Backlit two-level plasterboard ceilings

The ceiling is the most visible part of the interior of the room. The slightest of its shortcomings are immediately evident, so the decoration of this part of the room should be approached especially carefully. The originality of the design will help in creating a unique surroundings of the room, so recently two-level gypsum plasterboard ceilings with lighting are gaining more and more popularity.

At first glance, such designs are only possible for a team of professionals working under the guidance of an experienced designer. But two-story ceilings created using drywall, photos of which you can see below, you can do it yourself. To install them, you don’t need special skills or tools, just take the work very carefully and use a few general recommendations.

Cost

The average cost of installation of a two-level ceiling without finishing is 600–700 rubles / m2 in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and for St. Petersburg it is rather the lower price bar, in the capital there are chances to find more budget offers.

The cost of illumination will depend on the type and number of lamps used, the approximate cost of installing and connecting one device is 400 rubles.

Used materials and tools

Making a double ceiling, we will use the standard list of materials used in the installation of gypsum plaster:

• Metal profiles UD and CD. Of course, you can use wooden battens as a frame, but the design of the profiles is much easier. In addition, in the presence of curved surfaces, the frame of the racks will be very difficult to do.
• Drywall for ceilings from 8 to 9.5 mm thick. Drywall ceiling with backlight It can also be made from ordinary GCR with a thickness of 12.5 mm, but this will only lead to unnecessary difficulties. The ceiling practically does not carry any serious load, and thin plasterboard is much easier to work with, especially bending.
• Fasteners: direct suspensions, various profile connectors, metal screws, dowels for attaching profiles to the wall.

The simplest tools will be needed:

• Hammer drill.
• Screwdriver.
• Hacksaw for cutting drywall.
• Scissors for metal - they will cut or notch profiles.
• Paint knife.
• Measuring instrument: level (preferably laser or water), tape measure, plumb line, chop cord.

Options for two-level ceilings

Before you figure out how to make a two-level ceiling from drywall, you need to decide on its design. And this is very difficult. Just look at the photo to see how many options can be considered. In technical terms, depending on the location of the levels, two can be distinguished:

• If the ceiling in the room is perfectly flat, then it can be taken as the first level. The frame of level No. 2 will be attached to it.
• If the base surface is far from ideal, then you can level it with the first layer of drywall. In this case, the fastening of the second level will be made to the profiles of the first.

The second option is preferable in the case when the ceiling layer should hide various communications under it. He also exempts from many labor-intensive operations, bringing the work to prepare the base area to a minimum.

Most often there are two-level ceilings in the form of borders or ledges placed around the perimeter of the room. In this design, it is convenient to place a backlight in them, various options of which are presented in the photo.

Installation of the second level of the ceiling

The process of leveling ceilings with drywall well known, so there is no need to dwell on it separately. But when installing the second level, it is not out of place to follow some recommendations. Let's consider them as an example of a variant with borders, when the first level is the base surface of the ceiling, but all these steps and subtleties apply to other models of two-level ceilings.

The main installation steps are listed below.

Markup

Having measured the height of the second level, a line for fastening the guide profile is drawn on the wall around the perimeter of the room. It is better to use the spirit level or the laser level. A drawing of future borders is transferred to the surface of the ceiling, with a step of 600 mm, the location of future jumpers and the place of attachment of the suspensions are marked.

Frame mounting

Frame going as follows:

• The guide profile UD is attached. It is attached to the wall or ceiling by dowels using a hammer drill. On the ceiling, the profile is fastened along the drawn border line. If it has a curved shape, like the design in the next photo, the profile is cut with scissors on the metal, after which it can be easily bent at the desired angle.

• Suspension must be built from the CD profile. Their length should be 1 cm less than the height of the second level. At their ends, the sidewalls are cut to a depth of 2.5 cm.

You can do even easier and fasten the strips of drywall, forming the end of the curb, immediately to the ceiling profile. Then the lower guide will be attached to the drywall. But it’s better to make jumpers anyway - they will give the frame the necessary rigidity.

• Homemade suspensions are fastened with metal screws to the ceiling profile. On straight sections, the step of their fastening should coincide with the step of the jumpers and be 60 cm. They are also necessarily mounted in places where the drywall is bent.
• If necessary, holes for fastening direct suspensions are drilled in pre-marked places.

At the stage of assembly of the frame, before installing horizontal jumpers, it is most convenient to carry out all the work associated with the installation and connection of lamps. Fiddling with wiring with a fully assembled frame is not always convenient, in addition, there is a high probability of “knocking down” a level ceiling with careless movement.

• Horizontal elements from the CD profile are cut to size. They are inserted into the guide profiles perpendicular to the wall, after which they are fixed using self-tapping screws and direct suspensions. Using a level, periodically check that they are all in the same plane.

It is advisable that the attachment points of the horizontal and vertical jumpers do not coincide. After all, it is on these profiles that the pieces of drywall will dock. Spacing connections will reduce the gap between the individual elements.

The result should be a fairly solid frame of the future second level of the ceiling, for example, as in the photo.

Drywall Work

After the installation of the frame is completed, it remains only to cut the size of the drywall sheets in size and attach the screws to the profiles. The mounting step is 15–25 cm.

Often, to create curved surfaces, drywall needs to be bent. To do this, one of its sides is moistened with water using a sponge and rolled with a needle roller, after which it is carefully bent. If it is necessary to create a strong bend, in addition to wetting, it is possible to apply shallow cuts on one side at regular intervals. They will help to achieve the required radius of curvature.

At the final stage, it will be necessary to putty and paint the drywall, and then finish installation of fixtures.

Thus, it is not so difficult to make a two-level ceiling with backlighting on your own. It will not only decorate the room with itself, but also bring the owner the joy of creativity.