Mounting Flat Screen TV In My RV

Posted by hankster

When I purchased my 5th wheel it had an old 19" analog TV in it. I could have just bought a converter for digital TV but decided I wanted to put in an LCD flat screen TV. After some measuring I figured I could fit a 24" LCD into the existing opening. I looked on-line and found a few that would just fit.

Since it was close to Black Friday I decided to wait until then to see what kind of deals I could get. That is where the problem started. What I found on Black Friday was a 32" LCD TV for $199. I just couldn't pass up the deal. Then when I got it home I had to figure out a way to mount it in the entertainment center. After measuring, looking, test fitting, measuring some more I figured a swing arm mount would be the most versatile.

The TV only weighs 25 pounds but I wanted something that would take the abuse it would have to stand up to in a bouncing trailer. There are many different designs but I settled on a twin arm design instead of a single arm design. This gives you two mounting points at each swivel point instead of single pivot point which should be more durable. I also wanted one that would handle a lot more weight then what the TV weighs, again for a safety margin. Looking at the big box stores I was shocked to find that a heavy duty mount like that would cost almost as much as the TV! I finally found one on eBay (click for examples) with dual arms that would hold 80 pounds for $50.

The walls of the entertainment center are only made of 1/8" pressed board so I needed something stronger to mount to. I went a bought a 4' x 4' piece of 5/8" MDF and cut it to the full size of the entertainment enclosure walls. This made a sandwiched with 5/8" MDF - 1/8" pressed board - 5/8" MDF.  Then drilled a few holes and bolted the sandwich together. This gave me a bit over 1 1/4" thick wall to bolt to.

Here is where I made a mistake which I will point out later. I attached the mount to the TV and lifted it into place where I wanted it. I marked the wall mounting holes for the articulating arm, drilled holes and bolted it through the MDF sandwich wall. But what I found was that there was just too much give in the arm that would allow the TV to bounce. No matter how I tried to strap it down for transporting it was not very secure.

What I ended up doing was to extend the bottom of opening in the entertainment center out 5 inches to allow the TV to set on it while being transported. I just took another piece of MDF, cut it to the size of the opening floor, plus 5" and let the TV set on it. The bottom of the TV is not completely flat so I put two small blocks on each end of the shelf to support the TV. I wasn't sure I would like it this way but I found the space that was between the spacer blocks was a perfect place to put my Wii sensor bar. It almost looks like I planned it that way.

The last thing I did was to put a few pieces of sticky back Velcro (the soft part) on each block and on the back of the TV where it would touch the entertainment center to eliminate any wear and tear. So far I have been happy with the install. I put this in during the winter so I still have to paint/stain things to dress it up. But it has traveled over 4,000 miles this winter and is as good as new.