How to mount rail with wood at either side of the bay

by Iain
(Aberdeen)

We need curtain tracks for two bay windows, one of them is straightforward but the other has a piece of wood at either side of the bay where the end of the curtain track would need to attach.

What Would be the best way to attach the rail? Would we need to attach a piece of wood to the ceiling all the way around the bay to make it the same height as at the ends? See attached photos.


Hi Iain

Thanks for getting in touch and I hope I can help you with this project.

I think rather than adding extra timber to the ceiling all around your bay to level things up. I would go the opposite way and carefully remove the end pieces of wood.

Then your curtain track could fit directly to the ceiling wall to wall. This would give you the best-looking solution.

If your ceiling is plasterboard and not lathe and plaster. Then fixing straight to the ceiling is the best option. I have done it thousands of times over nearly thirty years. As long as you use the right kind of plugs and screws it will work well for hanging curtains.

When it comes to removing the small wooden battens on the side of the bay. I try and locate how they have been secured. Usually, there is a screw or two. These may have been filled and painted over. I scrape the paint off to locate the fixings. Then I score around the edges of the batten with a Stanley knife to break the paint seal. Then finally try to remove the screws.
The battens then should be free to remove.

Then you can lightly sand the area and paint to finish. Bear in mind that the curtains will permanently hang over this area. So even it is not a perfect finish you will not see it.

I know this will require some time and effort. However not as much as the alternative :-)




All the best

Lee