Placing a flat screen television above the fireplace makes the whole room look attractive and welcoming. However, you need to evaluate some important factors before deciding to place your new TV in that location. This starts with testing the heat to see if it would damage the TV set or its wiring. You can start the experiment by taping a thermostat to the wall directly above your fireplace. If the temperature reaches 90 degrees, you will need to choose another location to mount the new TV.

What Does the City Say?

Before you get your heart set on placing the flat screen above the fireplace, look into local building code to ensure that your municipality allows the placement of cables near a fireplace flue. If you get the go-ahead and have a stone or brick chimney, you will need to acquire customized anchors for the unit's mounting bracket. Tapping a raceway or conduit into the groove or grinding a channel into the grout will help to hold the wires in place.

Dealing with Unique Situations

You may run into an installation challenge if your fireplace is set into a broad wall that doesn't have a mantle. A good option in this case is to place the TV set in an off-center position and place pieces of art that have similar proportions near it for balance. If you have a fireplace but never use it, consider placing the flat screen television inside of it. This provides you with a good viewing angle and room for ventilation and wires.

Angling Your TV Just Right

It is ideal to have a limited range of viewing angles, but this isn't always possible if you don't have a mantle for your fireplace and it's set lower than normal. Installing a mounting bracket with a downward angle helps you overcome this challenge and provides you with the best possible angle for viewing.