Got a new tv that works with my existing mount but it’s just not working like we need for this bigger tv. Could I put a new mount using the same holes. My concern is the bolts won’t have the same resistance to being pulled out. Google foo was no help on this and the Reddit link of course has been deleted. Thanks in advance!
If you use the same bolts and you’re careful not to cross thread the studs, then it should have similar holding strength. I don’t know how much it would be diminished if you did cross thread, though. The bolts for these mount tend to be rather large relative to the width of the studs, but my guess is that it wouldn’t matter much.
What I do when I mount TV’s, or anything heavy, is I first mount a plywood interface using a French cleat, and then bolt the TV mount to the plywood instead of the wall, so that I can position it exactly where I want it. I don’t know if that will help here, but it might.
A French cleat has enough strength? The tv is like 65lbs and I’ll be putting it on a mount with a 40” reach so it will be hanging kinda far off the wall while in use. Otherwise it will be folded up to the wall.
You can make a French cleat as strong as you want. If you’re moving the TV around a lot and having it that far away from the wall, I would be worried about the French cleat camming out if you don’t make the plywood panel tall enough. You could mitigate this by clamping the cleat together with screws or actual clamps, but if I was going to be moving the TV around, I’d do a more rigid mounting system. I’d still use a plywood interface, and I’d still space it off the wall a bit to allow for cable routing, bolts for the TV mount, etc., but I would just bolt the whole thing to the wall.
Just get a bit longer bolts and you’ll be fine. I’ve mounted tvs at my job for 7 years and I have done this a ton and never had an issue. You’ll be fine for sure if you’re in the studs.
They’re than Googling “foo,” you should try a more relevant search term like “reuse TV wall mount holes.” The first result from that is: https://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/15303/is-it-safe-to-re-use-drill-holes-in-a-wall#:~:text=If the screws go back,away from the existing holes.
Hopefully this improves your Google-fu.
I would give the same advice.
I would also take the features and integrity of the old mount into consideration. If it doesn’t articulate, for instance, or if it doesn’t have tilt adjust, then it might be worth upgrading the mount itself while it’s off the wall.
I would also check for smooth operation, cracks, bulges or dents, or severe corrosion (unlikely near a TV but you never know). If the mount shows any of these, recycle it and get a new one.
As the article mentions, keeping the TV on the wall successfully for the long haul is the ultimate goal here.
