Install, Finish, Repair
Installing Our Products
Our ceiling panels are fastened with nails or screws every six inches around the perimeter where one panel overlaps another. Therefore, your ceiling should be prepared with plywood or wood furring strips before fastening. Furring strips must be used for coffered panels (those which list a depth). All other panels are flat on the back and are best applied to a plywood ceiling.
Plywood thickness should be 3/8″ over an existing ceiling, and 1/2″ if applied to joists or rafters. One pound of nails should cover approximately 150 square feet of ceiling.
Installing a Cornice
If our cornice is being used, it should be installed first. Most larger cornices have 90° inside and outside corner mitres which are recommended. Smaller cornices without mitres can be cut with tin snips at a 45° angle. All corners other than 90° must be hand-mitred. Wood blocks are provided and should be used where cornice overlaps cornice and where cornice overlaps mitres.
The blocks should be fastened where they line up with the cornice seam. Nail seams every inch or two, pulling seams down tight along the radius. The cornice should be nailed on the nailing flanges into the ceiling and wall with flat headed nails.
Installing a Filler
If filler is being used it should be cut lengthwise to the desired width. Install by overlapping the cornice nailing flange and underlapping, by about an inch, the adjoining field, border or molding.
When filler turns the corner it should be square-lapped, except for filler #207 which should be cut at a 45° angle.
Setting up Field Tiles
The field tiles should be installed starting in the center of the room. A chalk line centered and running the length of the room can be used to align the middle two rows of field tiles.
Nail just enough to hold the panels up until they are all in place. Then nail tightly around the pattern as needed. If only field tiles and cornice are being used (no filler or molding), the last row of field tiles should be cut to overlap the cornice nailing flange.
Moldings and Borders
Moldings and borders, if used, should adjoin the perimeter of the field and overlap the filler. Some moldings and borders come with wood blocks used much the same way as the blocks provided with the cornice, one under each overlapping seam so nails can pull the seam tight along the raised area. Some deeply embossed moldings have corner ells that are used at 90° corners. These are fastened onto the wood blocks and overlapped by the molding.
Installing Panels
Overlapping panels away from the main entrance to the room will minimize visible seams. After the ceiling is nailed, seams can be fully closed by tapping with a hammer onto a rounded bolt or dowel rod. Paintable oil-based (NOT water-based) caulk can be used on remaining gaps but should not be overdone. Finally, tin ceilings are sharp, take care in handling them. Many installers wear gloves to prevent cuts. Any further installation questions, call 1-800-641-4038 Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Central.
Installing Siding
Install siding panels by staggering the rows as shown below so that the vertical seams don't line up to help prevent water from getting through.
You can lap the panels left-to-right or right-to-left, whichever way you like. If you lap them away from where people will see them most often, your seams will be less noticeable.
Start out putting a nail or screw every 8" to 12" along the vertical and horizontal overlaps. See red squares below for optimum placement. These will hold the panels in place, and as you draw or tap the fasteners tight they will snug down the overlapping seams to look nice and finished.
Often our customers will use the neoprene washers under the heads of the fasteners to further help keep water out.
Finishing Your Ceiling
We recommend that you paint your ceiling after it has been installed. It can be painted before installation, but special care must be taken not to chip or scratch the finish during installation, and some touch-up may be necessary.
The panels come from the factory ready for painting. They are made of tin-plated steel that will rust if exposed to moisture, so be careful to keep the panels dry. After installation, wipe the surface completely with a cloth and lacquer thinner to remove dust and finger prints.
Clear Coating
We understand that some customers like the matte-finish tin appearance of the panels from the factory. However, the panels may have fingerprints or other discoloration on them from the factory or from the installers that may not be able to be removed. After trying to wipe off any fingerprints, smudges or other discoloration, a customer can decide whether or not applying a non water-based polyurethane is acceptable. As an alternative, we recommend painting the panels with a metallic silver paint to achieve the same look.
Painting Your Ceilings
The panels may be painted any color, light or dark. Use only oil-based (NOT water-based) paint or primer. While you do not need to prime the panels before you paint, it is a good idea to use a rust-inhibiting primer in any room with high humidity, such as a bathroom. You may choose the finish you like, flat, satin, semi-gloss, or high-gloss.
For exterior use or in damp interior rooms, like a bathroom, we can make any item using galvanized steel. This metal offers more resistance to corrosion than tin-plate. Follow your paint supplier’s recommendations for preparing, priming and top coating.
Everything we make is also available in copper or brass. We can leave the panels unfinished (they will tarnish), or we can polish and lacquer them for you.