Everything You Need to Know About Mounting a TV Above the Fireplace

Picture a spacious yet cozy living room, with comfortable couches, a coffee table, a toasty fireplace, and above it, as a finishing touch, the family flat-screen TV. For many households, coming together at the end of the day looks like hunkering down on the couch to watch a beloved show or movie.

You may have an abundance of space in the living room and be able to display your TV on a console as part of an entertainment center or in a TV cabinet; but if space is a challenge — or your couch fits perfectly in front of your fireplace — mounting the TV over the mantel may be your best option. 

This, of course, brings up the question of how to go about mounting a television above a fireplace. 

Fireplaces can present some unique challenges when it comes to mounting your TV. For instance, mounting your TV into the fireplace may require you to drill into brick. Or you may be dealing with an uneven surface like stone. On the other hand, you may not know what type of material the wall is (Is it drywall? Is it plaster?) above your fireplace is made of.

Whatever the challenge may be, we’ve compiled a complete guide filled with our recommendations for safely mounting your TV over your mantel.

SELECTING THE RIGHT TV MOUNT FOR THE JOB

The first step when mounting a TV above a fireplace is to choose a mount suited for over the mantel. Consider: the spot above your fireplace may position your tv too high for comfortable viewing. 

This, in combination with a couch that sits just a little too close to the hearth, can create an uncomfortable TV-viewing experience — potentially even neck or back pain.

MantelMount pull-down TV mounts are designed specifically for above-the-fireplace TV-viewing. Why? Because every MantelMount TV mount is built with counterbalance technology that gently guides your screen safely over your mantel and into a comfortable viewing position at the optimum eye-level.

Ranging from our MM340 Standard and MM540 Enhanced to the MM700 Premier, each MantelMount is designed with patented gas pistons and lightweight alloys that make adjusting and positioning your TV seamless and enjoyable.

Our latest TV mount, the MM815 Motorized Drop Down and Swivel TV Mount, is the most effective at allowing anyone — from child to adult — to enjoy their favorite show or movie, with the TV positioned at the best viewing angle for that person, all with the press of a button.

MM815 Consumer Video D2C 03-10-23 from MantelMount on Vimeo.

Using a MantelMount TV mount is one of the best ways to mount a TV over a fireplace because it’s precisely built for the space above your fireplace. There is flexibility with a TV mounted above a fireplace as it can be left in the stowed position when not watching, while also being able to adjust the height and angle when it’s TV-watching time.

No more neck strain or eye strain. No more screen glare. The perfect TV picture color and clarity.

What’s more, the MM540 Enhanced, the MM700 Premier, and the MM815 Motorized TV mounts are all designed with heat-sensing handles that turn red if the temperature above your fireplace exceeds a safe temperature, making you aware that you need to turn off the fireplace and/or raise your television to the stowed position. The temperature sensor is a visible alert to keep your TV’s delicate hardware safe from overheating with your subsequent actions to your fireplace or TV.

Regardless of whether you have a gas fireplace or a wood-burning fireplace, your family can feel safe and secure in the knowledge that installing a TV over a fireplace with a MantelMount TV mount will likely see through the lifespan of the TV, even with the fireplace heat below it.

See what we mean about being built for the space above your fireplace?

HOW TO MOUNT A TV ABOVE A FIREPLACE IF THE WALL IS MADE OF STONE OR BRICK

When it comes to fireplaces, both stone fireplaces and brick fireplaces are commonplace in homes. Despite the fact that stone and brick can be tough materials to work with when mounting a TV above the fireplace, that doesn’t mean that you can’t mount a TV over your fireplace.

If you’re asking yourself how to mount a TV above your fireplace and the wall is made of brick, we have this handy guide to make sure you don’t fear mounting a TV over your brick fireplace.

On the other hand, if you are dealing with a stone wall and want to mount your TV, use our guide to get started.

In any case, here are some of the tools you’ll need to get started:

• Painter’s tape
• Tape measure
• A level
• Concrete anchors and lag bolts — these items come in every MantelMount box
• Concrete screws and washers
• Drill with a hammer drill function
• Concrete drill bit
• Socket adapter, ratchet, or rubber mallet

Our original accessories can also be added to achieve the correct look. For instance, if the stone or brick is part of a flimsy facade, you can simply purchase MantelMount’s AB40 Adapter to provide the necessary support needed.

Are you a sound or audio nerd and want to enhance your TV watching to have the picture quality match with the audio quality? Try out our SKB00 Universal Sound Bar Adapter Kit to make what you watch really come to life.

WHAT ABOUT MOUNTING A TV ABOVE THE FIREPLACE WHEN HEAT AND ELECTRONICS SHOULDN’T MIX?

One of the most common concerns when mounting a TV over a fireplace is that heat and electronics should not mix. That includes not just the television, but also the attached wires and making certain that the wires are hidden away from the heat source. 

A small amount of heat can damage items like entertainment and media cords and cables, so it’s likely that the TV isn’t the only thing on your mind with having a fireplace TV mount.

However, televisions that are made today, for the most part, produce very little heat on their own. The concern, of course, is the extreme heat from the fireplace when it’s lit.

One way that MantelMount TV mounts are unique is through the built-in, smart heat-sensing handles which turn red when a temperature of 110 degrees Fahrenheit or more is detected.

THE BEST WAY TO MOUNT TV OVER A FIREPLACE WHEN THE MANTEL IS TALL

The height of a fireplace mantel can certainly interfere with your home entertainment setup and overall enjoyment. If you already know how to mount a TV above a fireplace but are unsure of the height of where the TV should be, that’s something that should be addressed. 

When mounting a TV above the fireplace, understand that it might be on a higher place on the wall to secure the TV further away from heat and if the mantel is tall. Watching television, however, is meant to be fun and a relaxing experience so make sure that you don’t end up installing a TV over the fireplace too high as to cause discomfort. 

Additionally, as our MM815 Motorized TV Mount has two memory presets on the remote control that lowers and swivels the mount, there are options for finding the best focal point for the tall fireplace mantel.

By taking these instructions to heart, mounting your TV over the fireplace won’t seem like such an insurmountable task, and it could actually be your best option!