Suspending lights from ceiling

[Jpharr]

Well after upgrading my new lighting system I have decided to suspend my lights from the ceiling. The only problem is that the studs in my roof are not centered over the top of my aquarium. It is off by about 2 inches. I was wondering if anyone else has had this problem and other than moving the tank, how did they fix it. I have a few ideas, but it has to look good or my wife will kill me.

 

[mikeatjac]

Drill a hole in the ceiling where you want your lights to hang. Then go into the actic and put in cross baces out of 2X4s between the studs over the holes.

 

[besl]

Timing is everythin - I just suspended my light fixture yesterday.

Not sure what you are suspending, but my fixture is the 6' Outer Orbit.

I forget what they are called, but I used the metal wing anchors that were included in the hanging kit - you can get these at any hardware store. Just drill 2 holes in the celing for each metal brace. Insert the springed metal winged anchors into the drilled holes and tighten to ceiling, Then suspend your fixture using the metal brace. Good luck with this. Once again I don't know what fixture you are hanging, but I highly recommend getting a hanging kit - it will take all the guess work out of the process.

 

[cwegescheide]

Toggle Bolts from the hardware store... Then Go to the lighting store and get some light fixture hanging kits like Giesemann supplies... They really look nice and sleek way of hanging lights. I promise your wife will be pleased.

 

[Bug_Power]

if your setup is heavy I DON'T reccomend hanging via sheetrock....remember rock is only held in by nails in most cases and rock can and will sag over time. Put a cross brace in the attic it's REAL easy. Lay a 2x4 between the rafters, tie them into the rafters with tonailed screws...viola. If your hanging something pretty heavy you can also go with ceiling fan mounts for rather inexpensive when you weigh it against the cost of having to fix sheet rock and having the it re-textured.

 

[Jpharr]

All great ideas! Thanks. My concern about the toggle screws is that they will eventually warp out the sheetrock or worse...tear through. Once I do this I don't want there to be any chance of the lights falling.

 

[cato]

I had the same issue. Used toggle bolt anchors. Couldn't do the 2x4 brace thing in the attic because my tank is on the 1st floor of a 2 story house. Works great till I sell my house and take down the lights and there's 2 holes in the ceiling.

 

[cato]

Oh yeah, my light fixture is only 24" long so it's not that large. Ever thought about using designer shelf brackets (without the shelf) into wall studs? I wanted to do this but my tank is a corner so I couldn't center the light correctly. Good luck.

 

[Bug_Power]

build a box on the ceiling like a lighiting fixture. You can attach that to the studs, then hang the lights from it. It can actually look very nice if done correctly. Just get some crown molding and some 2x4 or 2x6's frame a box, put a nice piece of 1x12 on top sand, paint/stain and hang it from that. Looks good. You can put eye hooks up there on the box to hang it from.