Designing and Installing Outdoor Television and Outdoor Audio Systems in New England
Design Your Outdoor Oasis Today!
TVIP is Here to Help Make Your Outdoor Entertainment Vision a Reality.
Sitting poolside, sipping on a cool drink, watching the kids playing in the pool, or hanging around the firepit with friends under the stars - almost perfect! But something is missing… You want to watch the game outside or put on your favorite summer playlist while you are hanging by the pool. Right?
We’re here to help! We can help design the perfect outdoor entertainment system for you, including providing the perfect equipment for your budget and setup, and making sure when it’s time to relax, it just works!
First, let’s talk TVs. All of our outdoor TVs are rated to withstand the elements, including high and low temperatures in the New England summers and winters, and moisture protection from rain and snow. Here are a few things we will discuss when we come out to design your system:
Sun - one of the best parts about summer! Except for TVs, they don’t like sun at all. How much sun does your location get? It’s not just about watch-ability during bright sunshine, but untreated outdoor TV screens can actually get permanently damaged by the sun’s UV rays, and your TV screen will end up looking like oil slick. Picture what happens when you hang a piece of colored paper in a sunny window - over time the color fades. Your TV will literally develop black spots when the sun heats it up. There are generally three categories of outdoor rated TVs:
Full shade - designed for covered spaces that receive no direct sunlight at all, like a gazebo or a long overhang. No isotropic coating at all. They are still brighter than an indoor TV, but no protection from UV. Also the most affordable, and works great for many situations. A good example of this would be the Sunbrite Veranda or Seura Shade series.
Partial shade - gets some sun, but not full sun all day. These screens have some protection from UV rays and are brighter than full shade. A good example in this category would be the Samsung Terrace (currently our favorite and most popular model)
Full sun - These TVs are designed to handle the suns rays all day and are super bright (and super expensive, be prepared for significant investment in this category. A few examples are the Seura Ultra Bright, Samsung Full Sun 75” Terrace, or Sunbrite Pro.
Next up is Mount location and mount type. There are several choices based on your TV Location. Flat/tilting mounts, typically best for horizontal structures like the side of your home, pool house, or shed is the most popular mount type. “But what about the bumpy shingles or vinyl siding?” you ask. Leave that to us! We’ve mounted over 100 outdoor televisions and have developed our “secret sauce” solution for this. We won’t bore you with all the details, but needless to say it will be flat, flawless, and weather tight. Here’s a picture from our most recent outdoor install on the side of a home in Sudbury, just before we put the TV up.
Our electrician will wire up a brand new GFCI outdoor rated outlet right behind the TV for power, and we can help you figure out the best smart TV apps and streaming services to cut the cord outside, or run wiring to an indoor location for a traditional cable box if you prefer.
We can also do pole mounts which can be mounted to a deck or other floor surface such as stone patio, or a ceiling mount dropped down from a pergola or gazebo for example. All of our outdoor mounts are specially treated to be outdoor/weather proof with a powder coating to ensure they don’t rust up on you while outside. And all of our TVs can stay outside all year round, even in Boston winters and hot summers!
Lastly, there’s sound! We strongly recommend adding a soundbar to ensure all of your guests can hear and enjoy the big game and the kids can enjoy outdoor move night as sound can disperse quickly in big outdoor areas! Soundbars also add a much richer sound and deeper bass, perfect for those outdoor drive in at home nights. Many are designed to be specific matches for your TV and are also weather proof all year round.
Check in here for our next edition, where we will cover sound design for your pool and garden areas, and our lighting page where we cover outdoor landscape lighting design to turn your home and yard into a living work of art and light the way for your family and friends!