Panel TV wall-mount metal studs

I've bought a flat panel TV wall-mount from futureshop for my condo living room. The wall mount is made by Sanus(Sanus Adjustable Tilt Universal Flat Panel TV Wall Mount (VMSAS-03) - online sale for $70 less!) and it has a short extendable arm. Not until I returned home and looked at the specs of my condo, and only to learn that I have metal studs in the dry-wall instead of wooden ones. In the instruction booklet of the wall-mount, it specifically said that the hardware(assuming that they are talking about the long screws for the mounting) provided in the package is only for wooden studs, not metal, not concrete etc... I've never installed anything like this before. What is the solution here? Would I have to go to hw stores such as Reno-Depot or Rona to get the metal stud fasteners? If so, I don't even know how they work vs. regular screws. The mount itself weight already 35 to 40 pounds, and I assume that the panel TV(which brand and model yet to be determined by my wife and I) will probably weight abut 40 to 50 lbs(plus the short extendable arm). Any expert here has any ideas on how to mount or what hw I should get to mount this onto the wall? Your advice is much appreciated...

AL

Reply to
A. Lo
Loading thread data ...

All I can think of is some scheme to spread out the load. Maybe a piece of plywood screwed into everything you can find, then the bracket to the plywood? Years back, I had a office where the metal studs were used, and there was no end of trouble hanging stuff like cabinets. How are your kitchen cabinets hung?

Reply to
professorpaul

I'd imagine the problem isn't so much the fasteners ( toggles or large mollys should hold that weight), but the ability of a metal studded wall to support it without bulging out.

Reply to
Eric in North TX

As long as it's a heavy guage stud ( and I'm assuming it is being that this is a condo with certain building codes) it shoud not be a problem. The sheet rock itself spreads the load across the stud. You could use sheet metal screws or if you want to be real secure use toggle bolts through the studs. But as long as the entire assembly weighs less than

70 lbs you should be fine with just screws.
Reply to
Mikepier

I believe the studs will be heavy gauge IF it is a load-bearing wall,,,if it is just a partition it could possibly have light gauge..Self-tapping(drill tip) screws are easy to find and work well in heavy gauge studs..One way to test the gauge is to try a standard drywall screw for wood,,if light gauge studs the wood screw will penetrate before long,,if heavy gauge the screw made for wood will dull...It might be safer and easier to ask management to look at the plans so You do'nt make un-needed holes.. Dean in Iowa

Mikepier wrote:

Reply to
Dean

Thanks a lot for the advice, guys. I agreed with Eric that the metal stud might nothave enough strength to hold the mere 100lbs weight of the wall mount and the panel TV. I think I'll probably have to check with my contractor first before I take any action. I assume that the studs they use can and will support the gross weight that I've mentioned.

AL

Reply to
A. Lo

Thank you Dean, I am actually seeing the builder and the contractor today about our floor. I'll post the question to them and confirm if the stids are heavy gauge or light gauge. However, if they are heavry gauge, will I need metal studs fasteners or toggle bolt for the installation? Or the self-tapping screws are sufficient enough?

AL

Reply to
A. Lo

AL-

I've worked with metal studs & the key to mounting items to a metal stud wall is spreading the load across a few studs (ideally at least three)

Metal studs are strong in the global sense but their flanges are much more flexible locally than a similar connection to a wood stud.

18 gauge (.043") or 20 gauge (.037") are about as thin as I feel comfortable depending on screwing into the stud flange for hanging heavy / important loads

If 22 or 24 gauge have been used.... there is a high probability of screws stripping out.

Additonally, the pullout strength in studs thinner than 18 gauge is not only MUCH lower than 18 gauge but the pullout strengths are highly variable.

With 16 or 18 gauge studs you're in good shape...... 20 gauge I'd start to get nervous

& at 22 or thinner I'd want a large piece of plywood (16" x 34") with lots of screws (~20+)

Another poster suggested spreading the load from the bracket into a piece of plywood....

good advice, you can use a substantial number of screws to hold the plywood to the steel studs thus spreading the load well & minimizing any corner punching of the drywall.

suggested fastener style

a TEK style self drilling screw, clearance holes thru the plywood suggested

90064A463 Znc-Pltd Stl Hex Washer Head Self-Drill Screw 10-16 Thread, 2" Length, Drill Point #3 In stock at $10.45 per 100 Pack
formatting link

if you cannot find them locally

cheers Bob

Reply to
BobK207

Go back to the hardware store and ask for a pound of 16d nails. Just like that. "Sixteen dee nails". Use the nails to put the TV onto the wall. Put the nails about four inches in from each corner. Use two nails per corner of the TV.

Of course, I could be kidding. You could use a sheet of half inch plywood stuck to the wall with liquid nails. And then mount to the plywood.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

What I have seen done with success is using toggle bolts through the stud, so that there is no chance of the bolt stripping out of the stud, plus the toggle spreads the load across the flange. You have to find the center of the stud, and drill a few good size holes to accept the toggles, usually about 1/2".

Reply to
Mikepier

It really helps to understand that there are two types of stresses involved at the wall: shear- attempting to laterally displace .the mount along the wall; bending- resulting in tensile force at upper attachment(s) and compression at lower. Note also that the tensile/compression forces drop in magnitude as the attachment points are spread vertically. And they increase as the position of the c.g. of the assembly moves away from the wall.

A creative person can often manage additional load pickups to reduce what could be critical stresses. But first, you've got to understand what's going on where. After all, you might want to have a safety restraint- cable or fishing line maybe- in case tv takes flight.

HTH, J

Reply to
barry

J-

Great description of the forces at the mount / wall interface......the tensile forces are why glue alone is not a great idea.

The tensile forces at the upper edge of the plywood are resisted by drywall paper tensile strength (through the thickness of the paper)......not a very reliable load path

I wouldn't want to depend on paper strength to hold up my $X,000 flat screen.

cheers Bob

Reply to
BobK207

Reply to
Dean

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.