On many of the later Hunter models, the headliner material was a vinyl fabric.
It looks terrific, but the terrifying moment is when you need to pull some of it down to access wiring, find a leak, etc.
The headliner is pushed into plastic tracks around the perimeter, and whomever installed it at the factory clearly knew his job well.
But, taking a section down is very scary, and trying to put it back is even worse.
As far as taking it down, you always start at a corner.,
Using a pair of needle nose pliers with tape over the jaws, you very carefully pull out the corner part.
Once you have an inch or so out of the track, you just keep pulling VERY carefully.
Now, the big problem is putting it back into the track.
I found a very neat trick.
Firstly, by the time you’ve needed to pull this fabric out, it’s likely been installed for years. So, it’s dried out a lot, meaning that pushing it back into the track will have a lot of friction.
Get some white silicone grease
With a q-tip, run a light bead of grease down the track opening. Then, take a 2” stainless paint scraper, and put a layer of electrical tape along the edge. This will keep the tool from cutting the fabric.
Trick #2
Position the edge of the tool along the track, with the fabric in place above it.
Now, with a med weight plastic head hammer, tap the tool with a bit of force.
This impact will literally “jump” the fabric into the track, owing to light layer of grease. It is amazing how easy this technique is. I can put up several feet of ceiling in just a few minutes, and it falls back into its original place perfectly.
As you push the fabric in, keep stretching it. This will get rid of all the wrinkles
Good luck!!
It looks terrific, but the terrifying moment is when you need to pull some of it down to access wiring, find a leak, etc.
The headliner is pushed into plastic tracks around the perimeter, and whomever installed it at the factory clearly knew his job well.
But, taking a section down is very scary, and trying to put it back is even worse.
As far as taking it down, you always start at a corner.,
Using a pair of needle nose pliers with tape over the jaws, you very carefully pull out the corner part.
Once you have an inch or so out of the track, you just keep pulling VERY carefully.
Now, the big problem is putting it back into the track.
I found a very neat trick.
Firstly, by the time you’ve needed to pull this fabric out, it’s likely been installed for years. So, it’s dried out a lot, meaning that pushing it back into the track will have a lot of friction.
Get some white silicone grease
With a q-tip, run a light bead of grease down the track opening. Then, take a 2” stainless paint scraper, and put a layer of electrical tape along the edge. This will keep the tool from cutting the fabric.
Trick #2
Position the edge of the tool along the track, with the fabric in place above it.
Now, with a med weight plastic head hammer, tap the tool with a bit of force.
This impact will literally “jump” the fabric into the track, owing to light layer of grease. It is amazing how easy this technique is. I can put up several feet of ceiling in just a few minutes, and it falls back into its original place perfectly.
As you push the fabric in, keep stretching it. This will get rid of all the wrinkles
Good luck!!
