I have my TV above the fireplace, and make no apologies for it. If it's what you want, do it. Common advice though is that the TV shouldn't be operated if the temperature in its spot is 95 degrees or higher-- it's a rather random number, and so far as I've seen, no TV manufacturers have published guidelines in this regard. If you put the set on a table in front of a window, it could easily exceed that temp. Just wanted you to consider temperature if you plan to use both the TV and FP at the same time. As to the wires: if you have a mantle of some kind, it could be modified to hide them. If you don't, you could create one for just this purpose. You could probably also add a wood molding floor to ceiling on each side to marry the granite brick to the surrounding [I'm assuming painted] walls, hide the 'up' wires in it, then you'd only have to worry about getting the wire from the side to the set-- mantle again? Or perhaps if your granite has very wide grout lines, the wires could go between the bricks... Otherwise, given your block walls etc., taking the wiring out doors and in again behind the new TV location might be your best bet. A final option [and the most expensive one] would be to get a stone mason in to look at the problem. It may be possible to remove some of the stone, cut a groove into the block behind it, add the wiring [or better, conduit to hide the wires, and allow them to be changed out later] and re-attach the stone. Don't expect the Sears installer to be much help with any of these issues. They don't have to live with the outcome, so they don't put much effort into sorting out the aesthetics.

LMAO. I would strongly argue it's coincidence.....however there IS a tiny bit of physics in there, as the knot may be acting as a sort of poor person's choke despite the lack of a ferrite or amorphous iron core. I created my own with a video camera power supply that had a lot of hum, by winding a spiral of the cord up a ferrite rod til the hum disappeared... There is a proper formulae for creating chokes but they are more for filtering noise than 'protection' but most good surge protectors incorporate chokes - and good mains chokes are wound around a donut-shaped core, rather than a straight one. However, as I indicated , lots of things that shouldn't work, often do. HOWEVER- as for the knot in the cord - has nothing to do with any 'straight path' and is more likely to do harm than good, if it damages the insulation or inner stranded wire, it could overheat and cause a fire, similarly, coiling or knotting a wire also (in ac power-land) causes a 'transformer effect' which will create noise, and potentially heat, therefore again a fire risk. If you have a lot of electrical problems/burnouts, you either have loose neutrals in your house (not uncommon) a poor supply from the poco (rare) or above ground lines in a lightning-prone area. A decent surge protector will help but mostly by preventing your death in a lightning strike - I have provided tech support to many customers who were victims of lightning strikes - a line conditioner is better, and an UPS that provides line conditioning and switchover to backup power when poco power is subpar is ideal, however, they will not necessarily protect equipment downstream in all cases but increase your chance of survivability in a catastrophe. Amongst recognised/respected brands of surge protectors etc the warranty/insurance may be worthwhile (surely keeping/preserving receipts is not rocket surgery) but for the most part I suspect the warranty/insurance is a gamble for the company, for every 10,000 units they sell, they might get one claim. Many household insurance policies protect against electrical damage. Personally, I'd start with a whole-house surge protector. Remember that surge protectors are consumables and need to be replaced periodically, when and if they do absorb a big surge, they may fail completely (but have hopefully saved devices down the line) For those tempted, "Monster Cable" type premium cables/suppressors 'audiophile power cables' do not work. Their benefits are purely subjective. There is no scientific evidence they work. Don't be sucked in http://hydrogenaudio.org/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t29989.html I have no doubt Monster cable et als surge protectors etc are nice quality products but I would not pay the premium. Nor would I buy audio cables at the dollar store. Here is a link that might be useful: Choke theory

Thank you for replying :) Even if we could, taking out blocks wouldn't really help. The wall is block, the fireplace butts right up to the wall. I understand the installers have limited options but I would rather return the TV then live with an ugly wire cover going across the front of the fireplace. We may be able to drill through the wall to outside. But that would take a lot of wire and I'm not sure it's feasible.

I have a den with a wall-to-wall brick surround for a wood-burning fireplace. I am planning to convert it to a gas burning fireplace so it is my hope that if any wiring needs to be run behind the brick and possibly in the chimney there will be no issues after the stainless steel liner is inserted. The den is over a crawl space that adjoins my basement. There is electric, as can be seen in the picture, on the lower left side above the baseboard radiator (circled). I want to get power and obviously coax to the area above the fireplace, concealing the wires. Open to any, and all, serious suggestions.