Only last weekend we in store 'asking the experts' about our similar concerns. We were told that the "installation guidelines insure a safe distance", but the tv's they had on display in store were still incredibly hot along their bottom edges. Despite all assurances from the salesperson we are not convinced. We will be following this thread with great interest.

This is very similar to our floor plan (yet to start building) ... same as you we have our backyard to the north, kitchen to the east, dining table in the middle, lounge to the west. And we had the exact same dilemma where to put the couches. We decided on position 1 but in an L shape with a couch along the west wall and north wall. And we will have two arm chairs or ottomans in your couch position 2. We decided on this because it feels more open and didn’t want the TV to be a main focal point. Don’t necessarily want to see the back of the couch either.

Thanks oklouise. we also need to heat these areas in winter as the front is south facing and it's freezing down there.. This was designed by an architect and the French doors - we liked the idea - making this room appear bigger and more light coming through. No original plan, we have the previous plan of the upstairs addition and it shows these rooms downstairs as they are. have included pics of the foyer, I know it's such a waste of space, but now we are used to it.

Which way is the room orientated ? In other words , where do you intend to put the TV , bookshelf , cabinets , etc ? To me , that is the wall you make a feature of , and as dreamer says , wallpaper ( or even timber or similar ) would be preferable . Having said all that , the other evening I went to a restaurant , and it had 1 side wall that was done in those 3D 'wavy' tile things -- I guess it was the feature wall ( the wall opposite had a TV , the bar , a couple of works of art ; the entrance wall was mostly glass and the door ; the rear was the kitchen ) but there was nothing apart from that on that wall , and it looked really smart , and lifted what would have been a pretty plain room . In a home situation , I guess you'd have say Wall 1 as the one with the cabinets and shelves and TV , and Wall 2 as the 'wavy' feature wall .