# Hate drop celing, how can I make it look better?



## Mazz (Mar 23, 2009)

You can change to tiles that are flushed with the grid. 

Get smoother tiles. Less texture.

I'd paint the grid to match the tile also.


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## Maintenance 6 (Feb 26, 2008)

You could do a lot with different styles of lighting. Armstrong has a lot of different panels, including some that look like old tin ceilings. Link below.

http://www.armstrong.com/resclgam/na/ceilings/en/us/panels.asp?shapeId=1


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## RyanD (Mar 23, 2009)

Maintenance 6 said:


> You could do a lot with different styles of lighting. Armstrong has a lot of different panels, including some that look like old tin ceilings. Link below.
> 
> http://www.armstrong.com/resclgam/na/ceilings/en/us/panels.asp?shapeId=1


Wow, some of those are nice. $60+ for 6 panels, ouch!  I like the options though, I guess if I paint the bar white and put some of those up it might look a little better. Is it hard to raise it a little if I can, I would like as much head room as I can possibly have. Also, are there kits for inset lighting or will I have to install cans on the studs and try to align them up with the drop ceiling?


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## ponch37300 (Nov 27, 2007)

There is also a product called grid max that snaps over your existing grid to make it look new and it comes in a variety of colors. Here is a link http://www.acpideas.com/index.cfm?XlinkID=14

I've used it a couple of times and it's really easy to use and looks good. It comes in chrome, gold, silver, and all sorts of colers.


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## bjbatlanta (Jul 16, 2008)

I think the revealed edge tile looks nicer than flat, personally. Never have cared for black (or silver or gold...) grid. Have heard of the "grid max" (and got a sample from the mfgr.), but I think it would be more for a commercial/restaurant application where the grid is rusted, greasy, etc. It's been a couple of years since I got the samples, so it may be better now. If you want to leave it as a drop ceiling, I'd opt for painting the grid, go to can lights, and new tile...
If it were mine, and the cost wasn't prohibitive, I'd sheetrock it. I've installed thousands of feet of grid ceilings, but I still don't like them in a residential application unless there's just no other choice. What are the odds of a pipe breaking?? You have them in your walls. If it's a two story house, they are run through the floor joists between the first and second story. They stand just as good of a chance of breaking as the ones in the basement. You can add access panels for shutoffs where needed. If a pipe WERE to break, you would have to replace tiles and possibly grid. (I've seen it rust when exposed to water even for short periods of time.) Price someone coming in to remove and replace half your grid and tile to get to the rusty spot in the middle of the ceiling. Way more than patching a half or even a whole sheet of drywall. The main concern is probably how much framing needs to be done around the existing "impediments" to hanging drywall. If you really hate the look of a drop ceiling, get some quotes to get rid of it.......


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## Mazz (Mar 23, 2009)

I want to add that if you do sheetrock it to take this opportunity while the ceiling is open to draw a layout of the piping and electrical that you may need to access in the future.


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## gma2rjc (Nov 21, 2008)

.....and it's a good time to insulate the rim joists, tape the seams on the heat ducts and insulate them, wrap foam tubing around water pipes, etc.


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## DangerMouse (Jul 17, 2008)

i agree, that's one ceiling i would not want to lay back and stare at!
here's what i did, maybe you could do similar?
http://www.diychatroom.com/f49/my-40-300-sq-ft-homemade-birch-walnut-ceiling-31309/
and those tin ceiling tiles look gorgeous... wish i could afford them....

DM


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## Wildie (Jul 23, 2008)

Before I retired I operated a small telephone service company! Every time that I encountered a drywall ceiling in a residential basement I shuddered!
Installing a new cable, for a repair or expansion always increased the cost of the job by a factor of four!
And of course Murphy's law always comes into play! Cables only go BAD in closed ceilings!


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## bjbatlanta (Jul 16, 2008)

How about all the cables run in the walls and ceilings on the other floors? They only go bad in the basement?? Fishing wires anyplace in a house can be a challenge and sometimes drywall HAS to be cut to facilitate it. You repair it and go on.....


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