an odd requirement
Author
Discussion

greg_D

Original Poster:

6,542 posts

275 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Hi chaps/chapesses,

The following has been driving me mad over the last month or so, so i thought it would be best to throw it open to the bearpit:)

I want to mount a 26" LCD TV in a custom box at the end of my bed that goes up and down at the push of a button for my viewing pleasure.

The box is the easy bit, my next door neighbour is a chippy!!! the trouble is the lifting mechanism, noone local to me has any idea how to do it, the helpful people at maplin's suggested either Actuators (as used in custom ICE installs apparently to lift things) or scavenging a suitably large electric window mechanism (the biggest electrically lifted window i could think of is the back door one off of a freelander, any advances on that!!!!!)
other than that the only other suiggestions are custom lifters or hydraulics.

I don't want this to get into silly money, so the custom idea doesn't particularly appeal.

can anyone help me out or recommend my next step

TIA

Greg

towman

14,938 posts

268 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Rack and pinion using for example the motor from a stannah stair lift? i.e. high torque, low speed.

julianhj

8,868 posts

291 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
I want one of these too! However I gave up on the grounds that I couldn't afford a decent screen yet. Please kepp us updated on how you get on...

towman

14,938 posts

268 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Assuming that your box will have guides to stop it toppling, how about a motor driven screw thread, rather like a large scissor jack? I wonder if the motor on a central heating pump would be man enough to turn it?

UKBob

16,277 posts

294 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Is this to enhance the comfort of watching porn either sitting up or lying down?

bigandclever

14,353 posts

267 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
No affiliation, etc etc...

www.bfinteractive.tv/index.php?# search for lift

Or click on the "Hidden TV" link at the top of the page.

Might give you some ideas.

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

284 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all



(a).....Remove bored horse

(b)......Insert TV

Job's a good 'un.......

ledger

1,063 posts

312 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
bigandclever said:
No affiliation, etc etc...

www.bfinteractive.tv/index.php?# search for lift

Or click on the "Hidden TV" link at the top of the page.

Might give you some ideas.


the Mirror TV looks pretty cool

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

284 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
greg_D said:
Hi chaps/chapesses,

I want to mount the end of my bed that goes up and down at the push of a button for my pleasure......




KITT

5,345 posts

270 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
A cheap and simple solution would be to buy a cheap battery operated cordless screwdriver. Hard wire in the correct voltage via a transformer (probably 12v) and hard wire a remote switch and position within reach (bedside).

Then buy a length of threaded rod and insert into the screwdriver's chuck. Fabricate a mount for all this and use a nut of the correct thread to go onto the threaded rod. As the screwdriver turns the rod, the nut will go up/down.

Hard to describe, but I'm sure you can knock up a solution like this

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

284 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Use a circular saw....the screw driver won't have enough torque......

KITT

5,345 posts

270 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
mybrainhurts said:
Use a circular saw....the screw driver won't have enough torque......
Too fast I would have though(?) Perhaps a more powerful cordless drill would be better; one of those 24v jobbies

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

284 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Can't we work steam into this....?

Tuna

19,930 posts

313 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
mybrainhurts said:
Can't we work steam into this....?


Better than that...

Make the enclosing box watertight. Put the screen into a watertight perspex box. When you want it to rise, open a tap to pour water into the main box. The screen will float upwards. When you want it to go down, let the water out.

Proper job!

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

284 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
You forgot the drought.....

Next......

Fatboy

8,267 posts

301 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
You could knock up a small hydraulic lifting mechanism?

Though the aforementioned scissor jack is probably the best (read most reliable and safest for your telly) way to do it - just use a cheap 12v motor and transformer to operate it...

Tuna

19,930 posts

313 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
mybrainhurts said:
You forgot the drought.....

Next......


No I didn't. In times of drought, recycle water from your toilet.

Next....

mybrainhurts

90,809 posts

284 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
So the TV would be a sort of floater, then....?

Incorrigible

13,668 posts

290 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Tuna said:
Better than that...

Make the enclosing box watertight. Put the screen into a watertight perspex box. When you want it to rise, open a tap to pour water into the main box. The screen will float upwards. When you want it to go down, let the water out.

Proper job!


I would have thought a system of pulleys could be used

4 small, 3 or 4 wheel pullies, one on each corner of your moving platform (and a simplehook inside the box) 4 bits of string then go separately to the same drill or whatever

Job's a goodun

apache

39,731 posts

313 months

Friday 17th June 2005
quotequote all
Go here and search for a linear actuator, about £160


http://rswww.com/cgi-bin/bv/home/Home.jsp?cacheID=ukie


>> Edited by apache on Friday 17th June 16:19