How to Design Your Unistrut Ceiling Grid
October 31, 2023
Ceiling grids are a great way to create a support system in otherwise unusable overhead space. Unistrut ceiling grids are found in commercial, industrial, and retail applications supporting electrical and mechanical services, acoustical ceilings, catwalks, decorative panels, cable and fiber trays, lighting, medical equipment, and more.
Unistrut metal framing is an ideal product for ceiling grids because of its inherent design flexibility and customization capabilities. Unistrut ceiling grids are all bolted, require no welding, and allow for connection at any point in the channel. Grids can be created in any size, pattern, spacing, and design load, and they can be connected to nearly any existing structure.
With seemingly endless applications, a ceiling grid can be used in just about any environment, and Unistrut’s ceiling grid offerings are varied enough to meet the demands of many industries. But with all of the options available, how do you know what ceiling grid design is right for you?
It’s more complicated than just determining point load capacity or square footage. You also need to consider selecting the proper channel, spacing, and rod drops to maximize your grid. With years of experience designing ceiling grids for our clients, our team has a go-to list of questions to help get you started.
Information for Determining the Proper Channel for Your Grid
- What type of structure will the grid be hanging from?
- Web joists, I-beams, a concrete deck, etc.
- How far below the structure will the grid hang?
- This helps us determine which rod drops will be used
- How much weight will the overall grid need to support?
- Channel load rating is a crucial consideration
- What will the grid be supporting?
- Beyond just weight, knowing what is being supported and how it will be used helps narrow down channel choices
- Have you determined the proper deduction factor for your conditions?
- The table on page 18 of our General Engineering Catalog can be used to calculate the point load deduction
- Have you considered the general beam loading for your channel options?
- Page 25 of our General Engineering Catalog has the general beam loading for our most commonly used channels, including deductions for slotted and punched versions
- Will this be an unbraced application?
- Check out page 62 of our General Engineering Catalog, which has a table that provides the reduction factors when the channel is not laterally braced
- Is there a desired layout of the items the grid will be supporting?
- How much customization and flexibility of layout will be needed?
- Is there a particular finish preferred for the grid?
- Pre-galvanized, painted, aluminum, etc.
- What is the preferred connection of what you intend to hang from the Unistrut channel?
- Threaded rod, cable, fittings, or something else?
- Does the grid need to be rated for seismic?
- Any other considerations or details that should be taken into account?
Our team has designed, prefabricated, and installed countless ceiling grids over the years, and we’d love to help you with yours. Contact the Unistrut Midwest team today to get started on your ceiling grid solution.