Dressing cables for ceiling mounted lights

[djstmp]

When you mount a light on a ceiling, for example a ceiling mounted Source 4 for a custom monogram etc, how do you typically dress the power cable on the ceiling? Do you recommend any special hooks or loops that fit in the air wall duct and can be used? i have tried using tape but there has gotta be an easier way!

Thanks for the help.

 

[icewolf08]

The best looking way to do it would be to have an outlet installed right where the fixture is, then have all your wiring pulled through the ceiling. Of course, if it is not your space then you probably can't do that. However, if this is a permanent install then you should go this route as you shouldn't be wiring something permanent with temoprary wiring.

What kind of ceiling is it? If it is a dropped ceiling, I would run the cable above the ceiling for the cleanest look. If you can't run cable above the ceiling, then you could use EMT conduit clips. There are a bunch on the smaller side that fit 12/3 SOOW really well, we use them all the time for dressing cable on sets.

 

[MNBallet]

When you mount a light on a ceiling, for example a ceiling mounted Source 4 for a custom monogram etc, how do you typically dress the power cable on the ceiling? Do you recommend any special hooks or loops that fit in the air wall duct and can be used? i have tried using tape but there has gotta be an easier way!

Thanks for the help.

This might skirt the "no how to do rigging" rules.

Since you mention Air Wall, as well as tape, it's a temporary install. There is special air wall rigging hardware that many convention centers would rather have you use, it protects their investment in the air wall dividers tracks.

some exaples:
Air Wall Hangers

I have used eye bolts with a special rectangle nut before for lighter loads, as in one or two extention cords.

Just curious, how are you mounting the Source 4 if you are asking about dressing cables above peoples heads?

Kenneth Pogin
Production / Tour Manager
Minnesota Ballet

 

[Les]

I wouldn't run a cable through any air duct -- the fire marshal frowns on that.

 

[JD]

Just keep it straight (geometrical) and clean. People rarely look up!

 

[len]

He meant the track that the airwall fits into. It's not an air duct. I'm assuming the OP is talking about temporary, event type installations.

And there's a lot of different airwall hangars, depending on your need. Some more $$ than others.

 

[Footer]

The very few ballroom things I have been apart of we used additional hangers every 5' or so and swagged the cable through eyebolts connected to the hanger. It worked rather well. You get a bit of a dip, but it looks pretty clean.

 

[Les]

He meant the track that the airwall fits into. It's not an air duct. I'm assuming the OP is talking about temporary, event type installations.

And there's a lot of different airwall hangars, depending on your need. Some more $$ than others.

Ah, for some reason I skipped over the word 'wall' when reading the OP. My bad.

 

[len]

While a hangar will work, you still get swag. And for a single fixture, that seems like a lot of hardware visible. Some clients won't like it.

I take stage/duct tape and roll it inside out to create a cigar shape with the adhesive on the outside. Then jam that into the airwall track and your cable will stay up. Just secure the two ends (the fixture end and the end where the track meets the wall). I use an i-bolt with a zip tie that gives some play so I can adjust as I go. Kind of like a cable pick. Once all the fixtures are up, start at the last fixture and push the cable into the track and secure with a tape cigar. Keep moving back towards the wall. Ideally, someone will be pulling the excess cable back as well. If you keep pushing the cable to one side of the track, that helps as well.

 

[FatherMurphy]

If the venue has drop tile ceilings, either run the cable above (as mentioned before), or use a combination scissor clip and bridal ring on the tile t-tracks (scissor clip clamps on to the t-track, bridal ring is a pigtail sort of thing that lets you easily drop small cables into the loop), or if you want a faster method, just tuck the cable between the edge of the tile and the t-track - minimal disruption of the tiles, much less work, and only the bits where you jump the cross tracks are visible. Sometimes buying white jacketed cables helps you hide them against the ceiling.

Be wary of attaching things into airwall tracks - each manufacturer makes a different profile, so what works perfectly fine in one place might not work at all in a different building. Some venue directors get rather upset when you ask to hook anything to the track, for fear that you will cause permanent damage, requiring very expensive repairs.

 

[vtownpro]

We put the cables into the airwall track and use small 1" "c" clamps every 10' or so to keep cables up in the track. Clamps a painted black so they are not too visible.