Advice on hanging 46" LCD to DryWall

[Mr.trytofixitmyself]

Hello,

I want to hang a 46" LCD to my wall. Here's the thing though. The studs are poorly placed as far as where I want this t.v. I have the mounting bracket and have been told by several friends of mine that Butterfy Toggles or screws would hold it up.
I am having second thoughts about that because a personal horror scene in my head starts with me coming home and opening the door to find my wall torn up and my t.v. on the floor, and possibly broken.
My t.v. is approximately 75lbs. Would these butterfly things hold it o.k.
MY friends seem to have no problem whatsoever with their sets but I would like to sound advice if possible.

Thanks in advance.

[HayZee518]

in 1/2 inch sheetrock I wouldn't do it. 5/8" or 3/4" ok but not 1/2". 3/8" togglebolts would hold 300# on the wall. I got a 47 inch plasma and that thing is HEAVY! I thought about putting it on one of my walls, but I didn't do it.

[HayZee518]

how about a piece of plywood smaller than the size of the tv screwed to the studs and then mount the bracket to the plywood?

[pushkins]

The wall mount brackets that you should already have will span well over 24" on their mounting holes, if you cannot find even one stud in that distance I'd be a little more worried about the toggles pulling the whole sheet of drywall down.

Not a hope in hell I'd be mounting my plasma or LCD that size to just drywall.

[Mr.trytofixitmyself]

Thanks for all the replies. You guys are further assuring me that not hanging it onto the stud could be a nightmare in the making.
Here's the thing...I bought a stud finder and it indicated that there was one stud in particular near the middle of the wall but it was off center. When I tried drilling into it I noticed that the tip of the bit was dusty which indicated to me that I had hit concrete. What happened there? Was there a stud and I went through it? If so I did not notice it at all.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[HayZee518]

you didn't mention what wall its going onto. is it on a chimney wall above a mantle or a standard wall. a mantle wall may have the 2x4s mounted flat sode down so that the thickness plus sheetrock is 1 5/8" and the sheetrock. other walls are 2x4 or 2x6

[pushkins]

Or does your wall have "ferring strips" these can be as small as 1/2" thick.
Ferring strips are most commonly used in older construction of double layer brick (known as cavity brick) or block built homes. The ferring strip is simply a way to attach drywall to the wall.

[handyandy]

Or does your wall have "ferring strips" these can be as small as 1/2" thick.
Ferring strips are most commonly used in older construction of double layer brick (known as cavity brick) or block built homes. The ferring strip is simply a way to attach drywall to the wall.

Yes, which won't help in holding the weight of that tv, be careful!

[Mr.trytofixitmyself]

This wall in particular is facing out to the front yard meaning there's no other wall behind it. There's no fireplace at all. It is a seemingly sturdy wall yet not solid. I have discovered that there is concrete behind the dry wall itself (about 2" gap in between dry wall and concrete). After reading all these posts there's no way I'm hanging this up without securing it to the concrete. My question is what should I secure the tv with once I have drilled into the concrete? Remember that there is a gap so i am not sure if anchors would work.

Any help would be great.

P.S. I thought this was going to be an easy job until I saw the concrete. Securing it into the concrete I hear will be even better than a stud but I'm just not sure on how to go about it.

[HayZee518]

Video Bracket

I made up a drawing on how to fasten your bracket to your hollow wall. A product called RAWL PLUG(S) is made. Each tamp in consists of a machine screw threaded portion inside a lead slug. The inside part with the machine screw thread has a tapered bottom piece which expands the lead in the hole. You drill a pilot hole, insert the plug and use a supplied setting tool and a hammer to expand the lead sleeve in the hole. What you now have is a machine screw "nut" embedded in your wall that will accept bolts or threaded rod. Now measure and cut a piece of threaded rod a suitable length and screw it into the plug. Now cut a piece of 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch EMT conduit to act as a sleeve, slightly shorter than the finish wall surface and insert it into the hole over the threaded rod. Place a washer over the threaded rod and then the bracket with another flat washer and finally a nut. Now draw the whole thing tight and install your plasma screen.

[Mr.trytofixitmyself]

I saw the drawing attached. I like the idea a lot. I think this is how I'm going to do this. Now my last question would be, how deep should I go into the concrete for this to hold properly?

Thanks again for the drawing. (I think I felt light bulbs popping up in my head).

[HayZee518]

you shouldn't have to go far. the rawl plug or tamp-in's lead sheath is about 1 1/4 inch long. go at least that depth and add a little. this is for a 3/8" rawl plug for a 3/8" threaded rod -or- bolt.

[Mr.trytofixitmyself]

Finally put up my t.v.

I went with just two butterfly anchors and it's fine!


Just kidding. That bad boy is fastened with four heavy duty concrete bolts (the kind you need a socket wrench to tighten). I hung from the bracket and if it can hold a 225lb man then I'm sure it will hold a 75lb LCD. Anyway this is pretty damn solid right now and I'm happy with it.

Now for the cords inside the wall.

I have heard many people telling me that power cords don't belong inside walls. It's against code. Rather than breaking code I wanted to find out if there are alternatives to having to build another outlet.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks again for all your input on hanging my LCD it brought me a lot of insight.

[HayZee518]

you can get surface mount wiremold. it is a plastic channel that adheres to most wall surfaces. it has a box that mates to the raceway and has an extension box that mounts over an existing [plastic, metal] wallcase. the outlet you remove gets put right back in this [takeoff] box. electronic supply stores sell a tubular "loom" which is a closed spiral of plastic tubing thast you can bundle your coax and speaker wires

[loki791]

Attach it to the ceiling, not the wall, with a ceiling track perpendicular to the wall. Then you can pull the TV away from the wall and swivel it 90 degrees in either direction.