Flat panel TV recommendations?

Garfield · 10-21-2007, 03:15 PM

Hi Streamers!

We just signed the papers for a 2001 Safari 25 SS. It's used, of course, and comes with a traditional television mount attached to the wall behind the dinette and in front of the sofa. We want to change it out to a flat panel unit (19" with integrated DVD player) but think we should mount it above the dinette against the refridgerator separator - that seems to be were all the new ones are being mounted.

I'm looking for recommentations in this regard. Is this the best place to mount these new fangled flat panels? Is there enough space so that people sitting at the dinette don't bang their heads against the TV? Or should we stick with the original location?

Comments appreciated!

SilverRanger · 10-21-2007, 04:39 PM

Granted, the layouts of our trailers are different, but mine is located mid way between the bed and the dinette so we can simply swivel it around to watch it from either location. I've also toyed with idea of moving the mount forward approximately 18 inches toward the door so the screen can also be visible from outside the trailer.

Lumatic · 10-21-2007, 05:58 PM

I have puzzled over mounting a flat panel in my Tradewind and no location satisfied us completely. So I decided to just use it as is. For us 20" seemed to be the max we wanted.

I just bought a 15" Akai flat panel TV/ DVD through ecost for $209. It also has a 12v adapter. In researching flat panels I found a lot of them work on 12v stepped down from 110 anyway. Another thing I was told was that a LCD is preferable to a plasma as a plasma screen may have problems at higher elevations.

Garfield · 10-21-2007, 08:30 PM

Thanks for your thoughts. Well, assuming we have the option to move the TV from the factory postion to the refigerator wall, I guess it just comes down to personal preference. I'll be talking to the dealer tomorrow and find out if there are any complications involved in moving it. All I know is that in all the newer trailers with similar designs the flat panel TV's are all against the refrigerator wall over the dinette.

I was thinking a 19" would be ideal, but a 17" might be OK too. A built in DVD is a must so that could limit our choice. For us the 12V option isn't that important since we rarely dry camp.

I'll let you know what I find out...

Gary

Tim A. · 10-21-2007, 08:54 PM

LCD TVs larger than 19" are also possible. Have a look at Mounting a 32" HDTV . The 23" TV we have and show in that thread has an integrated DVD. It is a Sharp, but I do not know if it is still made. TV models change almost as fast as computers.

thecatsandi · 10-21-2007, 09:55 PM

Mounting on the fridge seperator wall is not hard. it requires a little planning.
I took the AS suplied bracket with my 19" LCD TV and modified it to hold my 23" LCD TV. The AS supplied plate has studs in it. I punched them out. Drilled many more holes for support screws. Bolted a swing arm to the plate and screwed the plate to the wall. It survived the accident.

Mikethefixit · 10-22-2007, 05:55 AM

Gary
When moving that mount and placeing it on the fridge bulkhead ,keep in mind that those bulkheads are not very thick, watch the length of those screws ,you dont want to go thru and into the side of the fridge it might turn in to a disaster.Just some food for thought ,I contemplated the same thing till I measured my bulkhead and found it is only 1/2 thick and all the brackets I can find (aftermarket) have 2" long mounting screws.
Good Luck
Roger

gaylejoe · 11-16-2007, 07:35 PM

We have our Sony 23 inch TV mounted on the wall next to the frig. The only problem is the TV volume has to be turned up very high so that it can be heard from the sofa. I'm exploring ideas for additonal speakers especially behind the sofa. I would sure like some idea's.

thecatsandi · 11-16-2007, 08:33 PM

Do you have a sound system installed? if so there may be wires behind the wall to connect it to the stereo.

Garfield · 11-16-2007, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikethefixit

Gary
When moving that mount and placeing it on the fridge bulkhead ,keep in mind that those bulkheads are not very thick, watch the length of those screws ,you dont want to go thru and into the side of the fridge it might turn in to a disaster.Just some food for thought ,I contemplated the same thing till I measured my bulkhead and found it is only 1/2 thick and all the brackets I can find (aftermarket) have 2" long mounting screws.
Good Luck
Roger

Thanks for the tip, Roger. As a matter of a fact our dealer pointed this out. They have to remove the fridge and reinforce the wall with plywood before they can mount the TV. It also involves moving the thermostat and reworking the TV cable and electrical wiring. Good thing I got the dealer to include all this in the deal!

We found a 23" Toshiba with built-in DVD that should just fit provided there's room to insert/extract the DVD (which is tight to the wall).

Gary

Motoman · 11-17-2007, 05:11 PM

I was attracted to this thread to see what people are recommending regarding high-definition TV since regular analog TV will stop broadcasting in 2009. It won't matter for those that always stop in RV parks with cable/satellite connections at each space but those of us that boon-dock will have to replace our TV's with HD models, buy what ever adapter that is not yet on the market (the Feds have mandated that they be available) or only use them for playing DVD's.

I did take a look around the large box stores and the new HD flat screen models don't seem to be as small or as thin as our 15 inch Sharp which would limit the head room for the dinette if we use the factory location in our 25ft CCD. What have people found?

Antique Pedaler · 11-17-2007, 06:34 PM

I also looked into mounting a TV arm on the wall next to the frig. To be safe and sturdy, the mounting would have had to be through-bolted, preferably with a back plate, given the standard 1/2 inch AS wall. This would have involved pulling out the frig to get the job done, so I didn't do it. Instead, I found a vertical mount TV arm and bolted it to the credenza. An advantage to the credenza mount is that we like the TV at eye level rather than craning our necks to view a TV high on the wall.

We do bump around in the boondocks a lot so we got a Jensen 12 volt heavy duty TV from a marine mail order house.

Garfield · 11-18-2007, 07:19 AM

Ok, so it turns out the 23" Toshiba with the built-in DVD player won't fit on the fridge wall. Well, actually it will fit, but the DVD slot is on the right hand side, too close to the wall to easily get the DVD in and you can't see the controls.

We found a cheap 19" Insignia at Best Buy/Future Shop with a build in DVD player on the left side, as well as a 22" Ventura at Sams Club, but virtually everyone we've talked to, including some salesmen, have steered us away from the no-name brands.

Since I can't locate a 19"-23" name brand LCD TV with a DVD build in on the left side where I need it, my only option may be to buy one without a built-in DVD. The advantages are that there's plenty of LCD TV's to choose from, and they're generally a lot thinner so won't interfere with anyone sitting at the dinette.

But since we want to be able to play DVD's (we mostly frequent provincial parks with no cable and very few over-the-air stations available) I'm looking for recommendations for the smallest functional DVD player I can find. I presume I'm going to be relegated to one of those mini-players with the 7" screens.

I'd much prefer to have an integrated unit, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen.

Garfield · 11-18-2007, 07:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Motoman

I was attracted to this thread to see what people are recommending regarding high-definition TV since regular analog TV will stop broadcasting in 2009. It won't matter for those that always stop in RV parks with cable/satellite connections at each space but those of us that boon-dock will have to replace our TV's with HD models, buy what ever adapter that is not yet on the market (the Feds have mandated that they be available) or only use them for playing DVD's.

I did take a look around the large box stores and the new HD flat screen models don't seem to be as small or as thin as our 15 inch Sharp which would limit the head room for the dinette if we use the factory location in our 25ft CCD. What have people found?

Hi Motoman:

If you buy a new HD TV with a ATSC tuner you should be all set to receive over-the-air HD broadcasts in the future. Otherwise you'll need a separate converter box as you indicated. For space reasons I would think it would be better to buy one with the ATSC tuner built in.

As for the thickness of the TV's I've seen a few in the 19-23 inch range that are quite thin (Samsung comes to mind), but the ones with the build-in DVD are all much thicker - in the 4 - 5 inch range.

One way to reduce the overall thickness is to use a fixed wall mount - all the articulated mounts are much thicker. For what it's worth, our RV dealer's head tech didn't recommend the articulated mounts for larger TV's since, unless they are fastened really solidly and strapped down properly when travelling, they can swing free and get damaged.