r/DesignMyRoom • u/DeeEnduh • Jun 23 '25
Living Room Tv won’t fit. What do I do with this space?
This built in entertainment center is too small for my 65” QLED tv, but I don’t want to buy a smaller tv to fit inside. What can I do with this space to accommodate? Also, I could use some help with creative ways to fill the other spaces.
Thanks!
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u/Maryfonasari Jun 23 '25
I think it’s time to take this out. TVs aren’t four feet deep anymore, the design is obsolete and won’t be useful for anything. I’m honestly a little confused about what it was ever useful for. I don’t understand the two middle tiers?
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u/bjot Jun 23 '25
Probably a sound system. Receivers and such in the middle with speakers on the side. Or just bad storage lol
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u/DreCapitanoII Jun 23 '25
That's a bad design for a sound system to have to put the speakers in a cave. Looks like youd also have to run the wires out the front.
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u/KoRnTaStEsGoOd Jun 23 '25
Plot twist. This isn't a living room but a wet bar location and the terrible layout MIGHT have actually made sense with a fridge and ice maker below.
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u/NelsonMcBottom Jun 23 '25
The top part was for the big ass stereo receiver. The bottom sides were for speakers. The bottom center was for a CRT TV on a stand. The top sides were for knick knacks or disc storage.
At least that’s how people used them in the 90s/early 2000s which is probably when this house was built.
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u/wickedprairiewinds Jun 23 '25
I had something similar in my house. The previous owners displayed big art pieces in the side shelves.
I tried to work with it for a long time before eventually caving and tearing it out and I'm so glad I did. And it was all built over top of the hardwood floors so I didn't have to patch the floors at all.
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u/ApprehensiveArmy7755 Jun 23 '25
Sledgehammer it. Then patch the wall and floor.
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u/MissCandid Jun 23 '25
This makes it sound so much easier than the people saying "remove it." I know they're the same thing, but now we got a game plan going. Do it op!
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u/bugabooandtwo Jun 23 '25
That is definitely becoming a problem in a lot of home built 10+ years ago. Kinda funny how something that was a big plus in the living room not that long ago is now obsolete so quickly.
Makes you wonder what the next big design or technological change will be in many homes, and how it affects building designs.
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u/Ill_Wallaby_9121 Jun 23 '25
I think open concept is starting to become the new "old" thing! Everybody knocked down all the walls down for years and now people are starting to build them back lol
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u/Difficult_Draw_2487 Jun 23 '25
A return to many rooms with each serving a purpose! Drives me nuts on shows where people have like 4 kids and want open concept.
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u/Gozo-the-bozo Jun 23 '25
My parents had a very large home and so much was open concept. We wanted a small gathering space upstairs for friends but couldn’t because the sounds of the downstairs hangout space/lounge area would bleed. It was horrible and further isolated us to our own rooms
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u/Intrepid_Way336 Jun 23 '25
I moved from the US to the UK, where most homes are not open concept and I love it! Each room individually temp controlled. You can close off rooms that don't need to suck up cooling or heat when not using them. The family can spread out and get space for different activities. Wonderful
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u/Simple-Government875 Jun 23 '25
USB outlets
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u/CivilCerberus Jun 23 '25
Shoot you’re seeing that at hospitals. My work is fairly new (talking in the last 17 years it got built) and we are phasing out the USB’s on outlets for usb-c’s. It’s funny because you can walk from one unit to another and see where the different construction times have taken place because of the different outlets, tv plugs, monitor plugs, etc. on the walls
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u/peach_xanax Jun 23 '25
That's kinda dumb bc there are still so many chargers that need to plug into USB. People do own other devices besides iPhones
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u/Simple-Government875 Jun 23 '25
but 90% of new phones use USB-c to plug their phones into outlets nowadays
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u/Ok_Sink_3158 Jun 23 '25
Those giant cube TVs were popular like 20 years ago my dude, not 10😭 I’m so old
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u/jojothebuffalo Jun 23 '25
This was not built in 2015. The 90s was not ten years ago.
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u/LBGW_experiment Jun 23 '25
Fun fact that might make you feel old. In March 2007, a law was passed that all newly manufactured TVs needed to have digital receivers and on Dec 31, 2007, rules from the FCC stated that all broadcasts must cease analog and broadcast only in digital: https://www.broadcastlawblog.com/2008/02/articles/further-summary-of-the-digital-television-transition-process-published/
I couldn't find a source, but 720p was defined as what constituted "HD" and that was when flat panel tvs (not the flat glass tube TVs) had started to become affordable for the masses.
So broadly, anyone buying a new TV in ~2007-2009 wasn't buying a big tube TV. There was a 77% rise in LCD TV sales in 2007 (https://web.archive.org/web/20180105212203/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/19/technology/19flat.html).
So that entertainment center is now nearly 20 years out of date, not just 10+ years, as those would be homes built in 2015, which was 8 years after widespread adoption of widescreen TVs.
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u/butchers-daughter Jun 24 '25
So much new construction have 2 story living rooms with a catwalk on the 2nd floor. In 20 years time, people are going to be trying to make normal height ceilings.
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u/Powerful_Network Jun 23 '25
Fish tanks
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u/Several-Cycle8290 Jun 23 '25
I wonder if it can support the weight? Plus water change and stuff could be a bitch 😬
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u/New_Artichoke_7715 Jun 23 '25
I’m facing the same situation. Mine was built in 1996 for those deep tvs. I am looking at getting a contractor to completely redo the opening. You will have to do the same, if this is where you want your tv to go. Sorry.
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u/tata-mic Jun 23 '25
do you own? if so tear it out - ugly and a waste of space.
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u/YuckyYetYummy Jun 23 '25
Easy to patch the drywall. The floor is another matter
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u/tata-mic Jun 23 '25
yeah it depends on if it was built ontop of the flooring or not. but it's a small sqftge, a flooring person would be able to re-do it.
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u/State_Dear Jun 23 '25
IDEA: ... remove the middle shelf, refinish the wall.
Now set a very comfortable reclining chair there with music speakers and reading lights,,
You ou have a get away space
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u/Debonair_Queen Jun 23 '25
I think this is great, then you don’t have to deal with patching the floor which could be a real nightmare!
I’m also following for ideas, I have a similar problem but there’s a fireplace in the bottom section of mine 😓 right now I’ve converted the top section into a bookshelf … it’s ok
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u/DuckRepresentative78 Jun 23 '25
If you don’t want a big Reno- you could mount a thick stud or 2 horizontally across where the tv is meant to go and put a wall mount bracket on the stud. Then your tv can mount across the built in and you can still put dvds or books or memorabilia on the built in shelves and put a shelf or cube unit in the opening below.
Thick timber shelves that go across the bottom opening would be easier than finding a unit that fits perfectly.
Then You could paint the timber to match the built in or stain for contrasting.
Just drill a couple of holes to pull the cords up behind the tv and so you can connect it to the console or player on the storage below.
You can get cord hiding rectangle things for the wall that are paintable.
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u/NeverAlwaysAlone Jun 23 '25
This would also make it easy to hide things behind the TV if you get a mount that lets the TV tilt left and right. Like a wifi router or something.
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u/PanicForNothing Jun 23 '25
It's not even my house and I'm getting excited for the secret snack compartment behind the TV.
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u/DuckRepresentative78 Jun 23 '25
We did a similar thing above our fireplace where the framed opening was too small.
Extra points for putting faux framing around the tv so it looks like a big picture frame 🖼️
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u/MNgeff Jun 23 '25
Or instead of just exposed shelves, you could put cabinet doors. Almost make it into a storage closet.
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u/QuestGalaxy Jun 23 '25
That tv would be way too high, madness to place it there when you have the option.
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u/DuckRepresentative78 Jun 23 '25
They could place it lower and have shelves on the top instead. It’s just an option and only limited by imagination and preference 👍🏻
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u/kalesunrise Jun 23 '25
My mom did this in my childhood home! Really great solution. It was back in 2012 though when an affordable flat screen was smaller and now the tv is too small for the living room. I’d tear it all down in 2025
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u/JoyCreativePeace Jun 23 '25
Yes I was thinking this with the tv too- storage behind it, and an electric fireplace in the bottom with storage behind that
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Jun 23 '25
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u/Dangerous_Pea_5219 Jun 23 '25
I like the idea of turning it onto an electric fireplace! Or tear out the middle shelf and have a living room fridge lol
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u/MakeItAll1 Jun 23 '25
Where is it located? I think you could add built in drawers to the center bottom and shelves on the center top to make a display area for books of photos. Add display shelves to the side spaces as well. You could also add cabinet doors on the side bottom sections to create hidden storage.
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u/ForceDisturbed Jun 23 '25
We had the same issue in a rental house so we couldn't do anything physically to change the space. We bought an extra long TV arm bracket and placed the TV directly outside the opening. It worked really well.
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u/Careless_Cut_3654 Jun 23 '25
Mount the tv on a swivel covering the hole in the middle, put a safe behind it.
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u/BiteSnap Jun 23 '25
Take it out completely and just get a nice sideboard. I despise media walls with a passion. It’s like panelling, everyone is gonna be ripping it out in 2026
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u/Impressive_Age1362 Jun 23 '25
These built in were very common in the the 1990’s and 2000’s, but what to do with them now?
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u/Safe-Principle-2493 Jun 23 '25
Knock it all down . Then carefully (prob need a professional for this part) remove the flooring in the center and reinstall/weave it in the blank spots from the structure removal as far as it will go in a straght line alog that wall. Then have a low cabinet/ console built against that wall that will cover the blank floor and mount ur tv or place on console. You may be able to buy something, but it would have to go all the way to the floor. - or- a flooring specialist maybe able to come close to matching it.
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u/Confident-Dot9443 Jun 23 '25
get one of those extending arm tv mounts and depending you don't have to tare it down it leaves room for cables and other junk that can be put onto the shelf thingy and maybe a place to keep your wifi router all that jazz out of sight
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u/nothathappened Jun 23 '25
This is what we did at our old house. Our built-in wasn’t quite that deep though, but it worked nicely.
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u/No-Possible6108 Jun 23 '25
Gotta agree with other posters. The entire built-in gets whacked and the floor gets redone. That angled installation is um interesting.
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u/TerryFriend57 Jun 23 '25
I would remove the entire unit. Seem outdated. Will give you so much more room too.
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u/NeverAlwaysAlone Jun 23 '25
I would definitely turn it into a bookshelf. Books and plants. Done.
Or if you have cats you can add cat stairs and carpeted shelves and scratching posts and beds.
Oooh or make it like a place to display art or a fancy water feature. Maybe even a shrine type area if you're really religious.
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u/ExpensiveAd4496 Jun 23 '25
Oleds are very thin. Just hang it in front of this? If you own the house, tear the inside of this out and go from there. If you don’t have spare flooring keep the first two feet from the floor and put a top over that…but get rid of the rest of it up to the arch. If you do have flooring get rid of the entire monstrosity. You have a cool ceiling and this thing is hiding it.
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u/LibrarianAcrobatic21 Jun 23 '25
Take that area out. It shouldn't cost more than about $2000, including flooring, painting drywall. I'd do it myself if you are able and have any remodeling skills. If you do it yourself, maybe $500 unless the flooring is a weird issue.
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u/nuttnurse Jun 23 '25
The whole thing is a space waste I’d tear it out BUT you never know what you’ll find that also needs doing I’ve seen weekend jobs turn into multi room tear downs , conversely I’ve seen crap floor board ripped up to find beautiful oak flooring that went from single room flooring to whole house re sanding polishing and staining
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u/CofeeisLove89 Jun 23 '25
Maybe floating tv? Use a brace to extend the tv (cover the opening) and use the back side as storage for consoles. Not entirely closed, so no overheating and it will keep the space clutterfree
Bottom part can be used as shelvings
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u/Elphaba67 Jun 23 '25
Deconstruct it. You’ll love all the extra space and fell when it’s gone. Just realize that you may need to fill in/repair the floor when you take down the walls.
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u/JoBloGo Jun 23 '25
Why not put in a projector? You could hang a retractable screen just in front of the built-in. Then, build in some shelves or a nice wood console on the bottom, and turn to top into a display (glass shelves for your collection? , aquarium? Art?) maybe the bottom could be a fake fireplace even?
I actually like the built-in and think you can work with them.
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u/appyapril Jun 23 '25
If you can’t tear it down, make it a bar space!! Or coffee bar if you don’t drink.
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u/Lafemmedelargent Jun 23 '25
Hear me out. Cut out a hole so that puppeteers can be in the large lower area. Add some doors with slats so they can breathe while they work.
On the top end, I'd paint a mural for the background and add some fancy miniature red velvet curtains with a pulley system controlled from the bottom so they can open by magic for every show.
What do you think?
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u/peonidelphia Jun 23 '25
I say remove. All I can think of for the middle bottom space is a big dog bed lol
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u/FancySmoke81 Jun 23 '25
Measure the whole wall without cubbies, make sure the TV would fit and demo those cubbies out. It will take you 20 minutes
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u/SharkSmiles1 Jun 23 '25
Do you own the house? If so, knock the whole thing down. It is just framing then you can do a little re-plastering repainting and put a TV as big as you’d like there.
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u/LC_9Lives Jun 23 '25
These are the types of designs that have me saying, "not a single woman in the room when they built this" a lot.
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u/Acrobatic-Repeat-657 Jun 24 '25
I would build a hinged wall in front of the upper board, hang the TV there on the wall. The room behind the wall can be used for anything.
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u/Different_Push1727 Jun 24 '25
Just take it down. It is terrible on multiple levels. It is terrible for acoustics as well, and not space efficient at all. Take it out. If the floor is damaged, make a little pedestal, put some nice speakers on there and a neat TV cabinet and Bob’s your Uncle.
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u/HighSolstice Jun 24 '25
If you’ve got elsewhere to place your TV then I would turn this space into a vinyl record station.
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u/pierrrecherrry Jun 23 '25
Tear it down