Once you frame a suspended ceiling, the tile installation is simple.
Adding ceiling tiles to a room enables you to hide an existing ceiling or add one to an unfinished area, such as a basement. Most ceiling tiles simply set inside a suspended ceiling grid. While the installation process is not difficult for a do-it-yourselfer, you do need to do some planning before you install the grid. Since most rooms are not the exact measurement of multiple widths of the ceiling tiles, you need to plan the suspended ceiling grid so the outer rows of tiles are slightly narrower than the rest of the suspension frame.
Instructions
1. Measure and mark a line around the perimeter of the room that is at least 4 inches below the existing ceiling and at least 7 1/2 feet above the floor. You need the 4 inches to allow room to slide the ceiling tiles into the frame. Most building codes require at least a 7 1/2-foot height. Snap a chalk line along the marks you made on the walls. Check that it is level using a carpenter's level or a laser level. If necessary, resnap the line.
2. Use a stud finder to locate and mark the studs on the wall along the chalk line. Place the bottom edge of the L-shaped perimeter molding along the line you marked. Nail it in place into the studs using 6d nails. Cut the molding, as necessary, with tin snips. Butt edges together.
3. Locate and mark the ceiling joists using a stud finder, if a ceiling is already in place.
4. Measure the length of the room perpendicular to the joists in inches. Measure the length of a ceiling tile in inches. Divide the room's length by the tile's length to determine how many full-size panel lengths you need. If there is a remainder, divide that amount by two to determine how wide the border tiles need to be.
5. Measure the width of the room parallel to the joists in inches. Measure the width of the ceiling tile in inches. Divide the width of the room by the width of the tile. Divide any remainder by two to determine the width of the border tiles.
6. Mark the width of the border section you determined in Step 4 onto several locations perpendicular to the ceiling joists. Align your marks and snap a chalk line. Measure the length of a ceiling tile and make a chalk line at that distance. Continue snapping chalk lines onto the ceiling to match the length of the ceiling tiles. The amount that remains when you reach the opposite wall should be the same as the width of the first border section. Check that all lines are parallel to each other.
7. Tie the end of a piece of string around the perimeter molding on one side of the room. Run the string across the room and tie it tightly to the perimeter molding on the opposite side of the room. The string should be even with the bottom of the perimeter molding and should not sag. Tie two or three additional pieces of string parallel to the first one. The strings are your guides for hanging the suspension frame.
8. Twist a small eye bolt into every third joist along the chalk lines. Cut pieces of 16-gauge wire approximately 12 inches long with wire cutters.
9. Insert one end of a piece of wire into an eye bolt. Twist the wire back on itself three times. Fold the bottom end of the wire so it is even with the hanging strings. Add wire to all the eye bolts in a similar manner.
10. Set one end of a piece of main runner for the suspension grid in the perimeter molding. Using the chalk lines on the joists above as a guide, attach the main runner to the ceiling using the dangling wires. Run the end of the wire through one of the holes in the main runner and then twist the wire back onto itself three times. Join the main runner with the next piece, if necessary, by sliding the pieces together until they snap. Cut any excess runner with tin snips. Continue hanging the frame for the ceiling tiles until all the main runners are in place.
11. Measure the amount you determined for the border of the crosspieces of the room in Step 5. Connect a crosspiece to two main runners at that point by slipping the tabs on the ends of the crosspiece into the slots on the main runners. Set the remaining crosspieces between the first pair of parallel rows of main runners at the width of the ceiling tiles. The last opening should be the same as the first opening at the beginning of the row. Continue setting all the remaining cross pieces in place in the suspension grid.
12. Tilt a full-size ceiling tile and insert it into one of the four center openings in the ceiling grid. Slide it into position. Place the remaining three center tiles in place. Once these center tiles are in place, they help square the frame so you can easily finish the ceiling tile installation.
Tips Warnings
Cut the ceiling tiles for the borders with a utility knife. Draw the utility knife along the side of a straightedge to obtain a straight, clean cut.
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