fireplace mount in a rental, cable routing help needed!

[timmay8612]

so I just moved into a new place and have a very fireplace centered living room. I'd like to wall mount the tv, but it's a rental, so any in wall cabling is out. That being said, can I rn HDMI, power, component, coax cable, and optical audio in the same cable management sleeve thingy? If I need special cabling, monoprice links would be good, I like buying from them.

 

[walter duque]

I would shy away from that above fireplace mounting. You're not gona like. It might look cool at first but try watching a movie for two hours looking up. Feels like a neck shot. Use that option as your last resort. If you decide do mount it anyway, I guarantee you it's not going to stay there for long.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Some people love above fireplace mounting because they use recliners and kick their feet up and heads back while viewing all the time. I will say that it is VERY much personal preference.

With that said: The very first thing you should do is contact the landlord! Why not run things in wall and make it an improvement to the property? It may suprise you how receptive they are to the idea if you let them know that you will leave the cabling in place when you move out and the new tenants can utilize the same holes.

You may want to get a cheap universal tilting mount (monoprice) and leave that for the new tenants as well.

$100 in materials and you may be able to do exactly what you want.

Otherwise, you are looking at Panduit or Wiremold products, which will do what you want, but be very visible.

http://tools.wiremold.com/diy/project_ideas/install_flat.asp

I lived in an apartment run by a 'big company' and they were fine with me running wiring in-wall, etc., then leaving the cabling and blanking the plate off when I left. It looked clean when I moved out and the new people could hang a picture there or just put their TV up there, and either way, it wouldn't affect them. Worth a shot at the very least!

 

[timmay8612]

thanks for the input so far. As for positioning, the choice is either looking slightly up (we sit in recliners) or looking off to the left.

as for the in wall stuff, i'd consider checking with the management, but i've never done anything remotely like this before...

I still need to know if I can run video, audio, and power side by side.
p.s. Anybody know if I can easily remove a wooden mantle from drywall? That would allow a lower mount...

 

[BMXTRIX]

The mantle is absolutely required to block heat away from the TV. You must not remove it. Check with management and you may not want to imply that you are doing the work yourself, but having it done professionally.

It's generally not good to run 120v right next to video cabling, but digital (HDMI) takes a lot of fear away from this being a serious issue.

 

[timmay8612]

thanks for the info so far, sounds like I may get away with hdmi and coax next to my power then? Is there a video you could direct me to to see if I could even attempt in wall wiring?

 

[highfigh]

thanks for the info so far, sounds like I may get away with hdmi and coax next to my power then? Is there a video you could direct me to to see if I could even attempt in wall wiring?

National Electrical Code dictates how high voltage is run, the connections housed and the wires terminated. It's forbidden to have low voltage (defined as "No lethal voltage present") in the same box space with high voltage, although Carlon makes a divider that can be mounted in their plastic J-boxes. DO NOT run high voltage parallel to signal cables- it's very easy to end up with noise and improper operation.

 

[timmay8612]

National Electrical Code dictates how high voltage is run, the connections housed and the wires terminated. It's forbidden to have low voltage (defined as "No lethal voltage present") in the same box space with high voltage, although Carlon makes a divider that can be mounted in their plastic J-boxes. DO NOT run high voltage parallel to signal cables- it's very easy to end up with noise and improper operation.

*Puts on noob hat of humbleness* So is my TV power cable considered high voltage and then signal cables like phones, cable TV, CAT 5, HDMI etc. are low voltage?

That being the case, any idea how to not run cable through the wall and get power + signal cabling off the right of my mantle and down to an equipment rack without having a parallel run of both in the same plastic cable hider thing?

 

[BMXTRIX]

Yes, TV power cable is high voltage, the rest is low voltage.

You can run them side by side, it's just not recommended. With HDMI, in my expeience, it is RARELY an issue.

Per NEC, you can't run high voltage and low voltage through the same holes behind drywall, but there is not the same rules if you surface mount. So, it's just bad practice to do so, but sometimes it is just unavoidable. You run the wires together, then see if you have any noise and separate them.

 

[Monkey]

Techincally you shouldn't run your HDMI/video cables next to your power. But i see many people get away with it. It all depends on how "dirty" your power is. I would recommend trying to tie them together and "temperarly" run them and see if you get good enough quality. If so then your good. I would put your audio cables on the opposite end of the bundle as your power cable. If you hear hissing on your audio then it's to close.

Good luck