This is kind of a silly question and it’s surely a first world problem. Remember when I wrote about buying a new TV recently? Well, I can’t get it set-up.
When it comes to anything handy, I’m all thumbs. Scratch that… I’m all left baby toes. When it comes hanging what is essentially a very extremely piece of glass that could be a big deal.
So I did what I thought was the smart thing. I went to the local audio/video store and asked about pricing. They asked a few questions and came back with a number. That number was 3 times more than I thought it would be! The price? Around $850. That’s almost as much as some televisions.
One of the reasons it’s so pricey is that I want an arm that extends so that I can position the television for when I’m cooking in the kitchen. Another thing that adds to the price, concealing the cords in the walls. One further thought, I think it would be best to NOT conceal them as my television set-up is very elaborate with home theater PCs and such. I just don’t know if the wife will go for that.
I figured, maybe they are simply overcharging me? So I went on Angie’s List to see if there were some better options. I saw some ads for mounting from $99 to $129! Now we are talking, right? Unfortunately those vendors seemed to be California… about 3000 miles away from me. I think there was only one vendor in 50 miles that offers the service… and I don’t know if they’d travel that far.
I almost thought about not mounting the television. However, with a 4 and a 5 year old running around the house, not to mention the dogs we sit, it seems like an accident waiting to happen.
I looked on Amazon and it seems like there are some mounts that are very, very cheap and very, very high rated with 15,000 or more reviews. Here’s one example for only $65 though I might want more of a tilt angle.
Has anyone ever paid for a television mounting service? Anyone contact a handyman to have them do it? Anyone do it themselves?
Programming Note
This article is a little light on the personal finance. I’m winding down trying to get everything done for the holiday season while also doing a bit of traveling. I’m planning to still publish regularly, but what I plan and the reality don’t always work out especially when it comes to me and traveling.
If you are not handy(and you would still be handier than me) and you paid quite a bit for your TV, it might be worth paying to have it done, if you can find a better deal. In the Dallas area there are lots of options but other than looking up the price for Geeksquad I’m not sure how much companies change. Personally, I don’t like mounted TV’s. No idea why. Is it fear of hospitals? I did mount the 32″ my daughter had, then unmounted it a few months later when she moved, then again 12 months later when she moved again. It would seem the more flex options with the mount the better.
It’s a shame you don’t live in NJ, my husband mounts them all the time for friends and family for free. He’s done 2 this month already! I suggest watching a ton of videos and really learning how to do it for yourself. With the right kit, you just need to find the studs in the wall. If not, post around on Facebook or in local groups to see if someone can just help you out. I do not think it’s worth it to pay more than $50 to have someone come and do it, even a local neighbor might do it for a quick $50. Good luck!
Thanks Kate. I’ll definitely give this a shot.
I’d just get a nice TV console and call it good. I thought the TV usually have some kind of anchor to keep it from toppling over. We haven’t had any problem with our TV, but it’s not that big.
I do have a platform to conceal all the electronics underneath. I could put the television on top. If I anchor it to the wall, I think I’d lose the ability to change the angle to watch it in the kitchen while cooking.
Go to monoprice, order a mount you want. If you want to hide the cables and you need to run power, go to amazon and find a kit to do it. Hire a handy man to put the 6 bolts in the studs and cut the two holes for the wire kit. Should be under $300 for it all.
Check harbor freight for a bracket. They have a new one that swings out. Also check the Nextdoor app. We have a few handyman posts that are reasonable. So probably you have a neighbor that does this kind of thing.