Tray Ceilings

Tray ceilings are rectangular-shaped inverted architectural features in residential and commercial buildings. They are used to create a sense of increased volume and drama in a space. They can be made and clad in various materials and in more modern designs often include lighting features.

Architectural Significance

Tray ceilings are dramatic architectural design tools because they can considerably change the feeling of volume in a space. They can hover over and frame a particular functional area or simply provide a sense of drama and spaciousness to a room or passageway. They can be used in every room of the house or business and are commonly found in bedrooms, hallways, kitchens, dining rooms, great rooms, living rooms, lobbies and restaurants.

Varying Attributes

While typically rectangular, as with an inverted serving tray, tray ceilings can also be square or of another geometric shape. The sides of the tray can either be sloped, single or multi-stepped or can be rounded off. Tray ceilings can be built in varying depths, from inches to many feet.

Materials

Traditional tray ceilings are crafted of wide plank lumber. In finish they can be left natural, finished with a urethane or stain or painted. They also can be created and finished with stucco and smooth or textured plaster. Also common in the cottage or cape cod design idioms, they can be clad in bead board.

Benefits

Common in warm and humid climates, the design properties of tray ceilings coupled with large windows allow for increased air circulation and flow and provide greater ceiling volume, allowing warm air to rise farther away from inhabitants of the room and thereby increasing its comfort. In modern building applications where climate control is less of an issue they are used primarily for decorative effect.

Building a Tray Ceiling

Tray ceilings can be designed and built into original construction or in many cases can be added in a remodeling process provided there is either sufficient attic or crawlspace clearance above the existing ceiling.

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