[Archaea]

I've been using a schedule 40 pipe from home depot for the extension pole on my chief mfg mount, but since I'm redoing my drop ceiling ceiling I thought I might upgrade to an iron or steel extension pole. Can anyone direct me to which pipe I'd need from Lowes or Home Depot for a Chief MFG mount?


I read somewhere that the standard PVC pipe adapters could easily be substituted for the Chief MFG mounts, and found that to be true --- however the PVC isn't very strong, and I bought a Chief mount because I wanted something very solid instead of the cheapo monoprice mount I used to have. It seems the pvc pipe (though it works) compromises the solidity of the mount since the PVC pipe flexes easily. The nice part of using the PVC was that I could cut it to the exact length I needed - 10", which isn't an option for the Chief poles which only come in 3, 6, 12, etc lengths.


I could buy the CMS012 which is the closest Chief MFG extension pole, but that's $30 buck and I've got to think a pipe like this would be $5 at home depot. If nobody knows the answer then I'll just try to hunt it down in the store.
http://www.chiefmfg.com/Products/CMS012


I figure some of you guys might know this off the top of your head? IE -- @MississippiMan, do you have any suggestions?

 

[AV_Integrated]

Home Depot black plumbing 1.5" pipe. Buy it in the length you need. They also have 'floor flanges' - which work very well on the ceiling.

I bought a bunch online for my installations with some flat black spray paint...
http://www.essentialhardware.com/wo...paign=google&gclid=CMv32cjA1sMCFRIQ7Aod0EkA1w

$30 is cheap for Chief stuff, but just a 10" non-adjustable pipe for that much? Very pricey. About $8 for Home Depot. Maybe $10.

 

[MississippiMan]

I've been using a schedule 40 pipe from home depot for the extension pole on my chief mfg mount, but since I'm redoing my drop ceiling ceiling I thought I might upgrade to an iron or steel extension pole. Can anyone direct me to which pipe I'd need from Lowes or Home Depot for a Chief MFG mount?


I read somewhere that the standard PVC pipe adapters could easily be substituted for the Chief MFG mounts, and found that to be true --- however the PVC isn't very strong, and I bought a Chief mount because I wanted something very solid ..... It seems the pvc pipe (though it works) compromises the solidity of the mount since the PVC pipe flexes easily.


I figure some of you guys might know this off the top of your head? IE -- @MississippiMan , do you have any suggestions?

You do not mention what type of Ceiling Plate your using above the Drop Ceiling. To interact with the 1.5" NPT Threaded Pipe I personally use the Peerless ACC570 Round Ceiling Plate

http://www.thesimplestores.com/sb2.aspx?A6=8&PID=PLA10041_1786&tss_source=bing&tss_medium=PLA

........however the same Pipe Flange that A/V Integrated suggested will work...it's just way overkill and actually pretty expensive.

In a Drop Ceiling situation I would simply bridge the Grid with 3/4" Plywood (14" x 24"-36") and screw (3/4" No# 8) the ACC570 on "top" of the Plywood with the Pipe of choice running up through the center hole I drill through the Plywood and into the ACC570. If you decide to use threaded steel Pipe, the hole needs only to be 1-7/8". If you use PVC Couplings.... 2"

As for the capability of the Sch-40 PVC....I have hung 40lb+ Commercial PJs from 10' drops of the stuff. The weight kept the Tubes straight...and the strength vertically was way more than needed. As far as the Male Coupling Adapters go...it used the ones that had the deepest "well" and that gave me over 1" of welded security.

It's not gonna come apart.

The ability to cut the PVC to exactly what's needed lengthwise, it's more than sufficient strength, the affordability of the materials, and the ability to paint it easily all make PVC a extremely viable option. The Steel Pipe can be cut to size and threaded for you in some Home Depots...if they stock the 1.5" ID Pipe in long lengths. Most stores only carry the "Nipples" though...and personally, I detest using the greasy, messy things.

 

[AV_Integrated]

I'm not sure what you meant that the pipe flange I list above, for $5 is overkill compared to something else. Granted shipping makes it pricey to buy as 'one' unit, which is why you can pick them up at Home Depot for about $9. The ACC570, by comparison, is about $18, which is twice the price for about the same thing.

I'm just not into the PVC solutions personally as I am sure they are strong enough to support it, but for the few bucks more that steel would be, I think it provides a more secure solution. One you can hang from, and won't flex until the lengths get pretty long.

 

[MississippiMan]

The dark Grey/Black Pipe Flange I have seen in HD is very Thick...and cost $14.95. So the one your suggesting must be considerably less robust.

Any way...and every way one looks at steel....it's pug ugly.

Also, the broader footprint of the ACC570 allows for a better, more stable mounting on a variety of materials, and the much smaller screw holes make mounting easier.

If one was mounting a Flange on a solid TIG ceiling, or could back it with substantial wood, certainly it would / can work. But as i said it looks horribly "Industrial". I myself try my hardest to place all such connections above or inside a ceiling, allowing only for a smooth pipe to exit the ceiling material.

 

[Archaea]

My issue is just that when you are trying to fine tune the Chief adjustment mechanisma with a screwdriver - it flexes the PVC pipe slightly and if you bump it, it bounces around. It's really a minor complaint - the PVC is a very viable solution when you aren't adjusting it, and I've used it without issue since April 2014. I used pipe glue to seal mine together -- I'm quite confident it's stronger than could ever be necessary as far as not failing and dropping my projector --- so no concern there. It was especially beneficial in that I could try different lengths to settle on what worked best at basically no cost. I spray painted the pipe black and you'd never know from looking at it that it is PVC. However, the rest of my stuff is all Chief, including the ceiling plate - because I was frustrated with the super cheap mounts that bounce when the bass hits. I knew the mount at work you could do a pullup on, and it's just as solid as solid can be. So I wanted something strong this go round -- but with the PVC connecting pipe it just lessens my overall perception of the strudiness of the mount to the point I'm willing to spend $10 bucks on a steel pipe to make it feel rock solid when I'm making adjustments. (though I'm too cheap to spend $30 if I can spend $10 instead)

So I'll try one of the black steel 1.5" plumbing pipes from Home Depot for $8-10.

Good 2 Go!

Thanks for the help!