Decorative metal tiles turn a plain ceiling into something dramatic. Armstrong ceiling tiles are 24 3/8 inches wide and 48 3/8 inches long. Trimming tiles to fit leaves an unsightly break in the pattern, so only full tiles are installed. Border strips cover the space between the last full tiles and the edge of the ceiling, leaving a tidy finish. Before installing the tiles, cover the ceiling with a layer of 3/8-inch plywood or oriented strand board, fastening it securely to the ceiling joists. You will need at least one helper.
Instructions
1. Measure the edge of the ceiling along one wall, then divide the measurement in half. Mark the ceiling at the halfway point with a pencil or marker. Repeat on the opposite wall.
If one of the two opposing walls is longer than the other, measure and mark the center point of longer wall only, then use a framing square to start a straight line out from the center point. Place the framing square flat against the ceiling with one leg along the wall and the point -- or 90-degree angle -- of the square aligned with the pencil mark. Trace the perpendicular leg of the square onto the ceiling with a pencil. Repeat to mark the center of the ceiling edge along the two remaining walls, or use a framing square to mark the center point of the longer of the two.
2. Stretch a chalk line straight across the ceiling form one center mark to the opposite mark, asking a helper to hold one end of the line. Pull the line taut and snap it to mark the ceiling. Repeat across the marks on the two perpendicular edges of the ceiling.
If you used a framing square to begin a straight line on the ceiling, hold the chalk line at the pencil line while your helper stretches the chalk line across the ceiling to the opposite wall. Adjust the chalk line left or right until it aligns with the pencil line from the framing square, then snap the line against the ceiling. Repeat to mark the ceiling in the opposite direction. The point where the two chalk lines intersect is the center of the room and where you will begin installing the panels.
3. Decide which direction to orient the panels on the ceiling.
4. Measure along a chalk line from the center point of the room to a wall. Divide that measurement by either 24 or 48 inches, depending on which layout you prefer, to determine how many full panels will fit. The 3/4-inch excess of the full width or length of the panels overlaps and is not figured into the installed dimensions.
5. Mark the chalk line with a pencil to show where the last full panel will end, then measure the space from the pencil mark to the edge of the ceiling. The space will be covered by the border.
6. Measure again from the center to the edge of the ceiling in each direction. If the space past the last full panel is significantly different on one or more walls, consider snapping new chalk lines on the ceiling. Adjusting the intersecting lines in one direction or another can help minimize the space difference, resulting in a more balanced border.
7. Cut metal ceiling tile border trim strips to the width of the perimeter space plus 1 inch with metal snips.
8. Place the first border strip flat against the ceiling. If there is a decorative or finished side, it should face down toward you. Align the edge of the border with the edge of the ceiling along the wall.
9. Fasten the border to the ceiling as close to the edges of the strip as possible using 1 1/4-inch wire nails and a tack hammer. Armstrong does not specify spacing for the nails, so use aesthetics as your guide.
10. Position the next border strip at the end of the first. Overlap the ends where they meet by approximately 3/4 inch but not less than 1/2 inch. Fasten the strip with wire nails as you did with the first strip. Continue around the room until the ceiling border is complete.
11. Place the first full metal tile panel flat against the ceiling, decorative side facing out. Align the panel with two perpendicular, intersecting chalk lines at the center of the room.
12. Hammer one 1 1/4-inch cone-head nail through the center of the panel and into the ceiling. Decorative, cone-head nails are slender, and as the name implies, the heads are cone-shaped. Nail the perimeter of the panel to the ceiling with 1 1/4-inch wire nails placed beside the raised nubs around the panel edges. Do not nail through or flatten the nubs with the hammer.
13. Set the second panel in place beside the first. Slide its edge onto the edge of the first panel until the nubs along the two interlock or nest. Fasten the second panel with one cone-head nail through the center and wire nails around the edges as you did with the first panel. Continue in this manner until the ceiling is covered.
14. Drive one cone-head nail through the nubs around the perimeter of the panels where they overlap, spacing the nails approximately 6 inches apart. Add another cone each corner where four panels overlap.
Tags: chalk line, , framing square, nail through, with pencil