Does your home feel outdated? You can completely modernise your space with the installation of a dropped ceiling. These ceilings can be installed throughout your home or in a few key spaces. They offer many excellent benefits that may surprise you.
False ceilings can significantly improve the aesthetics in any room by covering dated or textured ceilings or utilities. Additionally, they can improve the insulation, soundproofing, and lighting options. These versatile ceilings can completely transform your space, allowing you to create the visual appeal you want for your home without having to remove existing ceilings whether they be cement, asbestos, plasterboard or whatever material they may be.
This article will explore how the installation of a dropped ceiling can improve your space. Read on to learn about some of the benefits you can gain from installing a false ceiling in your property.
Cover utilities and pipes
It’s not uncommon for utilities such as electric wiring or pipes to run across the ceiling in many homes or units. Sometimes this feature is used as an industrial chic type style, however for a majority of spaces exposed ducts and utilities makes a place look messy and cluttered. A dropped ceiling can easily cover these items, ensuring your ceiling looks tidier, modern and clean.
Additionally, when these utilities and pipes are covered, skilled tradespeople such as electricians, plumbers and air conditioning specialists, will know how to access them behind a false ceiling, without needing to damage or replace sections of the ceiling. Trades will have easier access to the utilities than if the wires, ducts, and pipes were behind the original ceiling. This allows them to complete repairs in a non-invasive manner, making it more cost effective and less of a hassle for the homeowner.
Cover an unsightly ceiling
If you have an older home, there’s a strong possibility you have a vermiculite or “popcorn” ceiling. Many homeowners find this style of ceiling dated. Additionally, this type of ceiling was discontinued in the 1980s because commonly this style of ceiling contained asbestos making it a health hazard. Rather than tearing down the ceiling and replacing it, the most cost-effective solution is to install a dropped ceiling which will enable you to seal and effectively manage the risk of asbestos without the ordeal and cost of removing and disposing of it.
This solution is also an excellent choice for cement ceilings, which can create a more institutionalised feeling. Instead of looking at bland, plain cement, you can install a stunning false ceiling over it, creating a much better visual and tying the space together better, enabling you to modernise the space with the inclusion of modern style of lighting such as down lights.
Allow for the installation of modern lighting
As a dropped ceiling is installed, it’s possible to incorporate modern lighting elements, such as downlights. These lights are recessed into the ceiling, which is incredibly hard to do when the original ceiling is cement. Dropped ceilings are often outfitted with downlights to enhance their appearance and functionality.
Installing these lights in restrooms, living rooms, and bedrooms is common when undertaking a renovation. They provide excellent ambient lighting to set the tone you want to achieve. Their efficient design takes up very little space and are generally energy efficient compared to older styles of wiring and bulbs. In appearance downlights are sleek and attractive, adding to the overall aesthetic of the room.
If the budget doesn’t allow for dropped ceilings to be installed throughout the entire house, you could consider installing them in areas where you get the best bang for your buck including the kitchen and lounge. You need excellent light in the kitchen to perform your tasks efficiently and to elevate the aesthetics from drab to premium, and the lounge is an area of public use where guests can be wowed.
Improved insulation and thermoregulation
Dropped ceilings decrease the space between the floor and ceiling. This results in a reduced volumetric area that needs to be heated or cooled, which means you’ll save money on energy costs. Installing a false ceiling is an effective way to thermally insulate and thermoregulate a room. Hot air will be kept lower, which is beneficial in multi-level residential buildings. The heat transfer between floors will be reduced, giving each unit the maximum comfort the residents desire with more efficient energy use.
Improved soundproofing
Noise travels easily between floors. In an apartment, a ceiling is the other side of someone else’s floor, making soundproofing a very important factor in designing a space with multistorey living such as an apartment, townhouse or even just multi storey homes. A standard plasterboard ceiling will only keep out so much of that noise. When you add a suspended ceiling, it adds another layer of buffer between floors. Because suspended ceilings can improve soundproofing, they can be very beneficial in your bedrooms or nursery, where you need extra quiet.
Additionally, soundproofing materials are often installed in drop ceilings, further improving the noise-dampening effects. Another benefit of this design is the improvement in the acoustics of the room. This would be ideal for any room in which you want to create a home theatre.
Boosted aesthetics
A smooth, fresh ceiling can tie together any room’s features. You can enjoy having your suspended ceiling complement or perfectly match your walls. If your ceiling has been damaged, such as a cement ceiling that has started to show cracks from foundation movements in a slab, rather than needing to patch up the existing ceiling, you could have a new ceiling installed beneath it, meaning that the ceiling looks good as new without the costly repairs that are involved in a cement ceiling. Keep in mind that a false ceiling is covering the issue, it is not addressing it, therefore it is a good idea to have a builder or foundation expert look at the problem to try to minimise further damage.
False ceilings are ideal for many situations
If you don’t like your current ceiling or could benefit from soundproofing and better insulation, it may be time to consider a suspended ceiling. This modern, resource efficient option that was elevate a space and take it from average to premium through covering up any unpleasant stains, damage such as cracks, or fixtures you no longer wish to see, as well as hiding dated textured ceilings such as vermiculite ceilings.
With improved soundproofing and better thermoregulation, you can have peace of mind knowing your investment is providing excellent returns. As you save money on your utility bills and don’t have to hear as much noise from upstairs, you’ll be glad you chose to install a false ceiling.
When you need an aesthetic boost for one or more of your rooms, consider how the ceiling looks and if a dropped ceiling is right for you. It’s one of the best solutions to modernise your space, especially when you plan to update your lighting with downlights or other modern lighting options.