I have just had an offer accepted on a new flat and they had a flat screen tv above the fire place, but they said they haven't used the fire in the 4 years that they have lived there. I was just wondering how safe it would be for the tv as I think it looks really nice and is the ideal place in the living room? I assume not much heat would reach that point and the fire surround/mantel piece would deflect some heat, but would it deflect enough not to damage it?

IIRC overheating is one of the key killers of flatscreens and a huge number of people overheat them by cooking them over a fire. I suspect you wont melt the panel, but you may cook the electronics over time as they wont have a cool ambient to dissipate heat to while running. Also electrolytic capacitors dry out with heat. Not ideal, might get away with it, but will shorten life.

The fire won't be used that often, it would just be nice to use it every now and then.

Apparrently well according to The Sunday Times putting a flat screen above a fireplace is a faux-pas and a complete no-no? So it said?!

putting a flat screen above a fireplace is a faux-pas and a complete no-no
absolutely right.

Why is that then?

Looks lovely, but complete impractical IMO.

Get a nice crick in your neck from looking up at it; you can't run the fire; if you plug anything into your telly (console, laptop, camera, etc) then you either need a bunch of hidden cables and an adapter box somewhere or you end up with wires trailing down the wall in front of the fireplace.

also if you have your huge flatscreen that high up, you can't watch TV at the same time as playing your lottery scratchcards and eating Gregg's pasties. Angles all wrong.

Apparrently well according to The Sunday Times putting a flat screen above a fireplace is a faux-pas and a complete no-no? So it said?!

I rarely agree with anything that News Internaitonal has to say for itself, but this quite correct.

I can think of fewer things more naff.

I think I might move mine over the fireplace just for the naffness now. Frees up a load of space too and all the equipment can go in the fireplace with cables running up the chimney 🙂

Had mine on the wall approx 2 feet about the opening for a fairly large open fire, I use the fire about 2-3 times a week during the winter and have never had a problem (2+ years). TV is angled down slightly to make it a good viewing angle.

+1 for the cables, it was a pain channelling the wall out so if you do decide to do it try and future proof your cable requirements.

I agree – can look sleek in pics, but as with your working desk you want the screen to be level or slightly below your eyeline, not looking up at it.

Easy to rectify though – take the mount off and find a picture big enough to cover the holes.

poor viewing angle.
poor heat dissipation.
dust.

and do you really want a telly as the focal point of your living room?

and the heat from the fire may affect the safety of your cabling.

Personally I'd love my TV higher than my eyeline, because when I slouch on the sofa looking down at the TV really hurts my neck.

when I slouch on the sofa looking down at the TV really hurts my neck.

either your telly is on the floor or you are rubbish at slouching properly 😉

Probably the latter, it's on its own original stand!

Most "comfy" TV I have is in my bedroom, at ceiling height at the foot of my bed. *just* right 🙂

Ours is just above eye level, although there's no fireplace. Definitely the best place for it, better than in the corner. If we did have a fireplace I don't know where the telly'd go but I really wouldn't want it in the corner.

I hate, loath and detest the lcd/plasma above fireplace look. Even worse when it's one of those fires that looks like an lcd/plasma tv.

Add pebbles into the fire/plasma/lcd mix and I could kill the perp.

personally if that pile of shit the times says its a faux pas id do it anyway a paper for **** by ****

Put the screen above the fireplace? Do they have fireplaces in trailer homes? 🙂

When we bought our current place we ripped out the very over the top fire place and fire, on the basis that we didn't have on in the previous house and therefore rely on the radiators we didn't replace it and put the TV there instead.

Meant we could get the TV at the proper hieght i.e. similar to the height it would be on a proprietary stand and had a bit of a void for cabling.

Underestimated the use of HD cables though so am now waiting for the redecoration of the living room to add the additional cabling into the wall.

Our plasma panel is above the fireplace. Not sure where else would be sensible to put it as its part of a home cinema system which requires symetrically placed surround sound loudspeakers. Cables not an issue as they are buried in the wall. Placing it anywhere else in the room would require furniture to be moved any time we wanted to watch the telly. No problem with viewing angle either as none of us mind looking slightly upwards. Fire used infrequently but hasn't caused any problems over the 5 years the telly has been in that position.

The only time I've seen it look ok to have a tv above the fireplace was when they had actually removed the fireplace and put glass shelves with the dvd player etc… in it's place. All the wires were hidden and it was backlit with blue leds. Sounds naff but looked really good.

I was thinking of it for the same reason as uponthedowns, the room layout, surround sound and general hifi set up would require it to be in that area really.

My fireplace comes up to eye level when I'm stood up. If I put a plasma above it and then sat down, I'd have to get a vertebra removed to watch it 😀

As the Art Director of IdealHome magazine.W.R.O.N.G

MM

Could you elaborate on that MountainMutant, as you are someone who has a trained eye?

This is the layout they have at the moment http://www.smartpropertyonline.co.uk/resize/995765/2/490

Would the Art Director of IdealHome magazine use such a passé term as 'W.R.O.N.G'?

Remember its size must also be way too big for your room 😉 I have our lcd on a nice glass stand and it's the perfect height. One of my mates has a stupidly sized plasma on the wall and it a)looks crap and tacky b)hurts your neck watching it. Don't do it get a nice stand.

He would when he's on Shonkytrack…

It's just personal taste really. If that is the actual room then the focal point is your nice fire. A nice piece of art or mirror would look better in my view than a great big TV screen.

I would have suggested the bay but looks like a dining area is there.

I agree with others. The screen is too high to watch properly that high up.

Anyway..I'm a magazine designer, not a stylist and it's only screen envy anyway 😉 I only have a tiddly 36"er!

MM

Naff, naff,naff the tv should inhabit the domestic setting rather like the Parrot cage, when not in use, covered by the Union jack! Ugly looking critters[not parrots].

What do you mean "when not in use"?

Alien concept in this house 🙄

Mines above the fireplace on a tilty mount no problems at all.

Mines above the fireplace on a tilty mount no problems at all.

For some reason I read that as a "titty mount" and I got some very strange images in my head. 😀

Never heard any noise from the next door neighbours for 3 years, then they sold up and someone moved in and hung a **** off great big flat screen on the adjoining chimney breast.

Noisy as hell now