I am remodeling my basement and plan on installing a 2×2 drop ceiling. Does anyone have any thoughts good or bad on using 1/4″ Birch plywood for panels? I don’t want to use the normal drop ceiling look. Any fire code, sagging, weight, other issues?
Also, what is the minimum practical spacing between the joists and the drop ceiling? My ceiling is pretty low so I want to go as high as I can. All plumbing and wires are up between the joists.
thanks, Joe
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Replies
If all of your systems are above the bottom of the joists, why not "drop" it right onto the joists? Mill some birch 1 x 2 into an inverted "T" and use it to capture your panels. Leave enough of it reomovable to access your plumbing, wiring, etc.
Edited 1/24/2003 7:00:25 PM ET by BEMW
How about the "tin" panels available?
Or -
In our dining room, my wife and I stenciled (56) 1/2" drywall squares in a pattern of Arts and Crafts animals (from a photo of some fireplace tiles), and hung them in a grid of applied heart pine beams.
Forrest
Pictures?
Yeah, but let me get my scanner hooked up - It's a darn pretty room.
We did the walls in flat and semigloss deep slate blue, the walls are flat with a semi-gloss stenciled pattern in a stripe about 8" wide about 18" apart, like damask. You can't see the stripe directly in front of you, because the clor is the same, but you can the ones left and right. The walls kind of "flicker" as you move around.
It's a great idea but I'm pretty sure any panels less than 3/4 thick will warp pretty badly in time assuming they are not fastened on all edges (maybe even the 3/4). The thinner the ply the more the warp factor. Even 1/16th is going to stand out, especially so close to your eyes.
You could also keep 1/4" panels flat by gluing ribs across the backs, like the bracing in guitars. Lighter than the sheetrock idea, but more hassle too.
Hey Joe, I am assuming you will be dropping the ceiling with T-Bar?
If so, the spacing will depend on what you use for tiles, all you need is enough room to get the tiles in. You can run pretty tight if you leave a space to get the tiles in and 'work' them over to where you want them. I would say, 2X2 ¼" birch panels wil probably warp unless you place a 2X2 square of ½" drywall on top. That could increase your fire rating and also lessen the sound transfer between floors. If I assume correctly and you are using T-Bar, save yourself alot of hassle and get commercial fire rated rails and ties. The slightly higher cost is not substantial when you consider the finished product of a solid interlocking curse free frame compared to the DIY styles which are flimsey and a #&*$%.
( your logo here) Turtleneck
Thanks for the ideas. Do you know of a source (or even the type of distributor) where I could locate the commercial rails?
thanks, Joe
Don't use plywood because as what's his name said, it'll warp/ twist. Instead use MDF. If you like the wood look, use MDF with a birch veneer - available in 1/4" and 1/2" thicknesses.
Regardless, this wood route is going to give you a hard/ bright/ reflective sound surface. Noises will be amplified. You may find that undesirable. One of the bars around here had the same idea and now the place is just too loud. Neighbors upstairs are complaining, so the bar owners have to go back to the reg stuff.
Just a thought.
Joe-
Believe it or not, HD in my area carries the heavier grid. It's called FireCode grid, and it's just got a larger profile than the standard. Personally, I don't see the need for it- I've run jobs totalling darn near 250,000 SF of grid, and never had the need for it. It's meant for fire rated assemblies- the standard grid should work just fine if it's tied off tightly and a few mains are riveted into the wall tees to keep the assembly from racking.
Bob
I don't know about suppliers in your area, I'm on the other side of the border (and I don't mean Mexico Senor). What you are looking for is Fire Rated T-Bar. Any commercial application in your area would have to use the fire rated. It is also common for Drywall Suppliers to carry commercial T-Bar at less than HD prices.( your logo here) Turtleneck
Joe-
I just finished my basement, and like you, I wanted to keep the ceiling as high as possible. I found that 3" from the bottom of the joists to the bottom of the grid worked pretty well. It was a little tight for some tiles to go in, depending on where the joists fell relative to the grid intersections. The way around that was to find a spot where the tiles went in easy, and then load other tiles thru that spot and work them over to the tighter areas. A bit of a hassle, but worth the extra headroom.
Bob