10 tips on choosing a stretch ceiling

For the manufacture of suspended ceilings used:

• Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film with a thickness of 0.15-0.35 mm. This is the most affordable and popular material for finishing apartments.
• Polyester fabric, 0.25 mm thick, impregnated with polyurethane. Attracts environmental friendliness and the possibility of seamless installation in the overall premises.
• Fiberglass fabric Moisture-proof canvas of high strength. Serves as the basis for painting. Rarely encountered.

The technical characteristics of the materials are similar, but there are some differences that determine their field of use.

• Appearance. Film ceilings are glossy, satin or matte, the texture of fabric canvases are always matte.
• Strength. Resistance to mechanical damage with sharp objects from fabric cloths is higher than that of film.
• Frost resistance. PVC at low temperatures becomes brittle and cracks. Fabric ceilings can withstand -35 C, which allows them to be used for finishing unheated premises.
• Water resistance. For this parameter, the performance is better for film canvases. They are recommended to be installed in rooms with high humidity.
• Environmental friendliness. All types of stretch ceilings are safe for health. At the same time, the presence of micropores in the tissue structure contributes to the ventilation of the air and provides a healthy microclimate in the room. This canvas can be chosen for finishing the children's room.

Material	Virtues	disadvantages
PVC	+ high water resistance; + affordable price; + variety of textures; + possibility of repeated installation.	- not suitable for seasonal premises; - not breathing.
Polyester fabric	+ high environmental cleanliness; + resistance to low temperatures	- not suitable for rooms with high humidity; - has a high price.
Fiberglass cloth	+ high mechanical strength; + the possibility of repeated drawing and changing the style of the interior.	+ requires additional painting;

All fabric stretch ceilings have a matte texture. The reflective characteristics of PVC cloths vary widely: from 5 to 70%. What material to choose depends on the specifics of the room and the personal preferences of its owner.

Opaque stretch ceilings

In appearance, matte ceilings are similar to immaculately made plaster. Such conservative elegance is preferred by conservative-minded people with refined taste. Opaque ceilings are suitable for spacious, well-lit rooms. They are harmoniously combined with the interior in a classic style, columns, stucco, antiques. The most popular canvases of white color and inconspicuous pastel colors.

Glossy stretch ceilings

Glossy ceilings are appropriate for creating modern interiors. They are chosen by active, innovative people. The material allows you to visually increase the size of the room and is suitable for small spaces. For glossy paintings characterized by a large selection of colors. The richer the shade, the better its reflective qualities appear, so even an unconventional black ceiling will not look gloomy and depressing.

The quality and price of stretch ceilings are largely determined by the manufacturer. On the market you can find products of European, Russian and Chinese production. Which one is better?

European stretch ceilings

Canvases from Europe occupy the largest segment of the market. Manufacturers offer a wide range of glossy and matte ceilings of the highest quality, and the trendsetters are French companies. The cost of European products is much higher than Russian and Chinese counterparts.

Famous companies: Barrisol, Alkor Draka, Extenzo, Newmat, Clipso (France), Poliplast (Belgium), Renolit, Pongs, Descor, Lackfolie (Germany), Cerutti (Italy).

Russian stretch ceilings

In Russia, the production of suspended ceilings is still poorly developed. The industry leader is Saros Design, which established production in Moscow in 1996. Today, the company has production facilities in a number of cities in Russia, Kiev, Narva, and Stuttgart. The company offers canvases in a wide range of sizes and colors, carries out drawing pictures, and makes computer calculations on its own program.

Low-cost buyers can choose stretch ceilings produced by the Kazan plant of artificial leather and Ivanovo NIIPIK. Enterprises produce canvases up to 1.4 m wide in a limited color range.

Chinese stretch ceilings

The spectrum of Chinese goods is traditionally heterogeneous. Here you can find both materials that are not inferior in quality to European counterparts, as well as frank fakes. The industry leaders include companies: MSD, HALEAD, Gline. Stretch ceilings from these manufacturers are worthy of competition to world leaders, and are much cheaper.

A wide color range of suspended ceilings allows you to implement a variety of design ideas. The appearance of the material has a serious psychological impact on the household.

White color is traditional for facing the ceiling. It visually increases the height of the room, does not put pressure on the psyche, and is suitable for interiors made in various styles. White, as well as inconspicuous pastel colors are appropriate in living rooms, corridors, bedrooms, kitchens and other rooms. If you wish, you can diversify the look on the light matt ceiling by applying elegant photo printing.

Bright orange, blue, purple, green cloths are well suited for children's rooms, fill them with an atmosphere of joy and energy. Saturated tones can be chosen for the kitchen and bathroom.

The bedroom is better to arrange in a calm, romantic colors: beige, blue, pink.

Business style office will emphasize the brown ceiling, but it should not be very dark and not cause depressing mood.

Psychologists attribute a lot of qualities to red. On the one hand, it is the color of love and energy, on the other hand, it endows with aggression. In the interior of the apartments it is used in the form of small inserts.

Glossy dark purple, steel, black ceilings will give originality to rooms with high heights. Dark canvases are often used to create a starry sky effect.

In multilevel designs, textures and colors are often combined, creating a stylistic effect in contrast.

Each room in the apartment performs certain functions. The choice of stretch ceiling for the living room, nursery, kitchen and bathroom should be carried out taking into account their operational features.

Living room

The living room is the largest room of the apartment. All family members spend considerable time here, so the hall design is given increased attention. For the design of the ceiling will fit any materials, as long as their color and texture blend harmoniously into the interior of the room. It is better to give preference to universal calm tones that do not cause discomfort to any of the household.

Children's

For the design of a child's room it is advisable to choose bright fabric canvases. The matte surface is more durable and will eliminate the risk of damage to the ceiling by active children during games. A big plus is the presence of micropores in the tissue structure, which provide natural ventilation of the air.

Kitchen

Cooking is accompanied by couples rising to the ceiling and stains of fat settling on it. Here the best choice would be glossy PVC canvas. It has high water repellency and is easy to clean.

Bathroom

The operation of the bathroom is associated with temperature changes and high humidity. For her better suited glossy film ceiling. The canvas easily tolerates difficult conditions and is able to withstand a significant amount of water when flooded from above. After the elimination of the accident, it can be installed in the same place. Glossy ceiling looks spectacular in small rooms, visually increasing the space.

Stretch ceilings are ideal for built-in lights. When choosing them, it is necessary to take into account the operational features of the material and temperature limitations: if the regulatory indicators are exceeded, the web will warp.

Incandescent lamps

The use of classic lamps with a tungsten coil in the tension structures has the greatest limitations associated with their high heating:

• power up to 40 W for film, 60 W for fabric ceilings;
• the ventilation gap between the blade and the ceiling is at least 12 cm.

Incandescent bulbs attract a low price, but have a short lifespan: about 1000 hours.

Halogen bulbs

When installing halogen lamps, observe the following guidelines:

• power up to 20 W for film, 35 W for fabric ceilings;
• ventilation gap - 6 cm.

Compared with incandescent bulbs, they emit a brighter light of the yellow spectrum and have a resource of 2-4 thousand hours. Halogen lamps should be used for directional lighting of working areas.

LED bulbs

LED lamps practically do not heat up and have no restrictions for installation. This is the best option for suspended ceilings. LED lamps can be chosen as the main source of light, and to create visual effects on matte, satin or glossy canvases. Lamps of this type are the most economical, and their service life is about 5 years.

Installing in the house stretch ceiling can not be forgotten about other interior details. The invariable design element are curtain rods. They are made of various materials. Structurally, the cornices are divided into wall and ceiling. The latter look more presentable. The difficulty is that a thin canvas is not designed to hang heavy structures. However, there are 2 ways to solve this problem. Eaves can be fixed in an open or hidden way.

Outdoor installation

Before installing the sheet on the ceiling mounted wooden beam in one level with the guide profiles. It is better to choose hard wood. Before installing the timber must be treated with antiseptic. After stretching the ceiling, the cornice is attached to the timber through the film. The holes for the screws should be burned so that the melted edges prevent further tearing of the web.

Flush mounting

When flush-mounted, the cornice is attached to the ceiling above the stretch ceiling. Next to it is set a bar or corner for mounting the guide baguette. The operation should be performed before the measurement.The design with curtains falling out of the ceiling looks spectacular, harmoniously combined with both matte and glossy canvas.

Suspended ceilings allow you to create in the apartment a stunningly beautiful "starry sky" effect. Despite the high cost of this method of finishing, there are quite a few supporters among fans of progressive exclusive interiors.

Installation

For the device home planetarium need:

• glossy or satin dark linen;
• optical fiber;
• light generator (projector).

Optical fibers, which are assigned the function of "stars" have a diameter of 0.25 mm. Collecting them in bunches, you can create "luminaries" of different brightness. The threads can be brought out through the web punctured in the desired metas and cut flush with it, but it is better to fix it on the back side. In the second case, you should choose a thin translucent material. The intensity of the light will be less, but the overall picture will be more realistic.

Optical fiber is connected to the light generator. The equipment operates autonomously and is not connected with the room lighting system. The most advanced models of projectors provide such effects as: fading and flashes of "stars", flickering and movement of "celestial bodies".

Additional effects

Additionally, the ceiling can be decorated with photo printing, with Starpins luminous pins, LED lighting for individual zones. Swarovski crystals mounted on the “stars” will create a unique light scattering.

The effect of "starry sky" is performed either on the entire ceiling area, or in a separate area, combining it with light matte paintings.

"Floating" suspended ceilings will help to radically transform the look of the room and give it exclusivity. At the same time, the creation of the effect does not entail significant complication and cost of work.

The design idea is to create a light barrier, thanks to which the visual separation of the ceiling from the walls takes place. He seems to be floating in the air. This effect is achieved through the use of a special profile, which provides a groove for the placement of the LED strip. The rest of the installation is no different from installing a conventional stretch ceiling.

The effect is also used in multi-level designs with a combination of matte and glossy canvases of various colors. Here you can create a "hover" of the upper or lower layers, depending on the direction of the light flux. At the same time various profiles are used that provide the required angle of illumination Baguettes made of flexible polymeric materials are used to create curved surfaces.

LED tape works autonomously. It can be turned on and off regardless of the lighting system, replaced without affecting the ceiling structure. When buying, it is better to choose low-power LEDs, unless the tape is planned to be used as the main source of light in the room. Their light spectrum may be different. Damping and overflow effects are also available.

In urban environments, suspended ceilings are installed everywhere: in apartments, offices, hotels, bathhouses, entertainment facilities. But how relevant are they in a country house? Indeed, the operating conditions are different, which requires certain adjustments.

Installation Restrictions

It is not recommended to install film ceilings in unheated cottages: at low temperatures, frost, PVC loses its elasticity and cracks. For these purposes, it is better to choose fabric webs.

In the new house, the stretch ceiling can be installed only after its complete shrinkage.

Preliminary work

In order to avoid unpleasant consequences, it is recommended to perform a number of activities before installing ceilings:

• check the condition of the roof, if necessary, repair;
• wooden floors to process antiseptic;
• carry out deratization and seal all the cracks, otherwise the space between the overlap and the lining will become a convenient breeding ground for rodents.

The benefits of stretch ceilings in a private house

Thanks to stretch ceilings in a private house, you can:

• revet uneven overlap;
• hide communications;
• improve thermal insulation;
• visually enlarge the space.

Large selection of matte and glossy paintings of various colors allows you to choose a canvas for any wall material.