How to wall-mount a TV, including on plasterboard: bracket, anchors and height

What you need

• Hammer drill with 8 and 10 mm masonry bits (brick and concrete) or a driver with a 10-12 mm bit (plasterboard)
• Metal, cable and stud detector (Bosch Truvo, Stanley Stud Sensor)
• 60 cm spirit level
• 13 mm spanner or ratchet and Allen keys for the VESA bolts
• Tape measure, pencil and masking tape
• Vacuum cleaner
• A second person to lift the TV on
• Fixed, tilting or articulated TV bracket with compatible VESA and load rating (Vogel's, Hama, Meliconi, or the Leroy Merlin own brand)
• Fischer DuoPower 10x50 or SX 10 plugs with 8x60 mm screws for brick and concrete
• Metal spring toggles (Fischer KD or Molly) or 6x60 coach screws into the studs for plasterboard
• Self-adhesive PVC trunking or an in-wall cable kit to hide the cables
• HDMI cable of the right length and an extension lead if needed

Step by step

1. 1

   Note the VESA, the weight and the screen size

   On the back of the TV there are four threaded holes in a rectangle. The distance between them in mm is the VESA (200x200, 400x400, 600x400). The weight is in the manual or on the manufacturer's website. Buy a bracket that covers that VESA and twice the weight of the TV.

2. 2

   Choose the type of bracket

   Fixed: sits 2-3 cm from the wall, the cheapest and safest, for always watching from the sofa. Tilting: the same but lets you angle the screen down 10-15 degrees if it is mounted high. Articulated: an arm that extends and swivels, for watching from the kitchen or the bed; it loads the wall far more and in plasterboard it must be anchored to the studs.

3. 3

   Decide the height and mark

   Sitting on the sofa, measure the height of your eyes (usually 100-110 cm). That is the centre of the screen. Higher strains the neck. Mark the centre with masking tape and, with the bracket held against the wall and the level on top, the fixing holes.

4. 4

   Identify the wall and what is behind it

   Knock: hollow is plasterboard, dull is brick, hard is concrete. Run the detector over the whole area: look for cables (especially if there are sockets or switches nearby), pipes and, in plasterboard, the vertical metal studs every 40 or 60 cm. Mark them with tape.

5. 5

   Drill according to the wall

   Brick or block: hammer action, 10 mm bit, 60 mm deep, vacuum out, Fischer DuoPower 10x50 plug and 8x60 screw with washer. Concrete: the same with the hammer action on full and slowly. Plasterboard: no hammer action; if the hole lands on a stud, a 6x60 coach screw straight into the stud; if it lands in a void, a 12 mm bit and a metal spring toggle. Minimum four fixing points, and in plasterboard at least two into studs.

6. 6

   Screw on the wall plate

   Fit the plate, tighten the screws in a cross pattern until it is firm without distorting the plate. Hang your own weight from the plate with your hands: it should not move a millimetre. If it moves, the plugs are not gripping and the fixing has to be changed before going on.

7. 7

   Fit the arms to the TV and hang it

   Bolt the arms or the VESA plate to the back of the TV with the metric bolts from the kit (M6 or M8 depending on the model, without forcing; if they will not go in, it is the wrong thread). With the help of the other person, hang the TV on the plate and fit the locking tabs or screws at the bottom.

8. 8

   Connect and hide the cables

   Connect HDMI, aerial and power before final levelling. To hide the cables, self-adhesive paintable PVC trunking is the option in rented flats; in plasterboard you can run an in-wall cable kit between two boxes, always without touching the existing electrical installation. Level and tighten the locks.

Which wall plug to use when mounting a TV on each wall

A 55-inch TV weighs 15-20 kg, and with an articulated bracket extended the leverage multiplies that load three or four times on the top plugs. That is why a TV in plasterboard falls with ordinary plugs and holds perfectly with the right ones.

Common mistakes when mounting a TV

• Mounting it too high. Above the fireplace or at picture height looks good in the photo and bad for the neck. Centre of the screen at seated eye level.
• Nylon plugs in plasterboard. They go in, hold for two days and one day the TV is on the floor. In plasterboard, metal spring toggles or studs.
• Drilling without a detector. Cables from sockets run vertically up from the box; a bit through a cable is a short circuit and an electrician. In bathrooms and kitchens, pipes too.
• Articulated bracket in plasterboard without studs. The extended arm levers and rips the plugs out of the board. It is the most common TV fall.
• Using the screws from the kit without looking at the wall. Bracket screws are usually for timber or concrete. Hollow brick needs long plugs.
• Not checking the level with the TV on. Many plates have adjustment margin; use it before tightening the locks.

When to call a professional

If the TV is 65 inches or more, if you want an articulated bracket in plasterboard, if the wall is a thin partition, if the cables have to be hidden inside the wall, or if you simply do not have a hammer drill and a detector, it is worth having us do it: a 1,000 euro TV on the floor costs more than any installation.

Manitas Costa prices: mounting a TV up to 55 inches on a fixed bracket, 50-70 euros; 65-85 inch TV or articulated bracket, 80-120 euros. Includes detector, plugs for your wall, levelling and connecting the cables. Trunking or an in-wall cable kit is quoted separately. Fixed price by WhatsApp with a photo of the wall and the TV model, visit the same day or within 24 hours, 6 months written guarantee.

More information in TV mounting, pictures and lights in Valencia and Alicante and in how much a handyman costs per hour. We work in Valencia, Alicante, Torrevieja, Benidorm and across the Costa Blanca.

Electrical safety and cables: what we do and what we do not

Mounting a TV does not require touching the electrical installation, and we do not touch it. If there is no socket behind the TV, we use an extension lead or a power strip run through trunking. Moving or adding a new socket, running a line from the consumer unit or fitting a new aerial point is work for a registered electrician with a boletín (the official certificate); we can put you in touch with one we trust.

To hide cables, the legal and safe options are paintable self-adhesive trunking, an in-wall cable kit in plasterboard (a tube with two boxes, no connections inside, HDMI and aerial only) or a low cabinet for the equipment. The TV power cable never goes inside the wall unless it is an installation done by an electrician.

One detail for the coast: if the TV goes on an external wall on the seafront, the salt-laden damp attacks iron screws. Use zinc-plated or stainless steel fixings and, if the wall has damp, sort that out before hanging anything. And if moving the TV leaves the holes from the old bracket, in how to fill holes in a wall we explain how to repair them.