Need Help Deciding How to Suspend Canopy from the Ceiling?

[atp0726]

I am building a hanging/suspended canopy for my Radion and couple dual bulb t5s. I am building an open top canopy 24"X 24" and planning to suspend it from the ceiling. I am having some trouble figuring out how to hang it and what kit or diy hanging set up to use. I am using the Radion premium hanging kit currently but I dont think it is rated for the additional weight of the canopy.

One option I am looking at is the AquaticLife hanging kit. http://www.aquaticlife.com/products/1353 because it has caps to cover the holes in the ceiling. I am not sure however, if this is the best way to go or if there are better options out there?

I kinda like the idea of using the sunlight supply hangers https://www.sunlightsupply.com/p-13072-sunlift-the-original.aspx so I can raise and lower the canopy but again, not sure how I would 1) hide the holes in the ceiling and 2) attach to the canopy.

I would prefer to only have to put 2 holes in the ceiling but I am not opposed to suspending from all 4 corners of the canopy.

Any ideas?

 

[jlanger]

You could attach a mounting plate to your ceiling.
Build a plate that matches your ceiling or canopy and attach it to the ceiling joists with some stronger lag bolts.
Then the light hanging kit could just mount to the mounting plate which will distribute the weight to the ceiling joists.

I looked at the SunLift Hanging Kits, but I didn't like the look. And I wasn't confident that they would hold the weight for an extended length of time.

Here is what I did with my hanging canopy; which is quite heavy.
The canopy actually slides back on rail guides so I have increased access inside my tank.



I have more detailed information in my build thread; found here:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2266751

Good luck!

 

[snulma1]

The first thing is to find out how much your canopy weighs, that tells you what kind of hardware you will need.

Then I would find out how far your joists are in the ceiling, and if they are centered over your tank. This gives you a little more stability. If not you are going to need toggle bolts and for me, I wouldn't feel comfortable with that above my tank.

You can find lots of hanging systems for your canopy @ home depot or lowes. Eye hooks, chains, cables...etc. There is lots of possibilities based on your comfort and the weight of the canopy

 

[jccaclimber]

A mounting plate allows a lot more margin for error, otherwise you'll need to line up with the ceiling studs.

If you're like me (the sort of person that tends to lean on whatever is around when working on stuff) I would add your weight (plus a safety factor) to the canopy weight when you're looking at support strength.