Sanus Wall Mount

Finding space for a large screen LCD (liquid crystal display) television can be cumbersome and time consuming, resulting in many consumers buying wall mountings. A wall mount bracket allows for the television to be placed flat against the wall, usually about 4-5 feet off the ground, thus eliminating the need for a television stand and creating a less cluttered, more open look. With mounting brackets costing upwards of hundreds of dollars, however, it may be more cost-effective to make your own.

What You Will Need

First, make sure you have all the proper tools and materials. This project requires a drill, drill bits, a stud finder, a level and a hacksaw that can cut through metal brackets. You can use other saws, but they must be able to cut metal, and then cut a notch out of the same metal. After ensuring that you have the proper tools, start buying and sorting the materials: one roll of marine and automotive weather-strip tape, one ClosetMaid 40-Inch ShelfTrack Horizontal Hang Track, and one ClosetMaid 60-Inch Vertical ShelfTrack Standard. (See "Resources" for examples.) To ensure that the mounts stay fastened to the wall properly, have four large screws available (ones that will fit into the screw mount holes on the back of the television--most televisions have slightly different sized holes for this purpose, so use accordingly), as well as two grabber screws to mount into the studs of your wall. The size of the grabber screws will depend on the weight of your television.

Cut the Brackets

The first thing you will want to do for this project is to measure the dimensions of your television. While a television advertises a 32-inch or 50-inch screen, that doesn't mean that's how wide it is. The measurements are actually from corner to diagonal corner, making the actual width of your television slightly smaller. So, measure and note the correct dimensions of your TV before you buy any brackets. If you have a much smaller television, you may not need a 40-inch horizontal hang track; a 20 inch one may do. I say this because the first step of this project is to cut the horizontal wall bracket a few inches shorter than the width of your television. (So try to find an original bracket length that is only slightly longer than your television if possible.) Use a hacksaw, or whatever type of saw you wish to use for this project, to complete this step. You will want to cut it shorter than the television so that the bracket doesn't extend beyond the TV, thus presenting a cleaner, more professional look to your finished design. Follow this by cutting the vertical bracket. Measure down about 13 inches from the notched end of the bracket and cut the metal at that point. (The 13 inches figure is an estimated height of your television.) On the back of your TV, there will be wall mounting screw holes; measure them beforehand and cut your bracket from 3 inches below the bottom screw, to about 3 inches above the top screw. This is usually 13 inches. Use the remaining length of vertical brackets to cut another 13 inch piece to match the first one. Be sure to notch the top as well, exactly like the original piece.

Assembly

Place both vertical brackets against the screw mount holes on the back of the TV so they are aligned evenly at the top (so the notches are level with one another), and mark a point on the back of the bracket where you will drill a small hole for the mounting screws to fit through. Place a strip of weather stripping onto the side of the vertical brackets that will be touching the television. This will prevent the TV from becoming scratched, and acts as an absorbing agent. You will also be able to adjust the TV's position slightly with this on, whereas without it, there would be no adjustments. Place another strip of weatherstripping to the back of the horizontal wall mount bracket.

Using a stud-finder, find the first stud that you will connect the horizontal bracket to on your wall. Once it's been found, screw a hole in the wall that will allow for the grabber screws. Using a level and stud-finder, find the stud next to it (usually it is about 16 inches from the first stud), and drill another hole. Drill holes into the horizontal metal bracket at those same positions too. Once all holes are drilled, line up the bracket with the holes in the wall and screw your two heavy duty grabber screws in, connecting the bracket and the wall.

Drill the holes through the metal and the weather stripping on the previously marked vertical brackets. Make sure that the holes are just slightly larger than the body of the screws. Screw the vertical brackets onto the television, with the notches pointing up and the weather stripping touching the television. Finish by lifting the television up, sliding the tops of the vertical brackets under the topmost lip of the horizontal mount, and then sliding the notches into the bottom lip. This will allow your television to hang, almost flat against the wall, for a very low price.