Non-Drop Ceilings
- Have you ever wanted to have a tiled ceiling but didn’t want to glue the tiles to drywall where they might fall or where the glue probably stinks so bad it gives you a headache?
- Do you live in a multi-story house where you have wiring between the floors that’s essentially inaccessible?
- Does that ceiling conceal plumbing fixtures that occasionally leak and destroy your beautifully-textured finish?
- Maybe you want to finish your basement, but want to keep all that wiring and plumbing easily accessible.
Between Thursday night and Friday this weekend, I suffered an unusual storm that dropped 3“ of North-wind-driven rain on my home. I happen to live in a two-story townhouse with a basement, giving me a total of three floors to live in. This also means that, while the basement is unfinished and all the utilities are readily accessible, the main floor has textured drywall ceilings. With the main bath up on the second floor, this means any leaks are guaranteed to soak into the Living Room ceiling and gradually destroy the drywall. In my case, after suffering two plumbing leaks (well, one, anyway, the first was blamed on a possibly-leaking 5-year-old wax gasket), the Living Room was nearly soaked on Friday by water again seeping through already-damaged drywall joints. Because of the location, our first fear was that the toilet in the main bath, installed only three months ago, was already leaking. We cut holes in the ceiling near where the pipes lie and I nearly got flooded–not from the toilet drain but by a stream of water running from the vicinity of the extension that pierces the brick north wall of my end unit.
Not good. This means that the first leak might not have been that toilet seal, but rather the results of another, similar rainstorm. Of course, when it stops raining, it dries up. Right? Even worse, now that we know it’s weather related, we start investigating farther. I go outside while the rain is still pouring down to see if I can get a hint of the cause. The roofing shingles over the extension look ok, though there is one questionable spot that I can make out from the ground. On the other hand, when I go up to the bathroom on the second floor and stick my head out the window, I discover that this isn’t the first time the leak has occurred; there are two layers of shingles and a second flashing against the brick trying to seal the junction of brick and extension. This is getting ready to look like an expensive fix–if it can be fixed. But that’s another story.
My intent with this particular posting is to suggest a way to have a tiled ceiling that still permits access between floors without having to destroy it. The concept is simple and should be easy to implement–with the right tools. Probably the simplest way is to make or acquire a number of ‘T’ shaped furring strips about 5/8ths inch high by about 1” across. I recommend this size because the average drywall board is that thick and if you have a fire sprinkler system, the heads are mounted to rest flush with the drywall once mounted. You’ll also need four ‘L’ shaped strips to serve as the outer borders of your future tiled ceiling. When assembled correctly, you should have a series of tracks that run across the ceiling beams (so you can adjust the width of the tracks to the tiles you use) with narrower tracks at either side to balance the look from side to side. Of course, if you’re not concerned with how symmetric your tile work is, you can always let the least obvious areas take the cut-down pieces. Simply slip the plastic or metal ceiling tile down the track and drop a spacer board between them. If the strips are all stained nearly the same color as the panels, the finished product should look like every panel was nailed or screwed in place.
When you’re done, the ceiling will no longer be a plain, textured white surface but rather a work of art that should increase the value of your home. Adding to this the fact that access to between-floor utilities is simplified and replaceable, you should never have to repair your ceiling again.
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