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What would you do with a really ugly, uneven, falling down acoustic dropped tile ceiling in an older home that wouldn't break the bank? I can only assume it was installed due to some damage from a leaking roof. Certainly not for its good looks.
What would you do with a really ugly, uneven, falling down acoustic dropped tile ceiling in an older home that wouldn't break the bank? I can only assume it was installed due to some damage from a leaking roof. Certainly not for its good looks.
Maybe, maybe not. People also installed those ugly drop ceilings to save on heating bills; lower ceilings mean less to heat up there where no one is standing. But that only matters if you heat your home for many months like I do. I don't have drop ceilings and never have. I agree with you on their ugliness. I usually have 8-foot ceilings which is my favorite height.
Have you taken a peak to see what the actual ceiling looks like? Even if it was.damaged from water in the past and that problem has been fixed, I would take down all the ugly stuff and repair, prime, and paint the original ceiling if at all possible. Maybe you'll even be surprised that it has crown molding up there.
Last edited by geebabe; 09-10-2019 at 10:04 AM..
Reason: original
It's a house for sale. Maybe during an inspection, if it comes to that, the guy could take a peak up there, but I'd definitely want to get rid of them.
Actually you have lots of options and your first step would be to remove the dropped ceiling and see what exists above the grid. Perhaps there are some mechanicals that are up there, either electrical wiring and boxes or plumbing/heating piping. Dropped ceilings often are installed to create a raceway above them.
Depending on what’s there and the condition, you have many options, perhaps just painted drywall, maybe a perimeter drywall fascia and soffit with an acoustical tin panel center would add interest. There are many residential ceiling panels that are very attractive with different designs that would follow traditional or antique/Victorian decor, etc.
You have lots of good options available to consider that won’t break the bank while adding an interesting feature to the room❗️
What would you do with a really ugly, uneven, falling down acoustic dropped tile ceiling in an older home that wouldn't break the bank? I can only assume it was installed due to some damage from a leaking roof. Certainly not for its good looks.
just rip it all out! But use a mask there may be aspestos or mold
It's a house for sale. Maybe during an inspection, if it comes to that, the guy could take a peak up there, but I'd definitely want to get rid of them.
What would you do with a really ugly, uneven, falling down acoustic dropped tile ceiling in an older home that wouldn't break the bank? I can only assume it was installed due to some damage from a leaking roof. Certainly not for its good looks.
I had one of these in my former house, although it was dingy and had a few cracked tiles. When the carpenter removed them, it turned out that the tiles were attached to wooden cribbing that was very firmly attached to the original ceiling which, ironically, only had one crack in it. Since removing the cribbing was nigh impossible, the carpenter attached drywall to it and reinstalled the quarter round molding around the top of the wall. The end result was that I still had a ceiling that was a bit lower than the adjacent room, but it at least looked nice and smooth and fresh after painting. I couldn't believe that I had put up with those old acoustic tiles for 11 years once the work was done!
I had these in the basement when we moved in. I removed them all (bonus, previous owner had installed "new" tiles under the original ones, so I had 2x the amount to remove) and put these in some plastic "decorative" tiles. They look pretty good and were about $3 each IIRC.
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But that only matters if you heat your home for many months like I do. 
I don't have drop ceilings and never have. I agree with you on their ugliness. I usually have 8-foot ceilings which is my favorite height. 
