ᐅ How to Install a Swing on a Drywall Ceiling with Beams

Hello everyone,

I have a bit of a problem... I would like to install a swing for my children.
The children's rooms are located on the upper floor "under the roof." This means that half of the rooms have sloped ceilings, while the other half have flat ceilings.
The bigger issue, however, is the drywall ceilings.
The drywall is attached to a battens structure (roof battens arranged as counter-battens). These counter-battens are fixed to the collar beams / ties (I believe this is the correct term).

I roughly sketched the construction. The blue area is just a vapor barrier. I only installed this so that the insulation wool between the collar beams doesn’t fall down and lie on the drywall ceiling (or fall onto the workers’ necks during installation).

My problem is that I don’t know exactly where the beams are. There is an opening in the drywall ceiling where the lamp is mounted, but it’s quite small as you might expect. From there, it would be possible to measure (the width of the beams is known). However, this approach is not ideal.

I’m not sure if there is a good answer to this in a forum, but has anyone else experienced the same problem?

Measuring from the lamp hole is only useful if you plan to use the beam to the left or right of it. In that case, this is probably the best method to start with. It gives you a rough idea of where the beam is located, and you can confirm it by tapping, since the sound will be different where the lath/beam is compared to the hollow space.

As an alternative to this method, or if the beam needs to be located elsewhere, simply tapping to find the beams is not something I would consider reliable—or at least not non-destructive. However, generally speaking, the beam position can be determined quite well by tapping, and depending on the width of the beams, there is usually some leeway.

Thank you for the response. Unfortunately, tapping probably doesn’t help much at first, since there is a cavity (with the battens) between the drywall ceiling and the collar beams.

I just thought that I could check if I can see the screws in the drywall ceiling. Depending on the orientation of the battens, they run along the collar beams (since one batten should rest on the collar beam).

That could also be another option, especially if magnetic screws were used. In that case, you could locate them using a magnet!

A batten framework for panels is lightweight construction; you need to find the beams.
Children sometimes swing together or with a parent, so that adds up to 20...40...80 kg (44...88...176 lbs).
If you want more than one toddler swing, then put them in the garden.

Nida35a schrieb:

A batten framework for panels is lightweight construction; you need to locate the beams.
Children sometimes swing together or with a parent, so weights of 20...40...80kg (44...88...176 lbs) can add up.
If you want more than one toddler swing, then it’s better to put them in the garden.

It only gets interesting when two parents "swing" together.