different idea for mounting tv on wall?

belay70

New member
Ive used a number of mounts for small tv's in my converted Sprinter van, and while they all did the job fine for a time, they all bounced so much that it eventually broke the internal mounting out of the plastic housing on the rear of the tv. The mount never came off the wall and never let go of the tv; Its the tv that wasnt built to endure that amount of bouncing. So....Im guessing most others who have encountered this issue have resorted to simply housing the entire tv in some sort of angled wall-mounted bracket or other housing with enough of a lip on the front face to hold the tv inside, while not interfering with the remote sensor and viewing area. Im thinking of building this with 1/4 or 3/8 inch birch plywood or similar. Anyone have a better idea? Or seen it done and can point me to a source of pictures, to feed my noodling mind? Thanks folks.
 

huskyhauler

Adventurer
If you want to use standard TVs you'll need to use a mount that has some flex to it. I have a 42" and a 30" plasma TV mounted in my rig using standard home TV mounts on swing arms from Monoprice.com. I need my TV's to swing out and rotate so my thought process was two-fold. (1) Use TV mounts that are for much larger and heavier TVs than I am using, and (2) secure the TV with additional supports while stowed and under way. The swing arm style, while durable and strong, also flexes just enough, that when combined with bungie straps allows the TV to move a little under transit. This alleviates some of the shearing forces on the mounts of the TV itself as opposed to being mounted with a rigid wall mount.

When in transit I secure the TV using bungie cables and have been successful in limiting movement to a bare minimum. I use two horizontal bungies across the face of the large TV to keep it from moving side to side, and two vertical bungies (one on each side of the TV) that support the unit while bouncing up and down. I think the overall key to my durability is I kept the TV stand insert in the bottom of the TV and hooked the vertical bungies to it. It's kept the weight and "bouncing forces" off the mounting brackets when hitting bumps.

There's some photos of the mounts here: http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/140469-The-Husky-Hauler-(another-ambulance-build)

I don't have any photos of the Unit strapped in with bungies, but you can see the "neck" of the tv stand underneath the TV that I use to attach the vertical bungies to.
 

Bbasso

Expedition Leader
I too use a mount from Monoprice for my 26 inch LED in my rig and two years prior was in my travel trailer without any problems.
It has some flexibility and give so I'm guessing that's why it has it ripped a hole through my fiberglass top.
 

belay70

New member
See, I had the same mounts, but they tend to do the job so well, they crack the backs of the tv housings over time. All that bouncing around.....I put on about 60-80k miles a year in this Sprinter van and Im thinking I need an extreme duty solution. I like the automotive intended monitors and brackets, just wish I could find the bracket alone....thanks guys, I'll keep looking. Not an urgent need until football season starts I guess...

edit - just had an idea; possibly build a tray or rest, in an L shape, out of simple 1/2 inch wood scrap. Something for the tv to rest or sit on when not in use. I can still use the full motion articulating mount when parked, then push it back into "home" position on the rest once Im ready to move. Possibly have to make it U shaped to give it some strength against the wall, but yeah....
 
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huskyhauler

Adventurer
See, I had the same mounts, but they tend to do the job so well, they crack the backs of the tv housings over time. All that bouncing around.....I put on about 60-80k miles a year in this Sprinter van and Im thinking I need an extreme duty solution. I like the automotive intended monitors and brackets, just wish I could find the bracket alone....thanks guys, I'll keep looking. Not an urgent need until football season starts I guess...

edit - just had an idea; possibly build a tray or rest, in an L shape, out of simple 1/2 inch wood scrap. Something for the tv to rest or sit on when not in use. I can still use the full motion articulating mount when parked, then push it back into "home" position on the rest once Im ready to move. Possibly have to make it U shaped to give it some strength against the wall, but yeah....

That's a good idea. The key is to find a way to support the TV and take the load off the stock TV mounts. Does the bottom of your TV have a slot to slide a TV base into it? If so, that's a good place to hook a support strap.
 

luthj

Engineer In Residence
An elastic strap and support bracket/flange could be used to make a "dock" to support the TV when in transit. This would eliminate the stress cracking which results from the TV bouncing up and down on the integral VESA mounts.

You could also remove the back cover from the TV. Apply a few layers of fiberglass with some epoxy or polyester resin as reinforcement around the mounting points. That should provide a lot more support, without interfering with the fit.
 

herm

Adventurer
on computer monitors mounted in the back of our trucks, we used ram mounts with about a 2 in ball on them, and the metal arms. we also bungied the monitors to the wall while transporting. they held up in the back of our kenworth t-370 trucks even over the washboard roads of the outback in the Simpson desert. they were bolted to the aluminum frame of the box. Make sure you have some kind of backing plate or similar to spread the load where the mount is mounted to the truck.
 

Tazman

Adventurer
I am getting ready to mount my TV in my trailer. I chose a TV built for RV and Marine use. Majestic is an Austrailian company and make a heck of a TV (according to the reviews and writeups.) I have not received it or the trailer yet but I assume it is built to handle the riggers of off road travel. The TV is 12 volt and seems to have good specs. I'll keep you posted. Anyone have experience with these please chimb in.

https://www.amazon.com/MAJESTIC-Wid...dp/B00JXLU5KC?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0
 

Bbasso

Expedition Leader
Don't forget that placing the TV towards the rear will be a bouncy ride, close to the mid-front for the smoothest ride.
 

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