Earthquake proofing.

[BlackLightShark009]

I been thinking of this for awhile now. What would be some good ways to prevent a tv from falling during a earthquake or at least reduce the risk? I do not have a flat panel yet but my roommate does. His tv is not wall mounted and i've thought of maybe getting some sort of straps to lock over the stand, but in a way that would not make them stand out. Possibly covering them up with something. I'm not in need of solutions right away.
I just thought that this would be a good topic for everyone to talk about and even if others have ideas of securing HT equipment you could discuss it all here.

[Fors*]

I would secure it to the wall behind it with some kind of strap or something....like some furniture manufacturers do with tall bookcases and such......

[JBL4645]

Originally Posted by Fors*

I would secure it to the wall behind it with some kind of strap or something....like some furniture manufacturers do with tall bookcases and such......

And if the wall should buckle under the stresses of an earthquake the wall will most certainly give-way and come crashing down on the TV.

Earthquake is like a box of chocolates, you never know what magnitude you’re gonna get when one strikes!


I don’t know ask one of the contractors that do earthquake repair or study in the California state?

I was thinking of those thick suspension springs used on cars and balancing the TV on that might keep it from falling over, it might wobble bounce around a bit during an earthquake?

You should be more worried getting out of the house first saving your life which can’t be replaced then again most rare items can not be replaced as well.

It’s a rotten thing an earthquake, sure glad I don’t live there. Even the UK gets its rare now then share of an earthquake and I’d like to experience one firsthand.

I imagine after an earthquake you have to check the home to see if it’s structurally sound.

[Sammy]

Contractors don't know jack about earthquake resistant design. STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS DO!

If you are really concerned about it, mount it to the wall with a commercially available mount, which should be fine for the weight of your LCD monitor. If that doesn't work for you, use some nylon webing (1" wide or so) and strap the stand down to whatever the panel is attacted to and then make sure that piece of furniture is adequatelly attached to the wall studs with #8x3" wood screws. The studs are adaquatelly attached to the remainder of the framing for the most part.

One thing to consider is the manufacturer's stand that the panel is attached to may fail at that attachment to the panel so you may want supplemental restraint above the horizontal centerline of the panel to either the cabinet or to the wall itself.

As for me, I don't worry about it too much, I haven't even bolted my 80 year old house down to the foundation and I should know better!

[sham]

my plasma came with a kit that included a cord that i could attach to a stud behind the tv and then fasten to the tv itself. i think this may be designed to prevent tvs from falling on small kids?

[progers13]

I'm thinking insurance Like someone else said, they are very unpredictable. Best thing you can go is to have it insured in case something happens.

[Sammy]

Earthquake insurance is a waste of money. For a very nice premium they only cover up to something like $1000 of contents and the coverage on your house doesn't start until you go beyond 15% of the replacement value (or something like $25,000 +/- depending on where you live and what it costs to rebuild your house not what you could sell it for in today's market. Earthquake insurance is not available to renters for contents as far as I know.

[progers13]

Originally Posted by Sammy

Earthquake insurance is a waste of money. For a very nice premium they only cover up to something like $1000 of contents and the coverage on your house doesn't start until you go beyond 15% of the replacement value (or something like $25,000 +/- depending on where you live and what it costs to rebuild your house not what you could sell it for in today's market. Earthquake insurance is not available to renters for contents as far as I know.

Some would say the same of flood insurance in Florida, but to each his own. I'm covered.

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by JBL4645

And if the wall should buckle under the stresses of an earthquake the wall will most certainly give-way and come crashing down on the TV.

Earthquake is like a box of chocolates, you never know what magnitude you’re gonna get when one strikes!


I don’t know ask one of the contractors that do earthquake repair or study in the California state?

I was thinking of those thick suspension springs used on cars and balancing the TV on that might keep it from falling over, it might wobble bounce around a bit during an earthquake?

You should be more worried getting out of the house first saving your life which can’t be replaced then again most rare items can not be replaced as well.

It’s a rotten thing an earthquake, sure glad I don’t live there. Even the UK gets its rare now then share of an earthquake and I’d like to experience one firsthand.

I imagine after an earthquake you have to check the home to see if it’s structurally sound.

I knew someone would say that. If the wall comes down, and the TV with it, then so be it, nothing else would have worked anyway.

[JBL4645]

Originally Posted by Fors*

I knew someone would say that. If the wall comes down, and the TV with it, then so be it, nothing else would have worked anyway.

It’s a no win situation. The earthquake is bigger than all our sound systems put together! The earthquake is force of nature that can’t be defied.

First there’s the (P-wave) primary-wave, travelling faster then speed of sound!
Second (S-wave) seismic-wave, that conflicts all the motion rocking around, destructive devastation!

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by JBL4645

It’s a no win situation. The earthquake is bigger than all our sound systems put together! The earthquake is force of nature that can’t be defied.

First there’s the (P-wave) primary-wave, travelling faster then speed of sound!
Second (S-wave) seismic-wave, that conflicts all the motion rocking around, destructive devastation!

Mother nature is already doing a number on me...she dumped 2 feet of snow 2 days ago and is going to add another foot of the white stuff on Wednesday....at this time, I think I may like the earthquake better.....

[Kevinbsiemens]

Instead of earthquake proofing you should add earthquake insurance to your current homeowners or renters insurance. I know my TV is $1000 less than it was last year so imagine the upgrade you can get if it were to brake and you had insurance.

[BlackLightShark009]

Of course i am worried bout my life. I was around for the 7.0 in 89 thankfully i was not home though the tv we had then never made it off the stand. But anyway like i said just was wondering bout ideas aside from insurance.

[JBL4645]

Originally Posted by Fors*

Mother nature is already doing a number on me...she dumped 2 feet of snow 2 days ago and is going to add another foot of the white stuff on Wednesday....at this time, I think I may like the earthquake better.....

LOL no not laughing about the issue I’m laughing at the way you said that. LOL

[JBL4645]

Originally Posted by BlackLightShark009

Of course i am worried bout my life. I was around for the 7.0 in 89 thankfully i was not home though the tv we had then never made it off the stand. But anyway like i said just was wondering bout ideas aside from insurance.

Yeah I seem to recall that. The bridges gave way and crashed many.

[Vicon]

Mount it to the wall. It will be safer there, than on a stand. If the wall comes down, a broken tv is the least of your worries

[petew]

Glad I live in New Mexico. All we have here is dust.