Hanging a heavy pendant lamp from concrete, plasterboard or wood
A large pendant lamp is often the most beautiful piece in the room, and also the heaviest. A lamp with several rings, a chandelier or a fitting in solid brass quickly weighs more than an ordinary ceiling hook can hold. How to hang it safely depends on one thing: what your ceiling is made of.
First: how heavy is the lamp?
Check the weight in the specifications, including shade and glass. From about five kilos we speak of a heavy lamp and you choose the fixing deliberately. Above ten kilos we recommend having it done by an electrician.
What kind of ceiling do you have?
Knock on the ceiling and drill a small test hole where the ceiling cover will go:
- Concrete: hard, grey dust, the drill goes slowly.
- Plasterboard: sounds hollow, white powder, the drill breaks through after a centimetre.
- Wood: wood shavings, often in older homes or an attic with beams.
Concrete ceiling
The strongest ceiling. Use a nylon plug with a screw hook or a concrete anchor with eye, sized for the weight. Drill straight up and clear the dust from the hole before inserting the plug. Watch out for conduits: concrete floors sometimes contain pipes, usually in straight lines between the ceiling point and the wall.
Plasterboard ceiling
This is where it goes wrong most often. Plasterboard itself holds little: a cavity plug usually holds only a few kilos. For a heavy lamp, find the wooden or metal battens above the board and fix into those. If there is no batten in the right place, a board or profile can be fitted above the ceiling to spread the weight. With a suspended ceiling, never let the lamp hang from the plasterboard alone.
Wooden beams
A solid beam holds more than enough. Use a screw hook or a ceiling plate with wood screws of sufficient length, and pre-drill to prevent the wood splitting.
Lamps with one ceiling plate and several wires
With lamps whose rings or globes hang from several steel wires, such as our larger ring lamps, the ceiling plate is usually fixed with several screws. The weight is then spread over those screws. Make sure every screw sits in load-bearing material.
The right height
Set the height before you shorten the cables for good. Above a dining table 75 to 85 centimetres above the top, in a void at least 220 centimetres of clear headroom. See how high a pendant lamp hangs above the dining table and lighting in a void.
Frequently asked questions
Can a lamp hang from a plasterboard ceiling?
A light lamp can, with a suitable cavity plug. Fix a heavy lamp into the battens or beams above.
How many kilos can a ceiling hook hold?
That depends on the hook and the surface. Check the manufacturer’s rating and keep a generous margin.
Order for 500 euros or more and live within 50 kilometres of Arnhem? Then our own team hangs the lamp for you. View all pendant lamps.
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