# creative plywood ceiling ideas?



## Brik (Jan 16, 2007)

Really nice plywood is expensive. FYI - You can get it pre-finished. Check out one of my local sources for ideas.
http://www.russellplywood.com/

Look for architectural panels.

Attaching will be with construction adhesive and nails. Depending on the plywood you can go over studs directly or you may need to go over drywall if its thin like paneling.

I saw this done once where the fasteners were incorporated into the design. They used black lag bolts with allen wrench sockets. The panels had finished edges, painted black. The panels were about 2'x3' if I recall correctly. and they had about a 1.5" space between them. They were shimmed down from a main ceiling by about 1.5". The main ceiling, or sub ceiling if you will, was also painted black. The panels were a pre-finished mahogany wood. 

It looked really neat. I considered doing this in my basement.

There are also beadboard options, in sheets or boards, that look nice.

Bottom line - This can be a real architectural feature or it can be a red flag when you go to sell, depending on how its done. If you just want to tak up plywood to cover some problem and avoid mudding thing you may be going down the wrong path. If you are doing it for design reasons then go for it and make it nice.

Take pictures as you go.


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## t_mccann (Nov 15, 2007)

hi Brik,

thank you for the information!

I'm not looking to use plywood to hide mudding problems, it's definitely for design purposes. I considered using planks, but it would be very labor intensive, and much more expensive.

I like the black lag bolt/allen idea. I should start checking out fastener options..

Thanks again!


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## jackson726 (Feb 11, 2012)

*Charlie*

I saw a basement plywood ceiling idea from Josh Temple on DIY. Can anyone tell me where to look it up online?


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

The big draw back is all the seams. Concider something like this.
http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=slv8-w3i&va=coffered+ceiling+design


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## Hardway (Dec 28, 2011)

http://www.gp.com/build/product.aspx?pid=1401


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## Blondesense (Sep 23, 2008)

OP hasn't been back in like, five years.
Old thread


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## MNsawyergp (Jan 30, 2012)

I did the ceilings in an entire house some years ago. It already had beam ceilings in the dining room and living rooom. I had to duplicate this in the rest of the house and turn everything into coffered ceilings. Once the beams were installed around the perimeters and in rows, we installed 1/4" lauan plywood to the ceilings with screws. After this we spread contact cement on the lauan plywood and the back of 1/4" birch, cherry, or walnut plywood/prefinished, depending on the "theme" of the room and stuck the finished plywood in place like you would install laminate, by rolling it out. No nails could be used on the face. That is why we used contact cement. Once the finished plywood was up, the rest of the coffered ceiling covered the joints in the finished plywood.


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## Karmal (Feb 21, 2012)

jackson726 said:


> I saw a basement plywood ceiling idea from Josh Temple on DIY. Can anyone tell me where to look it up online?
> 
> I have been looking for that Josh Temple "Quick Tip" on the DIY website for days and cannot find it. It's exactly what I want to do with my basement ceiling and it looked fairly easy. We want to make it look like a floating ceiling with fairly large gaps (4-6 inches) between the boards to give a shading effect. The unfinished ceiling is already painted black. Any ideas for fasteners to give it the "floating look"?


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## Georgefloorman (Feb 28, 2012)

*Moving from main coffered room into hallway...*

Because of low ceilings, I'm having to do the "faux" coffered ceilings, using 1x4s and beadboard in the centers. One fellow mentioned that it's not necessary to take the coffering into adjacent hallways. The passage to our hall is not a standard headered doorway, but an open smooth flow of den to hall ceiling. It seems sort of cheesy to end the coffering in the den with a trim piece where the hallway begins. Is there a good way to stop without going down the hall, or is taking it down the hall better? By the way, I'm getting rid of old popcorn ceilings. Thanks.


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## DangerMouse (Jul 17, 2008)

Old or not, some threads are welcomed being bumped. Here's a sample of (1/4") plywood on a ceiling.
http://www.diychatroom.com/f49/my-40-300-sq-ft-homemade-birch-walnut-ceiling-31309/

DM


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## Georgefloorman (Feb 28, 2012)

*Looks good!*

DM, That's a good looking ceiling, especially for the price. The transitions in between the boards are sort of what I'm thinking about if I need to end my coffering in the den without going down the hall. Then again, I may take the coffers and beadboards on down the hall just to make the wife happier.


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## DangerMouse (Jul 17, 2008)

ALWAYS keep the wife happy! It just makes your life SOOOO much easier.

DM


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