How to cut a hole in a suspended ceiling

Arrangement of ventilation in the ceiling

As is known, stretch ceilings can hold water in the case of flooding by the neighbors from above. This indicates that the space between the ceiling surface and the PVC sheet is sealed. If there is no natural ventilation and exhaust, then the process of circulation of air flows will be disrupted, resulting in the surface of the ceiling can appear fungus and mold.

Even if you pre-treat the surface with special antiseptic agents and neglect the installation of the hood and ventilation system, it will not be a guarantee that after some time the ceiling will not be affected by fungus. As a rule, you can recognize the presence of mold by a musty smell when most of the surface is affected.

hole, suspended, ceiling

If you intend to mount a stretch ceiling in the kitchen or bathroom, where there are a lot of gas and water pipes and sewage risers, you should read more about how to make a hole in the coating.

The hole can be made in two ways.

The first method

The technological sequence is as follows:

  • Cut the stretch ceiling in certain places;
  • make a hole of the required diameter;
  • Cover pipe joints with specially designed plates;
  • Make a cross-shaped cut at the end of the mowing line of the cut for better clamping behind the pipe remaining ends of the web;
  • Cut off the excess of the blade, install the overlay on the pipe.

The diameter of the hole in the plates must exceed the diameter of the pipe by 7-8 mm. The standard length of the plate is 15.6 cm, and the maximum. 21 cm.

The fabric is incised after the baguette is fixed. The film tears easily, so the cut must be made carefully, using a box cutter or special scissors. Pipe bypass elements, make mostly white or the same color as the ceiling.

It is not recommended for non-professionals to cut stretched PVC-film

This method is mostly used when installing seamless ceilings.

The second way

If the ceiling has a complex configuration, it is recommended to install a ring of the required diameter inside the fabric when cutting. This is easier and less time-consuming than the first method.

But the main problem when installing a suspended ceiling is not to bypass a gas or water pipe, but to draw the gas boiler, if there is one in the room, t.к. The duct heats up, and the coating can deteriorate. To protect the fabric in such situations, the familiar corrugation on the sandwich pipe is used. Another way to avoid melting the ceiling surface is to install a framework of plasterboard.

The hole under the lamp

The second problem, which is often faced by those who have installed or plan to install a stretch ceiling, is how to make a hole in it to fix the lights.

Methods and techniques of work before installing the ceiling

The work is divided into two stages:

Having marked out the places where the lighting fixtures will be located, you should install embedded. You can buy them in a store, but it is easier to make their own hands.

Next, you should cut the plastic rings with a thickness of 5-10 mm rings and attach them to the base ceiling with hangers for drywall. Of course, the diameter of the ring should be approximately the diameter of the lamp.

When installing light fixtures, the order of work is as follows:

  • Adjust all rings in height by bending the hangers. They should be at the level of the canvas, which will be mounted later;
  • Hook up the electrical cables;
  • pull the covering, on it mark the location of the tabs with markers;
  • cut rings out of thin plastic, the size of which should coincide with the size of the lighting fixtures;
  • The rings should be smeared with glue and fastened to the ceiling in the marked places;
  • Cut holes inside the rings with a stationery knife.
  • Take out the wire and connect the lights.

In some cases, suspended ceilings allow for mounting (diode) strip lights in the space between the ceilings, without cutting holes

If the warranty on the stretch ceiling has expired or the coating was installed by yourself, it is difficult to contact the firm. Make a hole in the stretch ceiling to install lighting fixtures in this case with their own hands is easy, just like in the previous version.

Methods and techniques for making an opening in the finished ceiling

  • Remove the covering from the ceiling and install on the main ceiling tabs for spotlights;
  • Fix the canvas again;
  • To the places where the embedded rings are located, attach plastic thermo-rings;
  • cut holes inside the rings of the required diameter.

If you intend to hang the chandelier on a hook, the technological sequence is slightly different. The film does not have to be removed, you can cut a hole on the inner perimeter of the glued ring and attach a hook to the base ceiling for the suspended chandelier.

In general, to make a hole in the suspended ceiling is not as difficult as it would seem. The main thing is to perform the work carefully, completely marking everything.

Is it possible to make holes in a stretch ceiling

For fabric canvases, the problem of cutting a hole is not as critical as for PVC. After all, the blade has a reinforcing layer, and if you make a hole in the ceiling, the decorative coating will at most lose its original appearance. It is clear that the stretched polychlorvinyl film. not the best material to experiment with punctures and cuts, but sometimes you just need to make a hole in the stretch ceiling for a screw to attach a light fixture or hanging decor.

What can you expect from an accidentally punctured hole in the ceiling:

  • If the webbing is not tensioned correctly, there are localized areas of overstretching and tearing, the hole is very likely to turn into a long hole or tear line;
  • The second option can be more dangerous. If you cut a hole in a stretch ceiling with a sharp and flat blade, such as a office knife or scissors, the film or even the fabric is guaranteed to be torn in length to the nearest obstacle.

But this does not mean that making a hole that would not result in damage to the stretch ceiling is impossible. For example, you can easily make a thin round hole with a red-hot soldering iron tip. The same way you can hole a suspended ceiling with a self-tapping screw. Due to the lack of sharp local damage and due to the formation of a melted bump, such a hole can last on a tensioned canvas for quite a long time.

Important! In order to make a hole in the stretch decoration, first of all, you need to fix the sector of the canvas, so that the edges are not torn by tensile forces.

It’s easier to drain the water through the built-in light fixture

Even if the problem requires an immediate solution, for instance if it is necessary to make a drainage hole in the stretch ceiling, it is possible to pierce the foil or fabric only after the edges of the future hole have been fixed with a sticker from plastic or construction adhesive tape.

Colors

PVC canvases are available in up to 100 different shades, including suede, leather, metallic and the ability to apply any pattern to the ceiling, including photo printing. The color palette of fabric stretch ceilings is not so diverse and consists mainly of shades of light and pastel colors, characterized by their versatility. Please note that the parameters of stretch ceilings depend on the manufacturer.

You can see more details about the main characteristics in the evaluation table(10-maximum score, 1-minimum):

Type of fabric General appearance Color uniformity Anti-glare Keeps its shape (the least amount of slack) Whiteness No smell No dents, creases Elasticity
Mat, Germany 8 9 7 7 7 10 10 9
Gloss, Germany and France 10 10 8 9 10 8 10
Mat, China 9 10 9 7 10 6 10 9
Gloss, China 7 10 7 9 6 4 9
Mat, Russia 5 5 2 6 8 8 10 8
Gloss, Russia 7 9 6 8 8 3 7

Main Features

Stretch ceilings are an innovation that is rapidly gaining momentum due to their positive characteristics, which have already been appreciated by consumers. These include:

  • Completely hides all irregularities in the ceiling surface;
  • It masks all communications: wires, ventilation shafts, etc;
  • The weight is very light;
  • does not require much time for installation;
  • When you do the work on the device a minimum of dust and dirt;
  • the possibility of replacing the tensioned canvas without removing the frame;
  • availability.

If you have minimal skills to perform construction work, you can stretch the canvas with your own hands. But, arranging a suspended design, the question arises how to make holes in the ceiling for lights, ventilation grilles, etc. After all, just cut with scissors, you will not get. These can spoil your ceiling.

Please note that you can make holes in the tensioned canvas before and after its installation.

How to make holes in the suspended ceilings for built-in lights

The technique is no different from milling out holes for the outlines of the pipe, but there is an addition. before starting work on the tension of the fabric is necessary to secure tabs in the areas of installation of lighting fixtures. The tabs are the parts on which the lighting fixtures are then attached.

  • After the tension of the cloth with your fingers to feel the zones of the embedded areas;
  • Glue a reinforcing strip to this point;
  • Cut a hole with a knife;
  • fix the part of the light fixture that goes behind the ceiling;
  • complete the installation of the rest of the lighting fixture;
  • Bend the cut fabric ends inside the reinforcing strip or ring.

Choosing a thermal ring, you should pay attention to the size of the element, they must be the same size as the size of the lamp. If you perform the installation of strip lighting, the laying is carried out in the space between the canvas and the ceiling surface and will not have to cut materials. You can do without cuts in the film, fabric, and in the arrangement of fiber-optic illumination. The cable is placed behind the baguette or fixed to the base concrete, for example, if the ceiling is formed in the form of a “starry sky”.

How to patch the holes?

If during the installation of the stretch ceiling, part of the fabric was damaged, do not despair. The problem can easily be repaired! To do this, it is necessary:

  • Cut the patch out of the remaining material;
  • Plenty of glue over the entire surface area and press tightly to the place of the tear;
  • Carefully smooth out the surface, so that wrinkles do not appear.

Tip: If a patch is not possible, consider applying a decorative pattern that will hide the damage.

Easily Cut Access Holes in Ceiling Tiles | Armstrong Ceiling Solutions

If the warranty has expired

How can you seal the hole on the suspended ceiling in this case? If the seam has split, it will help to fully replace the film. But if the cloth lags around the perimeter of the strip, you can try to repair this defect, but first determine what caused it:

  • Incorrect cutting, the fabric is overstretched. In this case, the repair will not help, will have to order a new ceiling. But it will cost less, since only the canvas will be changed.
  • Poor quality clamping bars. If there is a hole in the suspended ceiling, how can you seal it up yourself?? A new profile is purchased to replace the old one. The clamping rail is removed. The panel is heated. For this purpose, it is better to use a heat gun. The ceiling is stretched and fixed with a new slat.

If you are not sure you can identify the source of trouble and cope with the task, it is better to turn to professionals. They can qualitatively solve the problem.