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I’m renovating an old house and I plan on mounting the 42 inch lcd television over the fireplace. The house studs are mostly on 2 foot centers and are rough cut 2x6. However around the fireplace there is a cripple stud in the center and a stud on each side of the mantle. These studs are around 32 inches apart. The wallboard is old and flimsy so hollow-wall anchors are not an option. At this point I have 2 ideas:

  1. Run 1x4s or 2x4s across all 3 studs and mount the television on that.

  2. Get a single stud mount and hang the tv on the cripple stud in the center. I just feel wary about a single stud mount.

Anyone have experience with this problem? Suggestions? If it matters the fireplace is not usable.

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    Why don't the studs 32" apart work with your mount? That sounds ideal.
    – isherwood
    Jul 18, 2018 at 2:18
  • That’s a 64 inch span to catch all 3 the mount I currently have isn’t near that big. Neither is the television.
    – Cdawg
    Jul 18, 2018 at 2:21
  • Gotcha. I found it hard to believe there would be a gap that wide, but ok.
    – isherwood
    Jul 18, 2018 at 3:05
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    Your idea of 1x4 etc..is a valid one, consider as an option of 1/2" or 3/4" plywood across the studs. Just large enough to extend beyond the studs 1/2" on each side and about 1/2" above and below your mount edge. Then you have a larger surface area to mount the tv. Paint or stain this plywood to enhance or blend with your decor.
    – Jeff Cates
    Jul 19, 2018 at 6:39
  • Don't go with the single stud mount. If you look at the photo, you'll see that the arm is composed of two sections on unequal lengths. That means the TV will be off center when it's pushed up against the wall. I found that out the hard way after buying that same mount to go above my fireplace. :-)
    – mrog
    Jul 25, 2018 at 16:47

1 Answer 1

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That's not a single stud mount any more than the one you have is--it's just a different design for a different purpose. Use your mount with two or three good lag screws into the center stud and call it a day. 3/8" x 2-1/2" should do, piloted to 1/4" full depth plus half an inch.

If your mount flexes a lot it's crap and you should buy one built to a higher level of quality. The mount I bought 12 years ago weighed twice what most modern ones do, but one bolt would've done the job even with the early, heavy TV we had.

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    +1 in other words, for a 42" LCD TV that's likely under 25 pounds weight, two lag screws in the center of a standard mount is more than adequate. Some mounts might be a bit flimsy and flex, so try to find one that's made of fairly heavy gauge sheet metal.
    – batsplatsterson
    Aug 17, 2018 at 20:52
  • This is the best solution. I will add that you can still add drywall anchors to add additional support. In this case I'd go with the toggle style anchors, 2 on each side. These would be placed on the top row of holes as far outboard as possible and then again a few inches inboard of those.
    – Richard O
    Mar 23, 2021 at 14:16

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