Project example: a 55-inch TV and soundbar on an interior wall of a Westside-style townhome — what is done and what it costs

The scenario

Picture a three-level townhome in a row of attached homes. The living room sits on the middle floor, long and narrow, with the sofa only a few feet from the wall where the household first wants the TV. That wall is the one shared with the neighbor, which is where the problem begins.

Condo and townhome CC&Rs often limit holes in a wall shared with another home, and the wall between two homes is often a fire-rated separation. A mount screwed into it, and especially a recessed box cut into it, can affect it. Sound is the second concern, because a TV on that wall sends bass straight through to the neighbor's living room.

The plan therefore moves the screen to an interior partition on the stair side of the room, a wall that belongs entirely to this home. The household also wants a soundbar, which needs its own fixing below the screen.

What the job involves

1. The household reads the association's current rules and any approval form first; the installer does not drill until that is settled.
2. A magnet and a probe hole behind the planned plate show whether the interior partition is wood or steel studs.
3. Tape marks the screen outline at the sofa's eye line, which in a narrow room sits a little lower than in a wide one.
4. The plate is fixed with lag bolts into wood studs, or with fasteners made for metal studs, and leveled.
5. The TV is hung on a tilting mount, and the tilt is set to clear the glare from the balcony door.
6. A separate bracket for the soundbar is fixed into studs below the screen, with an even gap, and the cables run short behind the bar.

Hardware and materials

• Tilting bracket rated above the TV's weight
• Lag bolts, or metal-stud fasteners where the wall is steel
• A separate soundbar bracket with its own screws
• Magnet, stud finder, laser line and level
• A short paintable raceway to the existing outlet

Add-ons often paired with this job

• Hide the wires inside the wall — +$95–$160. Hiding wires inside an interior partition needs an in-wall rated kit; on a shared wall it is not advisable.
• I need the mount supplied — +$45–$130. If the household has no bracket, the installer can supply one.
• Take down an existing TV first — +$45–$85. A set already on a stand needs nothing; a set already on the wall comes down first.

Why it is done this way

The interior partition costs nothing extra, and it keeps the project away from the question of what the association allows on the wall shared with the neighbor. The association's rules still decide, and the household checks them before any hole is drilled.

Steel studs, found in some newer attached buildings, change the fasteners but add only a little to the price. A probe hole under the plate settles the question quickly.

The soundbar gets its own bracket because hanging it from the TV mount puts a twist on the plate that builds up over time. Its studs sit at the lower height, and they do not always line up with the ones behind the TV.

A new outlet near the TV is an electrician's job and is not part of this scenario. The set plugs into the outlet already on the wall.

What would change the price

• The partition turns out to be steel studs, which changes the fasteners.
• No stud sits where the soundbar bracket needs wood, so a backer piece spans the gap.
• The household prefers the screen higher on the wall for a view from the stairs.
• A 65-inch set replaces the 55-inch and stays in the same band.
• The association asks for notice or paperwork before a contractor works in the building.