Ideas for Lighting Support??

[rdnelson99]

Hey Guys:

I am building a 48" 6 Lamp T5HO 54W fixture. Just finishing it up however, after building the decorative shroud I find it is much heavier than I anticipated. The method I had planed to suspend it from the ceiling isn't going to work. Shy of opening up the ceiling and adding some structural support (willing to do but not wanting to do) I have not come up with a good support method. So.....I was hoping some of you could post pictures of the ways you have supported heavy fixtures over your tanks. I would love to see how others have solved this problem. That is if you don't mind my stealing you idea.

 

[plexifan]

this is far out there but just an idea, at places like Home Depot or Lowes they sell a brace for mounting a ceiling fan between two beams of wood. you drill like a 3 or four inch hole in your ceiling (enough to stick your hand) in between the two wood studs (using a stud finder to get the center) and u put the brace through the hole and turn it with your hand to expand it untill it gets jammed between the two beams. it comes with a small electrical box, put it on, then u can put some type of decorative cover on it with a chain. it sells from $15 to $20 and can support up to 150 lbs i think. u can do two and have something supper stout to hang ur canopy. just a thought

 

[rdnelson99]

this is far out there but just an idea, at places like Home Depot or Lowes they sell a brace for mounting a ceiling fan between two beams of wood. you drill like a 3 or four inch hole in your ceiling (enough to stick your hand) in between the two wood studs (using a stud finder to get the center) and u put the brace through the hole and turn it with your hand to expand it untill it gets jammed between the two beams. it comes with a small electrical box, put it on, then u can put some type of decorative cover on it with a chain. it sells from $15 to $20 and can support up to 150 lbs i think. u can do two and have something supper stout to hang ur canopy. just a thought

Thanks plexifan. I actually thought about that. (I have been in the electrical trade for 30+ years). I would just prefer something a little cleaner. I think I came up with an idea that will work and not be tooooooo obtrusive. I picked up some large screw eyes and a wooden dowel the fits through them. I can screw the eyes into the web trusses then run the dowel through them after I paint it to match the ceiling. Then I can attached the steel support cable anywhere along the length of the dowel and be able to center the fixture over the tank. Not as clean as I would have liked but oh well.

 

[mrbee2828]

What type of ceiling do you have (ie: drop, vaulted, drywall etc)? Which way do the beams run in the ceiling? The dowel idea seems good but depending on the weight, I would opt for some steel pip at home depot or something in the same diameter. Maybe you have something heavy duty but when I think of a dowel I think of something thin at a hobby shop. Make sure you do something on BOTH ends to lock the pole in place.

 

[rdnelson99]

What type of ceiling do you have (ie: drop, vaulted, drywall etc)? Which way do the beams run in the ceiling? The dowel idea seems good but depending on the weight, I would opt for some steel pip at home depot or something in the same diameter. Maybe you have something heavy duty but when I think of a dowel I think of something thin at a hobby shop. Make sure you do something on BOTH ends to lock the pole in place.

It is a drywall ceiling with web-trusses above. The dowel I have is about the size if your index finger and I will support it off of 3 eye bolts screwed through the drywall into the web-trusses. My biggest concern is that you can't find any longer than 4' and since it will run at an angle to the trusses it may not be long enough. If so, I will go with a piece of pipe but I know from experience it is hard to get the paint to stick well to metal pipe and therefore won't be as clean of a look. Thanks for the input.

 

[BillD]

you could add a strip of wood of 1 x 3 or 1 x 4 to the ceiling spanning the joists, and attach the light to that. It might be less obtrusive than the dowel, and perform the same function. The other possibility, since you are an electrician, is to bend up a freestanding conduit frame to carry the fixture, or one that can be attached to the stand. Galvanized metal will hold paint if the right primer is used.
If you go with the pipe and eyebolt idea, you can get a shower rod cover to go over it, negating the need to paint it.

 

[rdnelson99]

Thanks Bill. Thought about the wood idea and may still go with that in the end. I have some scrap cedar siding that I run through the router table and sand than put a nice coat of paint on it. I think the first step this weekend is figure out exactly where the web-trusses fall in relation to the tank. That will tell me which way is going to be the best. I appreciate all the ideas guys. It is helping me to weed through the possibilities. I will post a picture when I am done.