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Discussion Forum

Ceiling design help needed

FastEddie | Posted in General Discussion on July 17, 2007 02:48am

I plan to overlay the existing sheetropck ceiling in the kitchen with beadboard.  Got two questions:

The ceiling height is about 8-1/2 feet.  The beadboard is grooved both sides.  One side has a center groove, the other has only the outside chamfers.  Which side to show?  I am thinking that the center groove will make for too many lines in the ceiling.  the boards are a fraction over 3″ wide.

I don’t know how to finish off the perimeter.  The picture shows what I have: a 5″ band around the top of the walls, with crown.  The crown obviously will go away.  That will leave a 3″+ unstained stripe on the band.  I was thinking about adding a new band just wide enough to cover the unstained area, and finish it to match the ceiling.  (Finish unknown at this time, probably painted.)  The cabinets have a large flat area at the top, so I essentially have the same condition there.

 

“Put your creed in your deed.”   Emerson

“When asked if you can do something, tell’em “Why certainly I can”, then get busy and find a way to do it.”  T. Roosevelt

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Replies

  1. YesMaam27577 | Jul 17, 2007 05:14pm | #1

    That's a fairly good looking cornice treatment. I'd probably try to pull it all off, saving it for a complete reinstallation.

     

     

     

    Politics is the antithesis of problem solving.

  2. User avater
    Sphere | Jul 17, 2007 05:26pm | #2

    Personally, I like the 6'' with the center bead. I feel the 3" is too busy for cieling.

    What I'd do, is add a bead to the flat face, this is done on the tongue edge, just past the VEE. An 1/8th inch bead can be made with a molding head cutter on a table saw. A single bead cutter i smade by Craftsman IIRC, I have the whole set, and one that makes a triple bead...that can be used if ya bury two in a sacrifical fence or just grind them away.

    I also have a beading handplane for short runs.

    Is this 3/4" thick stock or 5/16th?  Either way, a fearther board set up is mandatory.

     

  3. User avater
    Sphere | Jul 17, 2007 05:27pm | #3

    Oh, yeah. Can ya not pull the crown and re-hang it after the bead board is up?

     

  4. Piffin | Jul 17, 2007 06:16pm | #4

    The detail you have there now is a basebord upside down - not uncommon if you want to repeat it.
    One that is more common here for a two piece crown is a 1x4 with a bead on the bottom corner that compliments the beaded cieling, then a large bedmold to the cieling.

    I would use strapping screwed perpendicular to the trusses or whatever framing above to get good nailing surfacce for the T&G beaded.

    I also think the narrow beading is awfully busy for that sort of cieling. Sounds like 9/16" x3-1/2" fir we get.
    AZEK makes a very nice 5" wide x 1/2" thick that isn't so busy. We acan alkso buy other patterns with wider faces. Princeton Primelock is one.

     

     

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    1. FastEddie | Jul 17, 2007 06:48pm | #5

      Sounds like everyone is agreeing that the narrower boards would look busy.  So I'll install it with the full face down, which will give a bead/joint every 3", or about the same as a 6" board with a center groove.

      It happens that the ceiling joists run perpendicular to the way I want to install the boards, so if I add strapping I would just put it directly under the joists.  The boards are almost 3/4".  Would I have a problem nailing them up with 2-1/2" 15 ga nails?  That would give me about an inch of nail into the joist.

      And I'm not sure I understand the recommendation for the existing crown.  Should I remove it and reinstall to the new beadboard?"Put your creed in your deed."   Emerson

      "When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it."  T. Roosevelt

      1. User avater
        Sphere | Jul 17, 2007 07:21pm | #6

        That is what I thought about the crown. Just rehang it after the BB. 

      2. Ragnar17 | Jul 17, 2007 07:53pm | #8

        Sounds like everyone is agreeing that the narrower boards would look busy. 

        Not me.  ;)  But I think I'd need to know more about the size of the kitchen and the architectural style of the house before making a strong recommendation.

        Generally speaking, I think large expanses do not look as good with finer details.  One way to get around this would be to break up a large expanse into smaller sections (see how Maverick's photos use box beams to break up the space).

        Even going with a 5" or 6" format may look too busy if the kitchen ceiling is very large. 

        You also asked about which side to expose.  In Colonial Revivals, I like the bead to be showing.  Sometimes on Craftsman houses, I'll let the V-side show because it's a little less fancy and seems to fit the Craftsman style better.  You'll have to decide what fits your own house the best.

        Hope that helps.

        Edited 7/17/2007 12:56 pm ET by Ragnar17

        1. FastEddie | Jul 17, 2007 08:22pm | #9

          I already have the boards, so there's only two choices.  I would have preferred 6" boards, but that wasn't an option.  I got a super deal on this stuff, and now I'm trying to find a use for it.

          The house is a simple modern colonial, two story brick front vinyl siding.  Kitchen is about 10x18', and I want to run the boards the long way.  Cabinets and trim are stained pine, like the crown in the picture.  Walls are painted, with a stained chair rail.

          DW is out of town for 2 weeks, so I thought this would be a good time to do it."Put your creed in your deed."   Emerson

          "When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it."  T. Roosevelt

          1. Piffin | Jul 18, 2007 12:16am | #12

            "DW is out of town for 2 weeks, so I thought this would be a good time to do it."oh man! You like living on the edge, don't you?;) 

             

            Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!

      3. Piffin | Jul 18, 2007 12:12am | #10

        The strapping needs at least 2-1/2" screws or 8d ring nails. 15 ga nails would hold the beaded just fine, but not the strapping every 16". The whole thing would be down on you rheads 

         

        Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!

      4. Piffin | Jul 18, 2007 12:14am | #11

        oops, forgot about the crown.You have to remove it to do this project. What goes back up depends on your taste.BTW, is thios the same room where you just replaced the floor with stained wide pine?? Next time, start at the top and work down. 

         

        Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!

        1. FastEddie | Jul 18, 2007 06:27am | #14

          Yep, same room with the new floor.  I bought 250 sf 1x9 t&g pine flooring and 400 sf 1x3+ t&g pine beadboard for $200.  All of the beadboard is still wrapped in the plastic.  Couldn't pass up that deal. 

          The old sheet vinyl floor was so ugly it had to be the first to go.  DW wants to change/add the kitchen ceiling lights, and she thinks like the "designers" on tv: "just put a light here and here and here, and it will look great".  "Ok, so how do I get power to it?"  "I don't know, call an electrician or something."    So for a while my hought was to remove all the sheetorck, add lights as directed, and put up the beadboard.  Then I had a revolution!  Put up a low-voltage monorail system, the kind where you can bend the track into an s-curve.  So I'll apply the beadboard over the sheetrock, therby cutting the work in half, and just hang the monorail off the beadboard."Put your creed in your deed."   Emerson

          "When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it."  T. Roosevelt

  5. maverick | Jul 17, 2007 07:39pm | #7

    personally, I like the narrower cut

  6. deskguy | Jul 18, 2007 02:13am | #13

    I used the skinny stuff in my house, I really like it.  In the powder room, I wanted crown below it, so I rabbeted out some slightly thicker board and framed it on the perimiter to keep an even reveal for the crown.  (photo 3676) 

    The second photo is my dining room.  I boxed the perimiter, installed the BB and used a simple cove moulding to finish.  This was the first time I'd ever trimed a house so I was just making this stuff up as I went.  Others will probably have better ideas for you, but I thought I'd share some pics in case they could be of any help.

    P.S.  When your done, you will have sore shoulders.

    1. Piffin | Jul 18, 2007 03:47pm | #15

      The narrower is a really good choice in bathrooms because they are smaller 

       

      Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!

      1. deskguy | Jul 19, 2007 01:59am | #16

        After posting that I was thinking that I don't know if I've ever seen larger beadboard on a ceiling.  Maybe that's why I like the narrower?  A wider board might look nicer with large crown.  Anything on the ceiling looks better than the drywall though.

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