Stretch ceiling: when to install it during a renovation
A stretch ceiling is installed after the wall finishing - once the walls are painted and the wallpaper is up - and before the flooring. That is where the “Stretch ceiling” stage sits in the Doma app's route: the membrane goes onto finished walls. But preparing the ceiling starts much earlier: lighting circuits are run with the electrical work, the measurer is called during wall finishing, and the mounts for light fittings and curtain rails are installed and photographed before the membrane goes up.
Where the stage sits in the route
The order in the app:
- Electrical - circuits for light fittings, tracks and lighting scenarios.
- Ceilings - if the design has drywall or plaster.
- Tiling.
- Wall finishing - skim coat, paint, wallpaper; the stretch ceiling is ordered here too.
- Stretch ceiling.
- Flooring.
- Final installation - light fittings, sockets, doors.
The route's hint for accepting the wall finishing says exactly that: after this stage, stretch ceilings and floors can go in.
Why not earlier and not later
- Not before wallpaper and paint. The membrane is fixed to the walls around the edge. If you skim and paint afterwards, the membrane has to be protected, and dust and splashes will settle on it.
- Not after the floors. In the route, the stretch ceiling comes before the flooring: installers work from stepladders along the walls, and it's better if the finished floor isn't under them yet.
When the stage appears
The “Stretch ceiling” stage is in the routes for a new-build apartment, a resale apartment, a house and an office, but only if you need it. The app asks about it in the survey - “Stretch/drywall/plastered ceiling?”. You can pick several options:
- “Stretch” - the route gets a “Stretch ceiling” stage after the wall finishing;
- “Drywall” or “Plastered” - a “Ceilings” stage before the tiling;
- an office also has “Suspended grid” - then the stage is called “Stretch or suspended ceiling”.
If one room has drywall and another a stretch ceiling, choose both: each stage will go in its own place.
What to do in advance
During the electrical work
Circuits for all future lighting - main, decorative and night, tracks and accent lights - are run during the “Electrical” stage, before plastering. Decide this before chasing: two-way and master switches need their own circuits. Once the membrane is up, adding a circuit is almost impossible.
During ceilings and wall finishing
- Backing for partitions, shelves and hangers goes in before the ceiling: after the ceiling is installed, it can't be added.
- The ceiling is skimmed and painted before the walls if it isn't a stretch ceiling everywhere.
- The “Wall finishing” stage has the item “Order stretch ceiling, fixtures, lighting and curtains”: call the stretch ceiling measurer and order the membranes, tracks and profiles. According to the route's hint, product ranges and imports take 2-6 weeks - everything should be on site for the final installation.
Room height
A stretch ceiling lowers the level. The app's norms include a reference from SP 54.13330.2022, clause 5.12: the height of living rooms and the kitchen from floor to ceiling is at least 2.5 m, and in some climate sub-regions at least 2.7 m. This is a requirement for designing the building, but it's worth keeping in mind when you lower the ceiling. Measure the height from the screed and ask the installer how far the membrane will come down with your light fittings.
The items of the “Stretch ceiling” stage
- Install mounts for lights and curtain tracks. The platforms for light fittings, tracks and curtain rails are installed, and cables are run to them. Every light point should match the lighting plan.
- Photograph the space above the ceiling. Before the membrane goes up, photograph the mounts, cables and ducts with a tape measure in the shot. Under the membrane, the services become inaccessible - the photo shows where they are.
- Install the stretch ceiling after the walls are finished.
- Accept the stage: membrane tension, light fittings, junctions with the walls.
The items of this stage are a draft for now: a builder is checking them.
How to accept a stretch ceiling
The route's acceptance hint: look at the ceiling in side light - that shows every crease. What else to check:
- The membrane. Smooth, with no creases, punctures or stains; seams, if there are any, where you agreed.
- Junctions. The profile and the insert around the edge sit against the wall with no gaps; a shadow gap, if it was in the design, runs in an even line.
- Lighting. Switch on all scenarios: every light fitting is in place according to the plan and works, and the membrane around it doesn't sag.
- Curtain rails. Concealed rails hold on their mounts, and the curtains move freely.
- Photos. The app has photos of the space above the ceiling taken before the membrane went up - that's the only way to find a cable or a duct later.
Remarks are written when the stage is reviewed - with the “I have remarks” button, with a photo. How the review works is in How to accept a crew's work stage by stage and not miss poor workmanship.
Checklist before installation
- “Stretch” is chosen in the survey - the stage is in the route.
- Circuits for all lighting were run during the electrical work.
- The walls are painted, the wallpaper is up, and the “Wall finishing” stage is accepted.
- Membranes, tracks and profiles are ordered and delivered.
- The mounts follow the lighting plan.
- The space above the ceiling is photographed with a tape measure.
- The floors aren't laid yet.
What to photograph before covering up at other stages is in Hidden work: which photos and certificates to keep. What goes in after the ceiling is in Final installation: sockets, fixtures, doors.