When the question arises of repairing ceilings, there are a lot of options immediately. Ceilings can be decorated with wallpaper, and paint, and plaster, and tiles, as well as install a perforated ceiling. At home (apartment) conditions, they are rarely used, but in office premises or shops they are much more common. Consider what perforated stretch ceilings are, how they are installed and what they are.
What is this?
Perforated ceilings, photos of which are posted below, are stretch or suspended ceilings that are made of PVC film or aluminum. But she has one distinctive feature - small perforated holes with smooth edges. The holes can be round, square or any other shape, they can be arranged in a certain order or randomly, it all depends on the material and desire. Colors are also varied: from solid white to rainbow or films with patterns - it all depends on the desire of the customer and the capabilities of the manufacturer.
Perforated ceilings are also distinguished by the fact that they "breathe" and allow you to install lighting not only in its usual form - on top of the film, but also behind it, directly on the surface of the ceiling base. This technique makes the room more interesting and modern, but we will talk about this later.
More about species
Perforated ceilings are divided into types according to the following principle:
1. By installation method:
- hanging;
- stretch.
2. By type of material from which the ceiling is made:
- aluminum;
- PVC film.
The first 2 types will be considered in the following sections of the article. Here we will tell you more about the materials.
Aluminum perforated ceiling is often found in offices or shops. It is made of dense aluminum in the form of square, rectangular or other shaped panels. It is attached with rails. The advantage of such ceilings is that they will not rust, tear, they are easier to wipe and change, if necessary, individual components. One of the most popular in this category is Armstrong perforated ceiling. This type of ceiling consists of square aluminum panels, which are fixed in a certain order.
PVC film ceilings (PVC is polyvinyl chloride) are elastic, heat-resistant, moisture-resistant. They are more difficult to care for, but you can experiment with them much more often and more spectacularly than with aluminum. The film can be pulled into a room of any shape, thenas with metal ceilings it will be more difficult.
How are stretch ceilings installed?
It is better to entrust the installation of any kind of stretch/suspended ceilings to professional craftsmen, but if you still decide to do it yourself, then you need to follow the instructions so that everything works out correctly and beautifully.
The first step in installing a stretch ceiling will be marking the perimeter of the walls. To do this, you need to determine the lower corner of the room (you will need a hydraulic level) and step back a few centimeters from it, put a mark. Make all other marks at the same level as the first one. Next, the walls of the corners of the room are measured and the profile rails are fixed. The joints of the rails must be glued and reinforced with dowels or self-tapping screws. After that, it is necessary to warm up the room to 40 ° C and above (a heat gun or fan heater will help), so that the elasticity of the film is better. And now you can start stretching the ceiling itself. A perforated suspended ceiling made of PVC film must be fixed from the base angle, which is marked on the film, then the one that is diagonally opposite, then the rest. The sides are attached after the corners are fixed.
How are suspended ceilings installed?
The perforated rack ceiling must be started to be installed in the previous case as well - first you need to make marks on which we will fasten the rails to install the ceiling. The corner profile is installed first around the entire perimeter of the room. It is attached with dowel-nails.
The next step is installationcarrier rails. If it is necessary to fasten the rails together, they are fixed with the locks that they have. Along with the distribution of the carrier rails, suspensions are placed. They attach the rail to the ceiling. When installing them, you need to observe the correct distances between them, which can be found on the Internet or learned from the masters. Immediately you need to adjust the length of the suspension with a spring.
The penultimate step is to mount the rails. Here you also need to install the light, for this you need to leave about 10 cm indent from the ceiling when installing the frame. After everything is installed, you can lay the slabs. If you want to color them, you need to do this in advance.
Ceilings in the interior
Perforated ceilings, both made of PVC film and aluminum, are a very modern interior element in any room, both apartment and office. In an apartment, it creates coziness thanks to the right color or pattern that matches the overall style of the apartment, as well as thanks to diffused lighting.
In the office, a perforated ceiling gives an even more businesslike feel to the space, while making it modern at the same time. At the same time, diffused lighting makes the office even more attractive in appearance and does not deprive any worker of light.
Light Features
When installing perforated ceilings, there are several features to consider when choosing lighting:
- If the apartment has a standard ceiling height (2, 4-2, 6 m),then you don’t need to take voluminous and long chandeliers, because they will hang too low, and tall family members or guests will often touch her head, or even with normal height, she can be accidentally knocked down with raised hands. In addition, with such chandeliers, the ceiling will seem even lower than it really is, which will not benefit the interior of the room.
- It is best to take flat lamps ("plates" or just with a small height), they will look good and not "eat up" space.
- You can generally make built-in lighting using halogen bulbs. They are small, but when installed according to the principle of 1 light bulb per 2 square meters. m of light will be enough. And they look very stylish. There is also such an option as "starry sky".
- Also, perforated ceilings make it possible to make internal lighting, in which light sources are installed behind the ceiling canvas, and light penetrates through the holes. In this case, changing the lighting is quite difficult, but the lighting with the right choice of lamps will be pleasant.
- Both suspended and stretch ceilings can be highlighted with LED strips. It looks very nice if you combine the color of the ceiling and the light correctly. Often installed as supplementary lighting.
Pros and cons
Perforated ceilings have their advantages, several of which have already been mentioned:
- practicality;
- versatility (can be used in any room);
- strength(withstand up to 100 kg of weight per 1 sq. m.);
- plasticity (for PVC ceilings);
- durability;
- sustainable;
- opportunity to realize the unusual ideas of the designer;
- free air exchange in the room;
- sound absorption (therefore often installed in large rooms, as the echo effect is reduced);
- does not absorb odors;
- the ability to create original lighting.
But there are some disadvantages that still do not overlap the advantages:
- Difficult to install.
- "Eating" the height of the room (sometimes you even have to change the furniture after installing such ceilings, because it turns out to be above the desired level).
- The impossibility of dismantling the stretch ceiling in a particular place, and with frequent dismantling, the reinforcing rails get deformed and may eventually stop holding the ceiling, and they will have to be changed.
- Difficult to care for, because dust accumulates on them, which must be wiped periodically.
How to care for the ceilings, we will tell further.
Ceiling care
Perforated ceilings need periodic dusting, especially if ventilation systems are located behind the canvas. It is carried out using ordinary window cleaning liquid. Brushes with coarse bristles and similar should not be used, as well as liquids containing acids and alkalis.
