Ceiling Ideas?

[snakedoc257]

I'm new to the forum, and love it. I found it after someone on one of the Mustang forums suggested I look here before starting on my garage project.

I am going to finally finish my small 20X28, two car garage in our split foyer home and I am looking for some suggestions. I am going to start with the ceiling since it is completely unfinished. I am leaning towards a drop ceiling because of all the ducts and plumbing. I've included a couple of pictures so pleas chime in with any other ideas.

I will also need lighting since the two incandescent bulbs are cutting it.

Thanks in advance.

 

[dirttracker18]

What part of the country are you in? Is there living area over the garage (attached with room above)?

If this is an attached garage with residence above it must be sealed (drywall taped and mudded) to keep fumes from entering the house. As well it must be fire rated (agian drywall but fire rated to code). Obviously this is specific to where you are but generally accepted practise.

Also if you are in a cold climate area you may want to spray foam first to keep that room above warm.

More info would be helpful though

 

[JMURiz]

+1
I'd go with 5/8 drywall to help with fire-rating and make sure it's taped and mudded correctly to stop fumes if there's a living space above.

 

[Zeke]

Where did he say there was a living space above his garage. I musta missed that. Although I see the same things you see, namely the plumbing.

Snakedoc, I think in your situation a dropped ceiling makes the most sense. And drop in lighting will be cinch.

I'm not too sure about your fire sprinklers on plastic pipes. That's kinda ridiculous.

So, what is above your garage?

 

[snakedoc257]

I live in West Georgia, and there is living space above my garage. In the area I live in the garage must have a sprinkler system in it if there is living space above. I don't know why they used plastic pipe for the sprinklers, but it was the same in my old house too. I know it's not PVC pipe, and at first I thought it was CPVC, but I'm not so sure. I'll have to climb up there to get a closer look.

I have done drywall work in the past, but with all the plumbing, ducts, and two garage door openers I really think it would take me forever. Plus if I have a leak it will be easier to fix and with my luck I'm sure I'll have one right after I get the new ceiling installed. I am leaning toward a drop ceiling with some flush mount lights. I'll just have to figure out cutting around the sprinkler heads and the garage door openers.

I am also going to build a large shelf along the back wall. I've got a lot of car parts that I'd like to get off the floor. I've drawn up some basic plans and think I'll frame up something the width of the garage using 4x8 sheets of USB.

Any more advice for saving space or lighting is greatly appreciated.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

Although I've heard this argument before, the theory is somewhat sound by intention but, it totally overlooks the obvious.
I had a similar situation several years ago- unfinished basement, buyer wanted boat door (garage door). OK, no problem. Inspector said, enclose space, fire-rated drywall and entry door. That will be (X)$$$. Buyer says too much- alternative? Sprinkler system.

Where's the obvious? It's the possibility of CO gas infiltrating the "living areas" of the house. The "regular" garage gets d/wall- What the Hell are they thinking? Oh yeah, they weren't. Anyway, GA like many other states have rescinded the sprinkler code mandate.
http://www2.wrbl.com/news/2011/apr/04/fire-sprinklers-not-required-ga-ar-1671684/
Most legislatures have expressed excessive cost per unit as the 'cause" for the deletion.

As far as the OP's situation- the unfinished ceiling would be the first "reason" for the sprinkler, the next would probably be furnace/water heater. As for the heads themselves- they are probably tied directly to the house's cold water supply. A containment area of a garage doesn't require a "stand alone" system. And PVC, CPVC, and PEX are all adequate supply lines. The difference is the rating temperature on the head.
Personally, I'd feel better with a d/walled ceiling. But, with few modifications a drop ceiling with drop-in light fixtures sure would be quick, probably less expensive, and really clean when done. Also OP, that 4" line that's running across the ceiling- whether it's a fart fan or a dryer vent- it doesn't appear to be to code. The majority of it should be hardpipe.

 

[snakedoc257]

****, I new I should have researched building codes before buying this house. I would have had him drywall the ceiling. With the amount of ducts in my ceiling wouldn't the ceiling look like ****? I guess I could lower it and build a frame out of 2x4s like a drop ceiling?

That 4" line is an exhaust fan....Fantastic! It is coming from the bathroom in the hall next to the garage. It was installed on one of the days I didn't come by to check on the building progress. My dad saw it and wondered why the goofball didn't run it straight out the back of the house. Shorter distance! I did not know that the Flexible hose was not code. I guess I will add that to the list of things to do.

 

[camarotoolman]

I would price out each solution first.That would help you decide what to do.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I'm not too sure about your fire sprinklers on plastic pipes. That's kinda ridiculous.

I have seen it a few times. It's CPVC pipe, schedule 40 same as the fittings except the fitting for the sprinkler head, that's sch 80.


sorry about the pic, just something I had snapped with my cell phone

 

[dreamingmuscle]

Fiber drop ceiling tiles wont hold up in the humidity. They will be sagging in no time. If you do want to go the drop ceiling route use 1/4 inch plywood cut into 2'x2' squares. Should be cheaper in the long run too.

 

[wintermute]

I'd go with the 5/8" firecode sheetrock ceiling. Those ducts are definitely a challenge. A subframe for a continuous ceiling at about the level of the sprinkler head support should do the trick, would look nice and probably be more durable. Just cut in an access panel under the drain pipe

 

[mypov]

HIGHLY RECOMMEND NOT GOING WITH DROP CEILING, done a few of them, and if you are intending on using pressure washer in your garage, or even washing your car with bucket of water, the humidity will definitely cause your drop ceiling tiles to sag. If you're doing any sort of fabbing, or modding, or heavy work in your garage the off gasses will discolour your tiles fairly quickly as well. Go with drywall for sure, and as a poster above mentioned regarding your piping, depending on what it is for is should most likely be solid pipe (although it looks to me like a fart fan, as it seems to be insulated), just a guess... I think if you dry walled the ceiling, (if there is a room above, and even as this is off your house, you should double tape the seams, have at minimum 5/8" sheet rock, or double up 1/2" (will be costly, but well worth it IMO) then, the touch, I would leave your pipes and HVAC exposed, but change your piping to solid state tin - it would have an industrial feel and if the cuts are done well would look very professional and kind of modern.

- you would have to drop the the hoses (not sure what there all for, can't all be fart fans), one must be cold air intake? Laundry vent, fart fan?, stove vent? and not sure what else - but indeed, if you were to drop them, install the dwall, then re run your hoses/pipes over top of the drywall I think (maybe I'm alone) that this would be a cool effect, that's what I'd do if I were in your position...
Best of luck.

 

[Kevin54]

How high are your ceilings now?

On the right hand side of the pic I see two PVC pipes which look like drain pipes. Is that what they are? And if so, where are they running to? And is this garage below ground level? Anyways, just a few questions I had. As far as the ceiling, I wouldn't do a drop ceiling. I would have a drywalled ceiling. Can you get rid of the flex ehxhaust pipe and maybe run it out the back along sode the other two PVC pipes? And if it is just an exhaust fan for a bathroom, I'd get rid of the flex and run a PVC pipe for the exhaust. It will make for a cleaner job. Also I'de get rid of the flex pipe going to your heat registers and put up ridgid pipeing for the ductwork. That way you can fasten it up and won't have it drooping all over. Change it out so it's not running at an angle across the ceiling.

Once you have those rerouted, then you can box in the pipes and ductwork. If you wouldn't like the looks of that, then you could make new ceiling joist out of 2x4's and hang them down from 2x4's from the joist above.

One other thing to consider and I don't know if it would work, would be to put in a drop ceiling and like the above poster said, use 1/4" plywood for the inserts or maybe try the new lightweight drywall they have out. I'm not sure how much it weighs, but you would have to double or triple the wires you use to hang the drop ceiling with. I'd also look into spray in insulation vs. the batts as it would help to seal up any voids as far as fumes. But if you can't, I'd at least try to put some type of vapor barrier up.

Just remember that no matter what you do, make sure you have some type of access to the pipes above. If you drywall, make it so that where the pipes are is a separate sheet of drywall. It wouldn't have to be a full sheet, but if it had to be removed, you wouldn't have to tear the complete ceiling up to get to it, only a small portion and you'll have square edges in which to patch in. The main place for failure would be at the elbows or any joint

 

[1320stang]

Barring code, what about doing a drop ceiling, but instead of using ceiling tile, cut up 4x8 sheets of Hardi Panel (or equivalent) to use in place of the tile. It's non-flamible, resists moisture, accessible, and the weight helps for gust of wind that blow in. You could also paint it black/white checkerboard if you went with a 2x2 pattern

 

[Outlawmws]

Where did he say there was a living space above his garage. I musta missed that. Although I see the same things you see, namely the plumbing.

Snakedoc, I think in your situation a dropped ceiling makes the most sense. And drop in lighting will be cinch.

I'm not too sure about your fire sprinklers on plastic pipes. That's kinda ridiculous.

So, what is above your garage?

Agreed on the T-Bar dropped ceiling and light fixtures. We did that in a friend's garage, and it was a huge difference.

 

[SuperSocket]

You could always push those vent pipes along the wall and box them in... that is what I would do. Form the pictures it seems like they anyway run across the entire room as shortcuts.

Once you drywall you should be able to shorten those sprinkler heads or remove them if you don't want them (if they are there to be a counter for the lack of drywall protection).


A drop ceiling will look like **** IMO.

 

[Zeke]

Apparently there are some drop ceiling assemblies that are fire rated. I am thinking with sprinklers below the ceiling you might be good. That will be a lot of work to drywall with all the penetrations. Really would have to build some framework below the existing joists.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Word of advice, if that is a wet sprinkler system, don't screw around with them while the system is pressurized. I don't think you realize how water will come out of it.

 

[snakedoc257]

NuttsGT, thanks for the advice. I've never messed around with a sprinkler system before. I've traced it all back to a shut off valve, but haven't investigated the system anymore than that. I'm not gonna mess with it until I find out how to do it right.

With my estimates on how low the ceiling framework will be, I believe I'm going to have to lengthen the sprinkler heads about 3-4 inches each to clear the drop ceiling. I'm going to have to figure out how to drain the system, and extend each head without damaging any of the sprinkler heads.

 

[Milton Shaw]

The grosses water I have ever seen came out of a iron pipe sprinkler system. It was a new building and we were having to move a sprinkler head to a bathroom that was added. It had oil, rust, and smelled to high heaven. We though at 5 gallon bucket would hold all that would drain out but we thought wrong. Sprayed all over ceiling, walls and fixtures. I don't think commercial installers ever flush system out, just leave all the construction **** in the pipe, threading oil, shavings etc.

 

[NUTTSGT]

NuttsGT, thanks for the advice. I've never messed around with a sprinkler system before. I've traced it all back to a shut off valve, but haven't investigated the system anymore than that. I'm not gonna mess with it until I find out how to do it right.

With my estimates on how low the ceiling framework will be, I believe I'm going to have to lengthen the sprinkler heads about 3-4 inches each to clear the drop ceiling. I'm going to have to figure out how to drain the system, and extend each head without damaging any of the sprinkler heads.

It could be a wet or dry system, I'd guess a wet system. Wet being full of water and dry being , well dry, and pressurized with air. Once the air pressure drops, a flapper valve will open and water will flow out. . . . .basic laymen's terms.

I'd really suggest taking a look at the codes for it. It could be something that your insurance company could deny a claim if you make an attempt at modifying.

 

[snakedoc257]

NuttsGT, thanks, for the input, I've been checking out your garage it's awesome. I'm a fellow Fox Body Mustang owner too. I'm going to check with the county tomorrow. I am still undecided on what to do. I think re-arranging everything to put in dry-wall is going to be too much for me to tackle right now.

I've checked the Armstrong brand ceiling tiles and they are Fire rated. In order to install a drop ceiling all I would need is to extend each sprinkler head down about 5 inches. If I need to have a licensed plumber do it to keep it legal/safe I will. I'm thinking the 2x2 panels or taking that guys advice who suggested cutting 1/4 plywood squares.

I was down there tonight looking around and measuring for about an hour. It's a mess of ducts and pipe. I thought of boxing some of the ducts in, so that I could drywall it, but there are so many of them I think it would look strange.