scoobyverysoon

iTrader: (1)

Were expecting our 2nd child and our living room is full as it is with toys etc, currently or TV is in the corner with my old technics system next to it.

Im getting rid of my technics system and Ive got a Onkyo AV receiver Which is a big fella and I believe gives off a fair bit of heat.

Anyway my plan is to get rid of my fireplace and gas fire as we dont use it plus its a danger to the little-ones sharp marble edges. I want to hang my 46" LCD on the Chimney wall and build into the void where the fire was some sort of shelving to house my sky box , my fat PS3 , my slim PS3, My new AV receiver.

Now the chimney is solid brick

Is this a stupid idea and more hassle then its worth I just want to free up space. Has anyone done this and whats the situation with ventulation and do you have to cap the chimney.

just the Equipment needs fitting into the wall not the TV

I also want someone to do this and not sure who to approach

Pictures below measurements are width 60" and depth is 20"

Boro

iTrader: (1)

Like this?

f1_fan

iTrader: (9)

Could be fairly simple, I did the same job for mate of mine about two years ago.

It is likely that the fireplace opening will be quite large if it's an old house, but you won't know how large until you take the fire and fireplace out.

If it is of a good size you should be able to box in the opening with a frame/plasterboard to create a good sized recess and then plaster it all to suit before decorating and adding shelves.

You will need to leave a vent in it somewhere so the chimney can still breathe and you may also have a flue to remove that was in use with the gas fire. The 'floor' of the fireplace may alsio need a little work and watch for potential damp issues with this.

You will need to add some sockets and connectivity points in the recess and don't forget to leave some cable ways so you can make the whole job neat.

Any small reputable builder should be able to do it for you.

Just be sure the fireplace opening is sound before proceeding, but he will know to do that.

scoobyverysoon

iTrader: (1)

Yeah like that

Thanks F1 some good points

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Have you got King Kong caged up in there ?

scoobyverysoon

iTrader: (1)

Lol its my African grey

500

Not a hard job to do mate, have done similar before, give me a shout if you need a hand

daddyscoob

you need to get across to AVforums and check out the home cinema section for ideas.

scoobyverysoon

iTrader: (1)

Thanks all will do I should of never looked into any of this its costing me a fortune lol

Wonder how much my old technics setup is worth

WRXBOB

Did this for my bro in law, and made the inset shelving for his av equipment match the side shelving he had already.
Think I have a pic on my phone .......

WRXBOB

Found it.



I had to build the chimney breast out by 3 or 4 inches to accommodate the depth of his amp. But then it made it a simple job to have the tv set into the wall. There is a 3" drain pipe going down at an angle from behind the tv to the rear of the shelving unit which feeds all the cables through.
Looks better in real.life than the photo.

scoobyverysoon

iTrader: (1)

WRXbob thats exacly what I would like did you rip out the fire?

how much would something like that cost? if you dont mind me asking

500

Justin, I'd say no more than 250-350 inc electrics

scoobyverysoon

iTrader: (1)

mmm Im so tempted Adam

WRXBOB

Did it all myself for him and wasn't hard or expensive.

Ready for a long post:

Ripped out the old non working gas fire - pipe was already capped off under the floorboards before he bought house. Then put a lintel back in the chimney breast as it was missing and the brickwork was dropping down! Then re did the brickwork leaving a suitable opening at the height he wanted. Because of the limited depth to the fireplace the amp would have stuck out a couple of inches. So my idea was to bring the front wall of the chimney breast out to add depth with the added benefit of being able to sink the tv into the wall!
So a few lengths of studwork were screwed to the front wall then plasterboarded over, leaving an opening for the 47" tv, plus plasterboarded the sides of his chimney before giving it a quick skim of plaster. I cut a hole in the chimney breast and fitted a length of drain pipe for the cables to feed down. He was originally going to have glass shelves, but I offered to make him a wooden slot in unit to match his side shelving units. Which I think works well together.
Total cost of materials was under 100 quid.
Took me about 4 easy days..... A half day to rip the old fire out and do the brickwork and lintel. Another day to do the studwork, plasterboard and plaster. A morning to custom make the slot in av shelving unit. Then the final day to install it all and set it up.

WRXBOB

There's 4 double sockets at the back to power everything and the satellite, aerial and surround speaker cables are fed under floor and up into the av opening.
Could all easily be done in a couple of days, but I wasn't rushing as I wasn't being paid.

scoobyverysoon

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for taking time to post , youve done a great job and has inspired me to look further into mine as I couldnt find many decent examples

How was the chimney ventilated people mention about it needs to breath to stop damp? this is my biggest concern


If I sunk my TV into the wall it would neater but restricts a new TV if I needed one. Did you mount the TV on a bracket? and how easy is it to get access to the wires behind once all fitted

Thanks

WRXBOB

The top of the chimney has a vented cap, the type that doesn't let water in but still vented for air. The bottom does not have a vent. Bro in law didn't want one, and as long as your stack is in good condition so its not gonna be leaking water in, it shouldn't be a problem. And 2 years on its still fine and dry.

The tv is on a swivel bracket, so the tv can be pulled out or angled and gives better access to the cables behind.
We discussed the opening and future tv's..... BIL said if he changed tv, would be for a bigger one, so the opening would be behind a new tv so not a problem. Plus it would still make a new tv fit closer to the wall as the bracket would still be recessed!
He is more than happy with it, and loves visitor reactions to it!