Electronic House reader Malcolm needs help aligning his projector:

I have a small 14’X12’ home theatre with a 120” screen and an Epson PoweLite Cinema-Pro 1080UB projector. I’ve had this for a few years now, and I recently had to take my projector down to clean the filter. My projector is an overhead front mount. When I re-installed my projector the image is not 100% square to the screen frame.

I would like to know the easiest, most precise way to align the image to my screen with the Epson image shift and zoom controls. I do also have a laser level as well. I have a throw distance of 13.5’ which is just slightly more than the minimum for a 120” screen.

You should start with making sure the projector is aligned square to the screen.  The plane of the screen should be flat and the lens should be centered and aligned to the same plane.  You can use projectorcentral.com to verify lens off axis dimensions - then you can use the adjustments in the menu to tweak keystoning - which is the term for adjusting the out-of-square or trapezoid shape that can happen.

On a side note, kudos for noticing and caring.  Most DIY projector setups are not correct.  The adjustments are subtle, not difficult but do require an understanding of basic optics.  This could also be a great opportunity to find a quality home theater integrator - call a local service provider and ask them to setup the projector and surround sound.  You’ll enjoy the investment.