Introduction
In the 2020+ View/Navion 24D floor plan, the TV is mounted on the overhead cabinet centered above the galley. This is a great location as it can be viewed from both the dinette and the sofa/bed area. The only issue is that it is mounted way up high, thus causing a neck strain while watching the TV. I have been scouring the internet for TV mount that can move the TV up and down. With all the different TV wall mounts out there, I couldn't believe that there are no wall mounts that can do the simple task of moving the TV vertically up and down, except for 2 of them.
The first is made by MORryde. It uses a strut and parallel hinges that swings the TV up and down/out. The mechanism seems complicated and bulky. With the TV in the top position, the mount is 5" thick, pushing the TV out into the living space. That would get in the way of using the galley. The good thing is that it does have a latch to keep the TV in the top position.
MORryder Drop Down TV Mount: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004OMER86
The second one is made by Ergotron. It looks like it uses a spring mechanism to slide the TV up and down. I really liked the design. After some research into the mount, I realized 2 issues that need to be addressed before it can be used. One, There's no locking mechanism to keep the TV in the top position. So with the RV bouncing down the road, the TV can potentially be bouncing up and down the slide. Two, with the TV at the top position, the arm must be mounted a few inches lower than the cabinet door.
Ergotron Glide Wall Mount LD-X: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HE0N1SC
Therefore, these 2 mounts will not work for what I wanted. With no solution in sight, I told myself that I just have to invent one. I started to do research on mechanisms on what would make sense. I started with a hydrolic strut and imagining how to make the TV go up and down smoothly. One night it came to me. I couldn't believe how simple this is. I stayed up all night to come up with a concept.
The Idea
The idea is so simple that I couldn't believe I didn't think of it sooner. It came to me as we are installing pull out drawers in the house kitchen pantry because we loved how the pull out drawers worked in the pantry of the RV.
The concept is to use drawer slides mounted vertically and flat against the back of the TV. Yes, just simply drawer slides. I started to do research on the internet on everything there is to know about drawer slides. Came to find out that most drawer slides are not designed to be used vertically as they are not designed to hold any weight in that orientation. They are mostly designed to hold a lot of weight when mounted horizontally. I kept researching until I came across the Heavy Duty LOCKING drawer slides. These LOCKING drawer slides has a latching mechanism that keeps the slide locked in both the fully opened position as well as in the closed position. A latch must be manually operated to allow the slide to move in and out. I immediately ordered a few sets of various sizes to toy with what they can do.
After arriving, I studied on the potential latching mechanism to see if they can be used vertically to hold a 32" TV. With a simple test, it can hold more than enough weight of a 32" TV. I was estatic and went on figuring out how best to use it. I first thought of having the slides mounted on the face of the cabinet door and have a TV mounting plate on the slides that can be mounted on the TV. When I looked at the custom TV mounting bracket that is being used in the 2020+ View/Navion, I realized that it can be so much more simpler. I'll be using the existing mounting bracket and slide the whole thing up and down. The de-construction is now in motion.
Preparations
First, the TV must be removed. Disconnect all connectors including the power cord. The TV that came with the RV didn't have a disconnectable power cord. I had to disconnect the power plug from the wall outlet and pull it out of the side hidden cable management compartment. I then removed the 2 metal self tap screws on the bottom of the mounting bracket that's holding the TV VESA mount. Then I realized that the TV is also kept in place by double sided tapes on both left and right back side to the L brackets on the front of the door. I used a thin knive and putty knive to ply loose the double sided tape. To make that easier, remove the 2 bottom screws of the 4 VESA screws that's holding the VESA mount to the TV, and then loosen the 2 top screws of the 4 VESA screws. This allows some movement of the TV during the plying while keeping it from falling. Take care not to damage the TV. After the double sided tapes are plied apart, take the TV off by lifting it up and outward. Be careful not to tangle up the power cable. Set the TV somewhere safe faced down.
I then removed the screw that's holding the steel wire that retains the door from opening too far. Then remove the door from the cabinet by removing the 4 wood screws that holds the door onto the piano hinge. Then move the door onto a flat surface to work on. I put a beach towel on the dinette table and used it to work on the door.
Take a good look at the door. It is a solid wood door with a huge hole in the middle like an upside down U shape that's structually reinforced by the metal mounting bracket using 9 wood screws. 3 screws across the top and 3 screws down each side. While the mounting bracket is still on the door, we'll need to reinforce the wood door with L brackets and joint connector, because we'll be removing the structual support of the mounting bracket in the next few steps.
Mount the 4 3-1/2" L brackets with 2 on each upper corner to strengthen the corners. Be sure to drill pilot holes. We don't want to split the wood. We are trying to strengthen it, not to split and weaken it. Use the included wood screw to keep the L brackets in place. Then flip the door over and remove the 9 wood screws that holds the mounting bracket onto the door. Screw the joint connector across the top to strengthen the top beam of the door. Again, be sure to drill pilot holes. Now the door is ready for the main feature, the drawer slides.
Install the Sliders
Look at the 3 holes that are on the right side of the door that used to hold the mounting brackets. Use a ruler and measuring tape and check if the 3 holes are parallel to the side of the door. Mine was slightly off. (After reinstalling the door, it looks like the slightly off mounting bracket was to offset the slightly off to the door hinge.) So I used the bottom hole as my reference point and drew a line through the middle of the bottom hole, parallel to the side of the door to keep the 2 slides squarely parallel. Then I did the same on the left side of the door.
Now you need to decide if you prefer the latch to be pushed inwards towards each other to open/close or to pull the latch outwards to open/close. I chose the former. I think it's a lot easier to push inward with 2 hands than to pull outward. I placed the 2 slides so the blue latch is on the outside.
Open the right side slide all the way out and align it so the center of the mounting holes are lined up with the line that I drew on the left side of the door. Then line it up so the top of the slide is at the top of the door. Mark the 6 mounting hole locations on the door. Then repeat for the left side of the door. Drill pilot holes. Then use the 4 out of 9 wood screws that came off of the mounting bracket, with washer to screw the right side slide onto the door. Use 2 of the 1/2" wood screw to fill in the 2 other mounting holes. Then do the same on the left side of the door, but use the remaining 5 out of 9 screws from the mounting bracket and one 1/2" wood screw.
Now to remove the inner most track from the slides, pull it all the way open, then continue to pull as you hold the latch in the release position. This way it'll come out of the slide so you can mount it onto the mounting bracket. I found out that the very bottom hole in the lower set of 3 holes on the inner track and the middle hole in the upper set of 3 holes in the inner track matches the top and bottom holes on the mounting bracket.
I would take the mounting bracket and the inner track to the hardware store and find short (1/2") machine screws with wide head, washer, and nuts that would go through the holes on the inner track to hold to the mounting bracket. I have a bunch of similar machine screws, washers, and nuts that I have laying around in the garage that I used. So I do not have the proper size to tell you.
Do not tighten the screws on the inner track. Once the mounting bracket is mounted on the inner tracks on both left and right side, slide the inner tracks back into the slides. It might take a bit of a wiggle at first. Don't forget that you'll need to push the latch inwards to get past the locking mechanism. Once the inner tracks are in, slide it a few times to make sure of smooth operation. Then open the slides to tighten the screws on the inner track. After tightening the screws, try the slides again a few times to make sure the tracks are operating smoothly.
Final Assembly
Now take the VESA mount off of the back of the TV. Use machine screws and nuts to mount the wall side of the quick release VESA bracket onto the VESA mount. Again, I had machine screws and nuts laying around that I used. It would be a good idea to bring the brackets with you to the hardware store to find matchine machine screws and nuts. The screws that came with the quick release VESA mount should work, but you should at least get some nuts for them. Then put the VESA mount back onto the mounting bracket and screw the 2 metal self tapping screws back on the bottom of the mounting bracket.
Have someone hold the door onto the piano hinge while you screw the 4 wood screws to re-install the door back onto the hinge. Close the door and test the door latch onto the cabinet. Reinstall the retaining steel wire door stopper. Then test the slide operation again to make sure everything is in working order. Now we can remount the TV.
Now using the 4 original VESA screws, mount the TV side of the Quick release VESA bracket onto the TV. Then simply slide the Quick release VESA bracket onto the mounted side of the quick release mount and screw in the quick release lock screw.
To slide the TV down, push the blue latches inward and let the TV down the slide. To raise it up, push the latches inward and push the TV up. The catch at the top position does require a bit of a push to latch. So make sure the TV is latched at the top before letting it go.
Cable Management
I have not done the cable management yet. I'll need to come up with a solution to keep all the cables out of the way while the TV is moving up and down. I'll finish this up when I get the cable management done.
Vadana Heavy Duty Locking Slides 14"
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07HQH4719
Mount Plus VESA quick release mount kit
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07M83LGJ1
3-1/2" L brackets (4 pack)
https://www.lowes.com/pd/National-Hardware-4-Pack-3-5-in-x-3-5-in-x-0-07-in-Zinc-Alloy-Flat-Brace/1000152247
18" x 1-1/4" Joint Connector
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Simpson-Strong-Tie-18-in-18-Gauge-Strap-Z-MAX/3006445
1/2" Wood screws:
* I'm not affiliated with any of the links above.