In the endless battle between big TVs and the rest of our interior design, the fireplace has become the latest battlefield. We ask the question – is it okay to mount your TV on the wall above the fireplace?

We quibble over the size of the couch, the size of the rug, the size of the coffee table. But there seems there are no questions asked when it comes to the size of the TV. These days’ home cinemas are getting bigger and bigger, and no longer is a cabinet big enough to hold them.

We need a whole wall. But which wall? Increasingly, our eyes are turning to the one wall that has hitherto stood free and independent – the place where we could display family photographs, a vase of flowers, perhaps a favourite artwork. But no longer. Increasingly the wall above the fireplace is under threat from those in our homes (who shall remain nameless) who want to turn our beautifully restored fireplaces into shrines of audio-visual entertainment.

On one level, this makes sense. Traditionally we like to place our furniture around the fireplace as the point of focus in a room. To have a competing point of focus – the TV– introduces all sorts of division in the room. To nestle the TV above the fireplace unifies the space, and creates a single point of focus, both for the room and for you.

But there is a downside.

First of all, comfort. Large scale TVs were designed to be viewed at eye level. Depending on your style of fireplace, it’s possible that mounting the TV on the wall above it will make it far too high for comfort. It’s the front-row-at-the-cinema effect – you’ll have to crane your neck to watch your show.

It’s recommended that you position the top of your TV at about 15 degrees above your horizontal plane of vision, which is way lower than you’ll be able to achieve with most over-fireplace mountings. If you are still determined to go ahead, we recommend that you position your viewing chair as far from the screen as possible.

While debate rages about the actual effect the heat from a fireplace will have on your TV, many manufacturers will automatically void your warranty if it’s mounted there. But if you are still determined to go ahead, consider the benefits of an LCD screen versus a Plasma. Because Plasma TVs create a fair bit of heat naturally, manufacturers go to great lengths to keep them cool by installing fans in the back. If a plasma TV overheats, it will fail. Simple. While LCDs still get warm, they don’t usually run the risk of overheating.

One way to minimise the risk is to check the specs for the recommended heat limit for your system. Then, set a thermometer up on your fireplace above your blazing fire for 12-18 hours and see how hot it gets. For many fireplaces, a mantel-piece combined with a flue will dissipate the heat into the surrounding room and reduce the risk of heat affecting the TV. For other systems, the risk might simply be too great, and you’d be better off to find somewhere else to mount the TV.

OK. So you’ve weighed up the risks, done your research and you’ve decided to mount it, despite all the debate. The next decision is how to mount it safely.

Unless it’s made of brick, the usual above-fireplace construction is a hollow box with oddly-spaced studs. You’ll need stud-finder to help you find the studs, and you’ll need to look out for those studs that are the weight bearers. Take a lot of readings to get the full measure of how the wall is constructed – after all, it’s a very heavy piece of equipment to mount and you want to do it right the first time.

While the idea of cutting into the wall and mounting it inside the wall might seem an attractive option, this may not be possible depending on the type of flue you have. You don’t want to cut into it! Plus, it’s guaranteed to get hotter inside the wall than outside it.

Finally, consider how you are going to discreetly run the cables from the TV to the speakers and the power outlet.

When you’ve weighed up the risks and taken the plunge, you might decide to call in the experts. Yellow Pages has more than 20,000 TV installation experts listed around the country to help you get the job done right, the first time. Don’t risk it!