I didn't read it very thoroughly to see how involved it is, but it seems like a great idea. out of the way when not watching and at eye level when watching.

I'm another one for don't like it above the fireplace. It really bothers my neck, and causes headaches. DH is the same. I prefer it at eye level. Good luck on your remodel!

I have 3 TVs above fireplaces in my PA house that was a custom build. I put them there on purpose, not because it was a last resort but because I flanked my fireplaces with bookcases and I felt the TVs looked best above the televisions. I love fireplaces and would not ever have a house w/o one (I even insisted on a fireplace in my FL house)- and I like having the TV above them because we have fires every day when it is cold enough and we greatly enjoy watching both the movies and fire at the same time. It does not bother our necks. We bought tilt-down mounts but never bother w/ the tilt-down feature.

We are going on 3+ years of LOTS of fires and two of our 3 TVs (the ones above the gas fireplaces) are perfectly fine. The TV above the wood burning fireplace, however, stopped turning on this fall and had to be replaced. I don't necessarily think it was the fireplace because it was a cheap TV that never worked very well from the beginning. We've bought a better one and we'll see what happens with it this time- but I have put my hand in the area where it is multiple times after having a fire burn for 12+ hours and don't feel any heat.

Maybe people's comfort experience is related to their height &/or the condition of their spines...?

I'm another one who has my TV over my fireplace and it is fine. And I'm only a little over 5 feet tall with several herniated discs, so trust me it has nothing to do with height or spine condition. It has everything to do with basic ergonomics and putting a little thought/planning into it. You do need to be able to have your couch/chairs farther away, and you need to make sure the TV is installed as low as possible with the ability to tilt it slightly downward. No, this set-up won't work if your chairs are only 5 feet away and your TV is 10 feet up in the air. But my favorite chair is about 12 feet away and the bottom of the TV is about 5 feet off the ground, mounted with a slight downward angle. It's fine.