Ok everyone out there. I have made alot of phone calls to get advice on is it ok to put a plasma above a wood burning fireplace installed by the origional builder of the home. No one seems to say they would recommended Its ok. The plasma would be installed apx. four feet above the fire place and it has a 12" protuding mantel. We always see the beautiful magazines showing them above a fireplace but are we asking for trouble? Should I start burning a fire and check the temperature where I would like to mount it. Should we get a engineer or a fire place contractor for a second opion. Signed Sparkey

The real problem, as I understand it is that we don't want the fans on the plasma to suck soot into the unit... I've always told customers that it's ok with a mantel, because the heat and soot all flow past... However, I also try to find out how much they use the fireplace, and if it's every day, rain or shine, then I try to steer them in a different direction...

What about the candles and pictures that are placed on the mantle? Have you ever seen anybody concerned about that? Why is it that customers question plasmas catching fire over fireplaces and not the flamable stuff that they actually leave out?

That is right on the money as far as I'm concerned. I've done it several times, but convinced the client on a different idea once when I learned they light it almost daily. One might also be able to say that if the fireplace is putting ANY amount of soot/smoke into the room, there are really big problems with the fireplace itselft or how they use it. The plasma is quite secondary to that problem!

In our area there are practically no woodburning fireplaces going in - all gas burning fake log heaters.

So I assume heat is the only issue in this case, and with a mantel it is not an issue?

Is the main issue soot, or heat? My gas logs put out so much heat, I worry about the paint on the mantel. I just installed these unvented logs last year after an ice storm that had us without power for a few days. We had vented logs, which are only for looks, and no heat actually came out into the room, all up the chimney. I would like to mount a plasma over our fireplace in our master bedroom, but I was worried about the heat.

Mark

I heard that some manufactures will void the warranty if the panel is installed over a wood burning fireplace. I think this has been discussed in length at the AVS forums website. Do a search on fireplace in the display forums.

We often mount them over fireplaces (sometimes 3 or 4 a week) but we spend quality time with the customer explaining the possible ramifications prior to doing it. Here in California we don't have any regulations on it, but Washington requires a mantle of at least 12".
We've had customers actually build a roaring fire and measure the temp were we are going to mount the TV - most people find that the temp at the mounting location is actually unaffected by the fire. As for soot, we just look at the wall and ceiling above the fireplace to determine if that will be a problem.
All in all, I don't think we've ever not mounted one over a fireplace (at least for my market) and I've not had a single plasma failure because of fireplace issues. My best guess is that we've mounted a few hundred this way.
I think you'll be fine.

Jeff Wagner

We have installed a few plasmas over fireplaces and there's no laws about 12inch mantels in Australia. Never had any problems, but we do try to sell them a yearly maintenance call to shoot some compressed air thru the plasma (stop the fans from spinning!). Most people don't take us up on it.

Conventional wood burning fireplaces are very inefficient in that most of the heat goes up the chimney.Vented gas burning fireplaces are the same.It is the unvented gas firelaces that give off the most heat.I have been petting them over fireplaces for years and have never had a problem.When they do go over the unvented ones we tell them they should not use them at the same time.

the big thing I look for before putting a plasma above a fireplace is, 'how was the wall around the fireplace constructed?'.

A lot of them, in older houses, don't have adequete stud spacing- and some of them have the studs facing the wall longways (on the 3.5" side instead of the 1.75" side)...

Almost every plasma I have hung has been above a fireplace. Yes, the manufacturers do void the warranty if they are hung above the fireplace. I just let the customer know that and have them sign a waiver stating that they have been informed and that I will not be party to any of the crap that goes on if something goes wrong with the plasma.

Not once has that stopped anybody from hanging it above the fireplace.

Not once have I had a call stating that the plasma was dead due to the fireplace.

But it does remind me of a funny story.

Customer wants plasma mounted above fireplace. The fireplace is a little abnormal, the mantle is about a foot higher than what you would normally see in a house.
I beg the guy...." you don't want to put it there. by the time you get done watching TV your neck is going to fell like you've been in a wrestling match." The guy was a jerk, he insisted. I hung the TV.

4 days later he calls back.........." The TV is too high, it needs to be lowered" "Sir, I can't lower it enough to make a difference because of the mantle being so high."

"I want to talk to your boss."

"You ARE talking to him"

"This thing needs to be moved, you should haven't hung it up that high"

"Sir will you go get your paperwork that I left you"

"I've got it right here"

"What does it say at the bottom of your invoice"

"Customer was told that TV viewing would be uncomfortable due height of TV"

"Sir, I would be more than happy to come back out and move the TV for you but I will have to charge you to take it down and reinstall it in another location."

he paid.

Just goes to show:

If it's in writing, they'll pay to correct their poor judgement.

If it's not in writing, it's our fault! And should be free! Including the cost of repairs to the "wrong" location!

Need I say more?

Anybody have any good ideas of how to hide the wires for a plasma on an all brick fireplace? The fireplace is not used so heat would not be an issue. Thanks

Hang it an tilt it.

I have had one above my personal fire place for 2 years with out a problem. It's tilted and the neck cramp thing is not a problem. Looking at a CRT in a bookcase 8 feet to the right of fireplace... that caused neck cramps. My technoligically challenged, decorator wife loves it above the fireplace. And we do burn the fireplace (gas) pretty much all winter. Now if I could only get her use the touchscreens......