Getting the hang of things: Plasma screens can present a decorating challenge

Witness the growing popularity of plasma screens. Despite eye-popping price tags (plasmas can cost anywhere from $2,000 to $20,000), sales of these sleek, sexy sets more than doubled last year according to the Consumer Electronics Association. Yet, as gorgeous as they are to watch, like many a Tinsel town diva, a plasma television can be difficult to deal with in reality.

Positano by Casa Novalia

You may be familiar with a certain commercial, set to the tune, “Its Getting Better All the Time,” in which a hip young couple contemplates exactly where they will hang their new television, much like a work of art. In the ad, the couple totes their plasma screen from room to room in their ultra-modern space, in search of the perfect bit or wall, finally settling on hanging the television on the ceiling above their bed.

Unfortunately, as cool as it looks, say the experts, the whole scene is not very realistic. For one thing, while plasmas may be think these TVs, which often weigh hundreds of pounds, are a bit too heavy to cart blithely from room to room. There’s also another not-so-minor detail that the commercial overlooks; wires, and lots of them. We’re not just talking about the wire necessary for power. There are cables, satellite and/or HDTV monitor hook-ups that generally must be dealt with, as well as the “spaghetti” that trails from DVD, VHS, stereo and home theater components, all part and parcel of the television viewing experience today.

The Furniture Fix

There are, however, other ways to solve the problem of where to put a plasma television. Among these, a flat screen can hang on an entertainment center specially designed to accommodate these televisions. Such entertainment pieces usually have a “backboard” to which the flat-panel monitor can be attached. Excelsior has a number of options that accentuate a digital television’s slender dimensions, that will also blend well with your existing furnishings or can even inspire a whole new look.

Design experts say furniture is a good option for a number of reasons. Chief among these is that although plasma televisions are designed to be wall-mounted, you can’t just bang a nail into a wall and expect to hang one of these TVs the way you might a framed picture. In fact, actually hanging one of these screens on a wall can be a complicated, costly endeavor, particularly for people who live in older homes that have not been pre-wired for newer technologies. For many homeowners, hanging a plasma screen will likely require the assistance of a contractor, electrician and carpenter, as well as a painter or two to patch up the mess left by all the others. Before all is said and done, the price tag for the installation may exceed that of the television itself.

Ceriana by Excelsior Designs

But what happens, after going to all this trouble and expense, when you change your mind about the look of your room and it’s time to re-decorate? After all, a year or two down the road, you may decide it’s time for something different. Suddenly, keeping current with the latest in home fashions and trends is no longer just a matter of shifting furniture around the room. It your new configuration requires moving the TV, the whole messy, expensive process begins again!

Some in the building trades have sought to solve this particular home entertainment dilemma by building plasma screens into the wall above the fireplace in new homes – enabling homeowners to view their television and a roaring fire at the same time. Although this appears to be a growing trend in new construction, the design community is almost universal in its negative assessment of the arrangement.

“It sounds great in theory, but it almost always looks tacky,” says one home design expert. Beyond aesthetics, “plasma screens are fragile, easily damaged and nearly impossible to repair when something goes wrong. The last thing you want to do is place a major heat source like a fireplace directly underneath them!”