Installing a chandelier on a stretch ceiling

The stretch fabric greatly complicates the installation of lighting fixtures, and without knowing some of the nuances, most ordinary people who try to work with it on their own make unforgivable mistakes. However, you can not involve specialists from outside, if everything can be done independently. Before hanging a chandelier on a stretch ceiling, it is enough to study the materials presented in the article and simply follow the instructions.

How to choose a chandelier for a stretch ceiling

The first difficulty faced by consumers is the choice of model. Spot lighting in the form of spotlights is most often used for stretch ceilings, but as time has shown, classic chandeliers have remained in trend and are perfectly combined with spots. Since the canvas deforms when heated, the only nuance that must be taken into account when choosing a model is the maximum temperature emitted by the device at its peak.Accordingly, if it is planned to use incandescent or halogen lamps in the chandelier that give out more than 200 ° C, then you need to choose such samples, the cartridges of which are located at a distance of at least 30 cm from the ceiling. In this case, pendant-type lamps are suitable.

It is desirable that the shades are directed downwards, as the paint on some materials burns out over time under the influence of infrared radiation.

Temperature restrictions do not apply to relatively cold LED or fluorescent light sources, and fabric fabrics are most often subject to burnout, although in this regard it all depends on the manufacturer.

LED chandeliers are now the best solution for stretch ceilings. They are available in two options:

• invoices, in the form of a plate or any other flat figure - when the chandelier is fastened close to the stretch ceiling, and the bulbs are located directly on the base of the lamp.
  Suitable for rooms with low ceilings, and given that the gap between the canvas and the main floor reduces the already limited space, this type is the most common in such cases.
  From an aesthetic point of view, plates are more suitable for decorating styles such as modern or high-tech.
• suspended - when the ceiling or a group of them is attached to the base by means of a rod, flexible fittings, chains and cords.
  Suitable for both classic and ultra-modern design applications, depending on the execution of a particular model.

Fluorescent lamps are also practiced, but their range is not replete with variety, and is represented mainly by flat chandeliers.

Chandelier installation process

Training

The principle of fastening is partially or completely described in the instructions for the device.However, firstly, not all aspects are clear to a simple consumer, without experience in installing such electrical appliances, and secondly, these manuals say little about safety. Regarding the latter, three main rules must be considered:

1. All manipulations with electrical wiring are carried out in protective rubber gloves and a construction mask. The fact is that when laying the power grid, gross violations could have been committed, or the building was connected to emergency power supply bypassing the circuit breaker. In these cases, electrical injury is inevitable.
   Protective equipment can be purchased at any hardware store.
2. Even with the use of dielectric gloves, in order to avoid a short circuit, in any case, it is necessary to turn off the electricity supply toggle switch on the meter.
   The method is relatively reliable, but for the operation of electrical tools such as a drill or a hammer drill, you will have to run an extension cord to your neighbors or an independent power source.
3. If you plan a long-term repair with intervention in the electrical wiring, then it is better to turn off a separate room in the junction box. In this situation, temporary lighting and electrical tools are connected by carrying from the next room, and all work with the cable, including its replacement, can be carried out without fear. In any case, before work make sure there is no voltage in the network with an indicator screwdriver or any household electrical appliance plugged into the outlet.
   Disconnecting a room is best left to a specialist.
4. If you need a stepladder to access the lamp fixture, then it is placed so that you can move the center of gravity forward, resting your knees on the upper steps.It is better if a second person holds it, to whom tools and parts can be supplied.
   When a table or chair plays the role of a ladder, then, accordingly, the most stable and durable piece of furniture is taken.

If the upcoming work is related to the perforation of load-bearing structures and the main concrete floor, then you need to familiarize yourself with the floor plan and find out exactly where the strobe with the electric cable passes. Damage to the electrical wiring with a drill, even when the power is off, is fraught with the replacement of the internal wiring section.

Tool selection

To install almost any chandelier on a stretch ceiling, you will need:

• wire cutters;
• knife;
• indicator screwdriver;
• crosshead screwdriver;
• pliers;
• impact drill with a drill for concrete or a hammer drill;
• fasteners corresponding to the situation - self-tapping screws, dowels, anchor, hook, etc.;
• soldering iron with tin and flux;
• dielectric rubberized gloves, mask or goggles;
• additional cable;
• ladder.

Read also: Assembly and connection of the chandelier

Before installation, you must select a mounting location for the lighting fixture. Most often, the chandelier takes place in the center of the room, which is determined by using two painting threads stretched diagonally between the corners or between the midpoints of the sides. The crosshair point is considered the center of the room.

Having prepared the tools, you need to install a ladder and turn off the power to the building or room.

Although the rules require you to turn off the circuit breaker, many are limited to a switch, since ideally it breaks the phase, thus de-energizing a further section of the wiring. However, if the wiring is incorrect, the zero is broken with the switch key, and one contact on the chandelier remains energized.

Be sure to check the presence of voltage in the cartridge with an indicator screwdriver, touching its plane alternately to the central and side contacts, holding your finger on the back of the device handle.

Mounting options

Before stretching the ceiling, a laying platform is installed at the installation point. Its presence is mandatory for most types of fastening systems.

The easiest way is to buy a factory one on the construction market or order from the manufacturer.

But you can make it yourself from a piece of plywood or chipboard. To do this, you need to cut a square or circle with a diameter of 40-50 cm with a hole in the center with a diameter of 10 cm.

The platform is fastened by means of U-shaped metal profiles screwed to it with self-tapping screws 10–15 mm long. By bending the U-shaped bars, the height of the mortgage is adjusted, which is determined using a paint thread stretched between opposite walls under the ceiling. At the same time, the ends of the thread are installed under the lower border of the profile to which the stretch ceiling is mounted, and the platform must adjoin the thread closely, but in no case go beyond its borders, otherwise the canvas in this area will bulge.

The thread in this case passes in the same place where the ceiling fabric will be located. Thus, the gap between the canvas and the platform should be minimal. The inclination of the mortgage plane is adjusted by pushing or pulling the U-shaped fasteners to the center. In this case, it is necessary that the profile be level in two horizontal planes, otherwise the canvas in the center will be skewed along with the chandelier.

Having outlined the attachment points on the concrete, you need to drill holes in them for plastic dowels of the “quick installation” type and fasten the platform with screws. The cable should be pulled through the central hole and hang down with a margin of 25–30 cm.Before stretching the ceiling, all wires are rolled up and laid on the platform.

After installing the mortgage and mounting the web, it is necessary to cut a hole for the wiring and fasteners in it. This is done in the center of the mount, which is determined by touch.

The procedure is necessary because the blade, which is in a somewhat uneven state of tension, can give a long break arrow when a cut occurs at the point of displacement. This fact also indicates the need to be extremely careful when working with a stretch ceiling so as not to accidentally damage it with a sharp object.

A protective heat-insulating ring is preliminarily glued to the intended place.

After gluing the ring on superglue, a round hole is cut out along the inner diameter with a construction knife.

The wire is pulled out.

The ceiling is sensitive to the slightest point load and eventually sags under the weight of objects lying on it. In this regard, it is necessary that the cable is attached to the main ceiling. Additional elements of the lighting fixture circuit, such as chokes, ballasts, transformers are laid on the inner surface of the site.

Even if WAGO type terminal blocks are used, it is better to tin the joints with tin.

Before attaching the lighting fixture, you must connect the wires.

For screw terminal blocks, crimp terminals are used.

These measures will help prevent overheating of the connection due to poor contact.

Hook fastening

There are several types of hook fixtures for chandeliers:

• standard mounting hook - most often comes with the device.
  The pin is inserted onto the inner surface of the mortgage in such a way that the concave part with the hook hangs over the hole.
• folding spring hook - mainly used for plasterboard structures, but also used for stretch ceilings.
  The folded springs are wound into the mortgage hole and straightened out in free space.
  From below, the hook is pressed against the platform with a nut.
• hooks on anchoring and dowel.
  The anchor is fixed by unscrewing the wedge-shaped tip, which expands the side clips inside the hole.
  The dowel is installed according to the standard quick installation scheme and is fixed by wedging plastic clips with a screw with a hook at the end.

They do not need a platform, as they are mounted on the main ceiling, in which a hole of the appropriate diameter is drilled with a perforator.

After installing the fasteners and connecting the wires to the hook, the rod clings to a special eye, and the attachment point is closed with a decorative cap.

On a longitudinal mounting plate

This fastener is screwed through the canvas to the mortgage platform with self-tapping screws.

Before installing it, you need to set the distance between the bolts in the mounting holes, corresponding to the distance between the holes on the base of the chandelier. It is also necessary to protect the canvas from tearing by gluing a reinforcing tape in the places of the alleged puncture with self-tapping screws and wrap the sharp edges on the bar with tape.

After installing the plank and wire connections the chandelier is mounted on bolts and tightened with decorative nuts.

The position of the chandelier depends on the position of the bar, so its installation must be planned taking into account the fastening.

For slats with one central bolt, this is not critical.

This type of device can be rotated and fixed with a central decorative nut.

On a cross bar

Fasteners as a whole are similar to the single version, but are attached at four points.

The rules and features of installation are the same.

Through mount

It is a hole made by a perforator in a concrete slab. For this, internal structural cavities in the floor slab are used. A hook pin or springs are placed in this cavity. This method is used when it is planned to hang extremely heavy chandeliers, weighing several tens of kilograms.

How to hang a chandelier on a mounted canvas

If the ceiling is already stretched, and there is no embedded platform, then to mount the luminaire, it is necessary to cut a hole inside the tread ring according to the previously described scheme, drill a hole for the dowels for the plank or the anchor for the hook with a perforator, and then install the mount.

The only difference is that the bar will not be pressed against the platform, but will hang on the heads of the screws. The base of the invoice or the cap of the pendant chandelier will be pressed only to the canvas, without bilateral fixation. The degree of pressing is adjusted by changing the height of the bar by turning the screws or the hook in the dowel. The method is not so reliable, but it allows you to do without dismantling the ceiling.

Read also

Lighting options for a room with a stretch ceiling

 

Decoration of attachment points

If it is a pendant lamp, then most often decorative caps that come with the lighting fixture are used for these purposes.

In the case of overhead chandeliers, or those with a flat plate-shaped base, it is customary to recess them under the canvas in such a way that only the ceiling protrudes outward. Everything else is hidden in the space between the main concrete floor and the tension web.