How to Attach Rope Lighting to a Tray Ceiling

Rope lighting can be used for special occasions or everyday.

A tray ceiling may be a focal point on its own, but you can add specialty fixtures like rope lighting to make your tray ceiling pop. Rope lighting doesn't provide much ambient light unless the room is otherwise dark, but the rope lights create depth by contrasting the height between the soffit and the tray. Inexpensive and available in a rainbow of colors, rope lights can be a permanent part of your decor or a temporary holiday decoration that transform the look of the room in minutes.

Things You'll Need

• Measuring tape
• Rubber bands
• Staple gun
• Insulated electricians' staples
• Finishing nails and hammer (optional)
• Cord hider (optional)

Instructions

1. Decide where on your ceiling you want the rope light. The corner where the vertical side of the soffit meets the angled part of the tray is best, because you can place the brackets so they are hidden by the rope.

2. Measure the four sides of the ceiling to make sure you have enough lights. End the rope at the corners if possible, because you cannot bend a rope light into a 90-degree angle -- the rope can bend only in a smooth curve that won't hug corners. Rope lights can be attached end-to-end, if necessary.

3. Mount the rope light brackets to the vertical part of the soffit at the desired height. These brackets are peel-and-stick, but you can tack them with finishing nails if the rope is to be a permanent decoration. Install the end brackets for each side close to the corner, to prevent sagging.

4. Click the rope light into the round clip on the first bracket. Ask a helper to hold the end of the rope in place while you pull it taut to the next bracket. Tie a rubber band around the rope right where the clip will grab -- this will help the rope stay securely fitted and help you maintain a straighter line. Clip the rubber-banded rope into the bracket the same way you did the first. You may need to adjust the rubber band to get the placement exactly right, but this extra step helps the finished project look neat and professional.

5. Continue around the room, tying a rubber band around the rope where it clips into each bracket.

6. Tape or staple (use only insulated electricians' staples) the power cord down the inside corner of the soffit and diagonally across the bottom of the soffit toward the corner of the room. Allow the cord to hang, or cover it with a cord hider.

Tips & Warnings

• If the corners of your rope will be curved, arrange the rope so the two ends meet in the least-conspicuous corner of the ceiling -- usually the corner to your back as you enter the room.

• Most rope lights come with one bracket per foot -- use the fewest number of brackets you need to keep the rope taut. Too many brackets can interrupt the visual line.

• If you have attic access to your soffits, you can hide the cord by drilling a hole big enough for the plug, and running the power cord through the wall to the outlet. This is better for permanent installations than temporary decor.

• Do not use regular staples to attach the cord to the ceiling -- you could get electrocuted. Purchase insulated staples wide enough that both prongs are well outside the width of the cord.

• Do not plug in your rope lights until they are fully installed.