Homemade TV Lift

Once you've splashed out on a top-of-the-range flat-screen TV you need to find a home that suitably reflects its magnificence. You can buy special tables for your new screen and flat-screens are designed to hang on a wall like a picture in a gallery. But, to really go for that luxurious touch, what about a lift which smoothly raises the screen from out of the cabinet or table. Once you have finished watching the television, you can return it to the cabinet and out of site. As of 2011, it will cost you around $500 to buy one, or you can follow this guide to making your own. Does this Spark an idea?

Instructions

1

Choose whether to make a new case or adapt some old furniture. Desks and dressers can be gutted for this purpose with the front of the drawers fixed back on as a facade. There needs to be a slot in the top to allow the screen to enter and exit the box. For a really smooth look, build a cover at the top which will open and close as the TV rises and falls.

2

Attach both two-by-four boards to the inside of your container and attach the guide rails to them. Firmly nail or glue the plywood to the two-by-fours to take the weight of the brackets and the screen.

3

Make a platform for the television inside your container. It needs to fit between the two-by-fours and be able to move smoothly inside the box.

4

Affix the DC linear actuator to your sheet of plywood. The motor should be fixed to the bottom of the container using a bracket. The actuator's rod needs to connect to the ply sheet as far up the sheet as possible.

5

Connect the power adapter to the actuator. The adapter needs a minimum of five and a maximum of 10 amps to run. It has to be this level for safety reasons.

6

Connect the switch and remote control so it turns on and off the lift mechanism. Follow the instructions supplied with the machinery you have purchased.

7

Connect everything to the power via the 12-volt DC outlet and test the lift. If everything is in working order, then you just need to connect your television and put it in place to enjoy your new toy.