Couldn't agree more!

Why post this as a DESIGN DILEMMA?

Bev- Wait a minute while I go turn down the bass on the sound bar.... I think anyone that post their TV above fireplace dilemma we just need to refer them to your post here. Excellent. And by the way, great timing as hubby and I are having a disagreement about how far to put the sofa from the TV. For some reason (age??) he thinks you need to be right on top of it. And we are talking 75" screen! Thanks for posting this.

Because, I assume, there are so many questions re mounting TV's, height of media consoles, & so many pictures posted on here of inappropriately mounted flat screens.

Yes...a very common question/dilemma here!

Good information, Bev. Have book marked for quick referencing.

Every time I see this dilemma, I will add the link to your post.

Thank you Bev! Placing the screen at the proper height and distance will save countless people from neck and back problems.

I prefer it at eye level too. Unfortunately the way my tv room is set up, it must go above fireplace

Bev, a most excellent post and a hat tip to JudyG for the suggestion to bookmark it. From now on, I will refer everyone who hangs their TV from the ceiling to this discussion.

Fun ideas for repurposing the console:

Although many disagree, that is why I like corner fireplaces. It gives you a wall on which you can hang your TV so it is a reasonable height.

I had them remove a window when we built our house so I would have a place for the TV. Apparently, people don't think of these things??

I agree, HOWEVER, people have been "sold" on hanging them higher, and putting them over fireplaces and they to a person, say they like it that way. I always get push back on this and I have given up. I try to show them the way. I have given them the "specifications" as noted above, and they just don't care! Of course, it completely messes up design for mantels, but no, skinny stuff on the sides of TVs on mantels. What can I say? As my mother used to say "this too shall pass!"

For about 3 months I watched HGTV and a certain pair of brothers put the TV over the fireplace all the time:(

Invest in a chain of chiropractic clinics and carry cards for constant referral. You'll make a fortune. Stupid and popular trumps smart and factual.

bev, i thought you were suggesting they hang the old console tv as a solution! lol

Good idea to book mark. i will but i couple other things in there and i never remember them!

Beverley is right of course but I will speak for the high tv people. Often the living room is so small that there is no other place for a television if it did not go above the fireplace. Amusingly I have also been told it seems more like being in a theater. Then we have the monkey see, monkey do factor.

I'm not sophisticated enough to know what a sound box is but I hope it is not the vibrating surround noise that my cousin had installed. She also likened it to being in a theater. Unfortunately her room was considerably smaller than a theater. Not fun.

good post

This is a great post, but eye level simply isn't always achievable, although in new construction some thought should be given to it.

One great thing about this post that really struck me - the part about how some people would be watching on the floor. That's really ideal, isn't it?! Then you can have four people viewing straight on instead of two viewing straight on and everyone else at an angle.

I think one thing that mitigates the undesirability of a high, above the fireplace mount is that people are moving away from watching TV in groups. I think this issue will fade away in its own as people watch what they want, when they want, on their own devices.

I agree strongly with the information on this post and have bookmarked it. I would appreciate some advice on planning for our future build. Would an ideal layout consist of fireplace on one wall and tv on an adjacent wall? Thanks!

I think people should put the tv where they want, where it works for their family, and where they think it would look good.

Not a fan of a TV over a fireplace mainly because they are usually not at eye level when seated. It's like being at a movie theater and having to sit in the first row and being forced to look up to see the screen. Not comfortable. With some floor plans it might be the only option though. Thanks for the viewing distance chart. Have been trying to explain to spouse for years that there is such a thing as a room being too small for THAT size of a TV.

The time will come when the linear firebox will be built into homes to allow it to be a focal point ABOVE the tv, not below it. Hot air rises, nobody is using the hearth to heat the room. A honkin 85 inch tv can't hang over any "fire" at any great viewing height. The fire will be the "picture above the "picture"......." and this insane issue will be solved !! For the fifteen minutes it will take for technology to change it again.

Frankly......look at almost any family "watching" tv. together They're all on their phones texting. .....

"They're all on their phones texting."

So true!

TV as focal point? Nah, not buying it.

Jan, as usual, I am chuckling!! I turn my TV on after 8pm as my "treat" for the days end. I don't have it on during the day!! Frankly, I can't stand the noise. I like the windows open so I can hear mother nature in all her glory!! I do like to be able to see it from the kitchen while I am finishing up my wifely, motherly duties!!! HA!

rouxb, anything that is that large has to be considered a focal point.

I have a 60" next to my fireplace in the FR. My fireplace has a raised hearth and I like that I can see it from the kitchen. My TV is on 2 base cabinets with an oak top. Probably a bit too high, but the family room is a step down so from the kitchen it is the perfect height. Do they compete ? Yes, they probably do. Do I care? NO!!!

Spot on.

Mark, you can put them side by side.

Not everyone has a 60" TV and I believe there is a difference between a focal point that is designed as such and an appliance that we focus on only when it is being used. A black rectangle on a wall is not a design choice but a necessity (YMMV.) Personally, a TV will never be in competition with a fireplace as a design focal point. But that's just me.

Great post, Bev, and of course Jan once again hits the nail on the head.

When we designed our family room we placed the fireplace and TV on adjacent walls, and it works great! The problem is that typical builder homes do not plan for furniture placement. Thus the prevalence of all these design dilemmas on how to furnish open concept homes with badly proportioned rooms.

I prefer the TV lower and hidden, if possible. But we do have our TV over our fireplace because it's the best option for our floor plan and our needs. We don't watch it that much so we haven't had to see a chiropractor after 6 years in this position! In an ideal world, I would have better options but there were few options on the market in our desired location and new build was not possible. So, I took what I could get!

We have 3 walls in our family room, one with the fireplace, one lined with windows and the other directly across from the windows. I'm not going to block windows with a tv! And I don't want much of my seating facing away from the windows! So fireplace it is! We snuggle up on the couch and watch family movies or a football/soccer/basketball game as a family from time to time and it works out well. Not ideal but doable!

And I certainly would rather sacrifice tv location over my wall of windows, a million times over!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Would love even more windows, actually.

Kathi,

Side by side is how we have it arranged in our current home and it works quite well. I can see the television easily while standing at the kitchen sink. However, the television is off center so it is difficult for more than two people to have a good

viewing angle. I was thinking this could be avoided in our new build by placing fireplace and television on adjacent walls.

The ratio chart is very helpful. I learned the hard way--my neck hurt when I watched TV--and ended up returning a very expensive cabinet that was too high for my large-screen TV. I took a big hit in the restocking fee. Ended up having a cabinet custom-made, but the height is now perfect.

Mark, mine is off side also. I like it. I planned our family room that way. The builder had plans for a window on each side of the fireplace. I eliminated one so I would have 5' of wall for the TV. The TV is big enough, everybody in the kitchen, eating area and family room can see it. It is not so big (60") that when I sit 6' away it over whelms me. Maybe I can get a 70"?? LOL!!

I think one option is to place the TV opposite the fireplace on the same axis. Of course, it only works for rooms that can accommodate facing sofas or chairs facing a sofa. This layout worked because the chairs swiveled.

Thanks, Beverly. This layout allows me to have a full wall of windows. By the way, I am the same person who posted the picture (mark1993)

I know this is an old thread, but since some of you have bookmarked it and are referencing it in other posts, which is how I got here . . .

First, I completely agree - I hate the TV over fireplace look and the hang-em-high culture of TVs practically at the ceiling. BUT, the high-mounted TVs are there in connection with the puffy reclining chairs that allow the viewer to be almost horizontal. From that position, their eyes are aimed much higher than from a seating position.

No chiropractor needed. This isn't the position that people watch TV from.

One of my favourite houses that I have seen had a tv on the back of the kitchen island, behind slick doors that opened and recessed back into the cabinet. Opposite was a sofa flanked by two swivel chairs, comfy but not oversized. Dining room beside with a round table and a double sided fireplace. Living room behind shared the double sided fireplace and was comfy, not overly formal House of my dreams.

Your soap box served as the right platform for a valuable lesson. All comments are totally verified. And you are so right to point out that a lower TV has fewer reflection issues.
Well done.