up grade t.v.

Depending on what you have for cabinets, some installations can be very simple. In my coach I just used a piece of plywood to fill the hole where the old TV was. I cut holes for the cables and drilled holes for the mounting bolts. Most newer TV's have STANDARD mounting locations that fit most of the special metal mounting brackets. I just copied those dimensions and drilled holes in the plywood to accommodate the four screws to hold the screen. I got the bolts at Home Depot since they are metric size and this has worked well now for over 40,000 miles. By using the plywood backing to fill the hole and mount the TV I did lose any tilt adjustments that I might have with the metal mounting assembly but my old TV did not move at all. My old TV was very heavy and needed two people to safely remove it.

First thing is to take a few pictures of your installation and post them. From that one of us can give you direction going forward.

Our 1990 Bounder had a plastic bezel around it and a box that held the old CRT model. I tool the bezel off and removed the part of the overhead that held the TV in place. I am a sawdust maker so I didn't worry about what to put in to hold the new TV, I just removed the old stuff first and then put something back to look somewhat original.

Another thing to remember is that the mounts that are RV specific are expensive but residential models are just as strong and CHEAP. I have one in the bedroom of our Winnie that I paid $15 for on line.

Patio door locks, velcro, straps, bungees all work to hold the TV in place.

If you are not a woodworker, I'd suggest you contact someone and let them build any cabinetry needed. The removal is pretty straight forward and if you are at all handy you should be able to do it.

Just now having a shop replace our old monster 2003 TV with a converter box with a 24 in. new flatscreen. They did a great job of trimming around the TV with oak, matching the MH. The TV is mounted on a bracket which allows pulling it out and turning as needed. Haven't used it yet and don't have the bill.

RoyB wrote:

This may bring up a question for you about leaving the HDTV sets in the trailer when the WX is below freezing... My trailer is a POPUP trailer so I bring mine in but alot of folks leave their's in the big trailers - They say to warm up the trailer first before turning one on... I guess they worry about the LCD screen possibly cracking ???

There's no problem with the LCD cracking from the cold, nor is there any reason they electronics cannot be stored in cold temperatures. Personally, I'd probably be more likely to have the screen crack from tripping or bungling while carrying it in and out than anything. The advice to warm up first is mainly out of (often excessive) concern about condensation on the TV circuitry when the TV is still cooler than the air in the RV. Any condensation that is there would be driven off pretty quickly from the warmth of the circuitry operating.

Many LCD screens don't perform as well at really cold temperatures, so colors may be a bit off and images may ghost more than usual and that sort of thing, but that's not harmful to the TV.

We have 97 34V Bounder and I upgraded to flat screen TV's. I removed old TV's and cut a piece of plywood to back of frame. Drilled hole for cables to pass through. Installed a strong tilt mount in front and a sturdy swivel mount in bed room. Also bought 2 ntlon straps to secure while traveli g for safety. Good luck and was an EZ project.

Look in the WALMART TV SECTION. They have a big assortment of the TV swing out MOUNTS you are referring to that fits the four screws behind the TV monitors... The new TV's are lite-weight now with LCD screens etc...

This may bring up a question for you about leaving the HDTV sets in the trailer when the WX is below freezing... My trailer is a POPUP trailer so I bring mine in but alot of folks leave their's in the big trailers - They say to warm up the trailer first before turning one on... I guess they worry about the LCD screen possibly cracking ???

Roy Ken

Get one of those hotel wall mounts. Best Buy has them. Anchor it inside the cabinet and just push the TV against the cabinet frame when traveling. A little velcro will hold it there. Don't be surprised if the mount costs more than the TV.

I got rid of my overhead headbanger TV and put it into a cabinet behind the pax seat with a televator across from the couch. Used the wood from the lamp table that was there to rebuild the corner cabinet. This way you don't have to crane your neck to watch TV.

What I started with...





What I ended with...

Many LED TVs are so thin and light that you can mount them on the face of the cabinet, not inside it. You can search for my DIY installation using a TV with two feet...installed hinges where the feet went.
Here is my DIY with storage behind it.