Determine Length of
B
o
r
de
r P
a
n
e
l
s
1 Divide width o
f
room
b
y len
g
th of 5-f
t
single panel *2-ft 10-ft 6-in
– 10-
f
t
2
Add
t
he
r
e
m
ai
n
de
r
6
-
i
n
t
o len
g
th of
single panel + 2-ft
= 2-ft
6
-in
3 Divide it by 2 = 1-
f
t 3-i
n
Width o
f
the Border
P
anels is 1-ft 3-i
n
* Use 2-
f
t
f
or 2-
f
t x 4-
f
t panel,
2
-
f
t
f
or 2-
f
t x 2-
f
t pane
l
How to Install Your Armstrong
®
Suspended Ceiling
LA2
9
4
998
-417
S
AFETY TIP
S
:
■
See Warning statements elsewhere on this document
.
■
Work Site Environment: Initially there may be a potential adverse impact on indoor air quality within the
g
eneral work area durin
g
the installation process. During installation, adequate ventilation of the work area should be maintained without causing the entry of
contaminants to other parts of the building. Persons who are sensitive to odor and or chemicals should avoid the work area during
this process.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
■
Store and install panels in areas with a temperature range of 60° to 80°F and not more than 70% relative humidity
.
■
Remove panels from the cartons 24 hours before installation and allow them to ad
j
ust to normal interior conditions of the area where
installation will take place
.
■
Never install ceilin
g
panels below an existin
g
ceilin
g
that contains imbedded radiant-heat coils.
■
Do not a
pp
l
y
loose
fi
ll or batt insulation so that it rests directl
y
on the
p
anels.
■
Keep hands clean to avoid smudges on the
fi
nished ceiling
.
■
Always cut ceilin
g
panels face up with a sharp utility knife
.
■
Main beams run the opposite direction of the joists
.
■
Main beams are on 4-
f
t centers
.
■
Th
e m
i
n
i
mum
d
rop
i
s 3-
i
n
.
■
Allow for drop-in li
g
hts by addin
g
2-in to the hei
g
ht of the li
g
ht for clearance
.
■
L
ocate
Hidd
en
j
o
i
sts
b
y tapp
i
ng on t
h
e ce
ili
ng unt
il
you
h
ear a so
lid
t
h
u
d
.
D
r
i
ve a na
il
i
n
h
ere.
R
epeat t
hi
s to
l
ocate ot
h
er
j
o
i
sts an
d
d
eterm
i
ne t
h
e
i
r
di
rect
i
on
.
■
M
ar
k
t
h
e
j
o
i
st
l
ocat
i
ons w
i
t
h
c
h
a
lkli
nes.
Planning Your Armstrong Ceiling
Locate H
i
dden
J
o
i
sts To Install W
i
re Fastener
s
1 Find
j
oists
(
A
)
.
2 Drive nails to fi nd exact center line of joists
.
3
S
nap chalk line for each joist
(B)
.
Sample Room Panel Layou
t
Determ
i
ne Panel La
y
out
1 Determine length of border panels.
2 Determine width of border
p
anels
.
For best appearance, border panels should be the same size on the opposite sides o
f
the room.
Use your room dimensions and follow the formula in the worksheets at right
.
Tools Needed To Install Your Ceilin
g
10' 6"
9'
Joist direction
Joist usually
16" on center
Snapped chalk lines
in center of joists
A
B
Sample Room
1' 3"
2' 6"
2' 6"
10' 6"
9'
1' 3"
Cross tees 2' apart
Width of
boarder
panels
Main
beams
4' apart
Length of
boarder
panels
S
ample Worksheets, using 2-ft x 4-ft panels in a
9-ft x 10-ft 6-in roo
m
Determine Length of
B
o
r
de
r P
a
n
e
l
s
1
Divide width o
f
room
b
y len
g
th of 2-f
t
single panel * 4-ft 9-ft
– 8-
ft
2 A
dd
th
e
r
e
m
a
in
de
r 1-ft
to len
g
th of
single panel + 4-ft
=
5
-ft
3
Divide it by 2 = 2-
f
t 6-i
n
Length o
f
the Border
P
anels is 2-ft 6-i
n
* Use 4-
f
t
f
or 2-
f
t x 4-
f
t panel,
2-
f
t
f
or 2-
f
t x 2-
f
t pane
l
2' or 3'
Carpenter’s
Level
Straight Edge
Safety
Glasses
Measuring Rule
Hammer
Pencil
Tin Snips
String
Chalk
Line
Wire Cutting
Pliers
Utility Knife
Three Easy
S
teps To Install Your
C
eilin
g
STEP 1 INSTALL WALL MOLDING
1 Mark hei
g
ht desired for new ceilin
g
(
A
)
.
2 Add hei
g
ht of Wall Moldin
g
and mark a level line around 3 walls
(
B
)
.
3
S
nap a connecting chalk line on the 4th wall.
4 Nail wall moldin
g
to the wall studs
(
C
)
.
5 If nailin
g
moldin
g
directly to wall is not possible
(
for example, a solid
concrete or stone wall), hang a section o
f
main runner next to the wall
as a substitute
f
or regular wall molding
.
S
TE
P
2
IN
S
TALL
S
U
S
PEN
S
I
O
N
S
Y
S
TE
M
Install Fasteners and Han
g
er Wires
1 Sna
p
Chalk Line for Main Beams 4-ft a
p
art
(A)
.
2
S
crew in Wire Fasteners 4-ft apart
(B)
.
3 Wrap hanger wire securely around itself 3 times (C
)
.
NOTE: Add extra wires for li
g
ht fi xtures, one at each corner of the li
g
ht
.
Prebend Hanger W
i
res
1 Measure up 7/8-in from the bottom of the moldin
g
. Drive nail into wall
j
ust above moldin
g.
2 Do the same on other side of room. Stretch a strin
g
from nail to nail alon
g
a row of wires
(A)
.
3 Swing hanger wires over to string and bend each one at 90° where they
touch the strin
g
(
B
)
. Stretch additional strin
g
s to prebend other han
g
er wires,
to
h
e
l
p
l
eve
l
ent
i
re ce
ili
ng.
4 Remove Leveling String(s) after prebending wires.
Tr
i
m th
e
M
ai
n B
ea
m
Trim end o
f
fi
rst Main Beam
(A)
so
that a Cross Tee slot on the Main Beam
is the border panel distance
f
rom the wall (B
)
.
How to Install Your Armstrong
®
Suspended Ceiling
B
C
A
C
Outside
Corner
Inside
Corner
C
Use Main Beam
instead of Wall
Molding
10' 6"
A
4'
Sample Room
2' 6"
2' 6"
9'
4'
4'
4'
4'
B
Joists
A
C
B
A
B
Leveling
String
Joist
90˚
B
Wall Molding
Border Panel Distance
Set Trimmed End of
Main Beam on Wall
Molding
Cross Tee Slot
Step 1
A
Step 2
LA2
9
4
998
-417
Han
g
First Main Bea
m
1 Stretch a guide string from one end of the room to the other below the molding where the fi rst main beam will hang (A
)
. (illus. A
)
2 Place the cut end o
f
the main beam on the wall molding and insert a hanger wire in a hole near the other end o
f
the main and wrap the
wir
e
a
r
ou
n
d
it
se
lf thr
ee
tim
es.
3
I
nsert t
h
e ot
h
er w
i
res
i
nto t
h
e ma
i
n
b
eam an
d
wra
p
t
h
e w
i
res aroun
d
t
h
emse
l
ves t
h
ree t
i
mes
.
Cut Border Cross Tee
s
1 Find the location of the fi rst border cross tee. (Border panel distance from end of main)
.
2 Place the end of the white face of the cross tee against the edge of the wall molding at the side and cut the cross tee where it crosses
t
h
e gu
id
e str
i
ng
(B)
.
(illus. A
)
3 Insert the uncut end of the cross tee into the main and rest the cut end of the tee on the molding
.
4 The far ed
g
e of the main should be directly above the strin
g.
5 If you are using hook end cross tees, measure from the wall to the string and cut the cross tee to that length. The string will then line up
with the near edge of the main
.
6 Cut the second cross tee to length and insert it.
7 Temporarily fasten the tees to the wall moldin
g
so they do not move
.
S
quaring the
G
ri
d
1 Now install the fi rst section of the second row of mains after cutting off one end so a cross tee slot is the border panel distance
from the end
.
2 In
s
t
a
ll tw
o
f
ou
r f
oo
t
c
r
oss
t
ees
be
tw
ee
n th
e
tw
o
m
a
in
s
in lin
e
with th
e
fi r
s
t tw
o
bo
r
de
r t
ees
(
C
)
.
(
illus. A
)
3 Measure across the diagonals of the 2-ft x 4-ft opening. The measurements will be the same if the grid is square.
If the measurements are not the same, shorten one of the mains until the diagonals are equal
.
4
C
omplete the rows of mains joining the ends with the built-in splices. (
i
llus. B
)
5 Finish cutting border cross tees between the wall the
fi
rst row o
f
mains
.
6 Use the left-over ends of the mains to start other rows of mains if
y
our room re
q
uires them.
7 I
f
you have additional rows o
f
mains to install, stretch a second string
f
rom one side o
f
the room to the other aligning it with the
fi
rst
4
-ft
c
r
oss
t
ee
as
s
h
o
wn (D
)
.
(illus. D
)
8 This second strin
g
will be your
g
uide for cuttin
g
the remainin
g
rows of mains. Just measure from the end wall to the strin
g
to determine
the distance
f
or the
fi
rst cross tee slot you will use.
9 You must line up cross tee slots for the grid to be square
!
In
s
t
a
ll
G
ri
d
1 A
f
ter the
fi
rst section o
f
main is installed in each row, and the grid is square, install the rest o
f
the mains and cross tees. Use le
f
t over
pieces o
f
main to start succeeding rows o
f
mains a
f
ter cutting to align cross tee slots
.
2 Measure and cut border cross at the other side of the room
.
Guide string
Check diagonal
measurements
Section of
1st main
Full 4'
cross tees
Border tees cut
and clipped to
molding so main
aligns with string
Second guide string
Squaring the grid – Method Two
A
B
D
Section of
2nd main
C
i
llus. A
Joist
illus.
B
Hook-In
Cross Tee
B
illus. C
Snap-In
Cross Tee
B
illus.
D
How to Install Your Armstrong
®
Suspended Ceiling
LA2
9
4
998
-417
How to Install Your Armstrong
®
Suspended Ceiling
LA2
9
4
998
-417
2-ft x 2-ft In
s
t
a
ll
a
ti
on
1 If you are using 2-ft x 2-ft panels, you need to lay out your grid differently
.
2 Determine the size of
y
our border
p
anels from side to side.
3 Place the fi rst main beam the border panel distance plus 2-ft from the wall.
4
Cu
t 4-ft
c
r
oss
t
ees
t
o
th
e
w
a
ll
a
n
d
in
se
rt 2-ft
c
r
oss
t
ees
be
tw
ee
n th
e
4-ft
c
r
oss
t
ees
t
o
es
t
ab
li
s
h th
e
border panel openings
.
5 Your main beams will then fall on 4-ft centers from that
p
oint
.
C
utting “recessed grid” ceiling border panels
1 Trim reveal edge border panels to the same dimensions as for fl at panels. The reveal edge detail must
now be cut into the panel.
2 Set the panel into the grid. Draw a light pencil line on the panel using the wall molding as a guide.
3 Remove the panel. Use a sharp utility kni
f
e and straightedge to cut hal
f
way through the panel
f
rom the
face side along the pencil line.
4 Lay the utility knife on its side next to the panel and, with the panel face up, cut in at blade hei
g
ht for
a
r
e
v
eal
cu
t.
5
R
emove t
h
e cut str
i
p.
6 Fit the panel into the grid
.
S
TEP
3
IN
S
TALL PANEL
S
1 Lift panel at an
g
le throu
g
h
g
rid; drop into place
(A)
.
2 Trim border panels, cutting panel
f
ace side up
(B)
.
For additional information on installin
g
suspended ceilin
g
s, includin
g
special installation tips,
please visit our website at ceilings.com or call customer service at 1 877 ARM
S
TR
O
N
G
(276-7876)
.
For warrant
y
i
n
f
ormat
i
on, please v
i
s
i
t ce
i
l
i
ngs.co
m
Draw line
Wall molding
A
B
Precaut
i
onar
y
Measures: Durin
g
the installation be certain that the work site is well ventilated and avoid breathin
g
dust. Avoid contact with skin or eyes. Wear lon
g
-sleeve, loose
fi
ttin
g
clothes,
g
loves and eye protection.
C
ut and trim with knife, razor or hand saw. Do not cut with power equipment unless either a dust collector is used on the equipment or local exhaust is
used and a NI
OS
H approved respirator is worn to prevent overexposure to airborne silica. Exposures to respirable crystalline silica are not detected in industrial hy
g
iene testin
g
on workers
i
nstallin
g
acoustical ceilin
g
panels for an 8 hour work day and are not expected durin
g
the normal use of this product; however, actual levels must be determined by workplace hy
g
iene
testin
g
. Prolon
g
ed and repeated exposure to airborne free respirable crystalline silica can result in lun
g
disease
(
i.e., silicosis
)
and
/
or lun
g
cancer. Panels do not release respirable dust in
their installed state and therefore do not present any known health hazards when installed and properly maintained
.
First Aid Measures
:
If eye or skin contact occurs, fl ush with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes and remove contaminated clothing. After installing material, wash with warm water
an
d
m
ild
soap.
Refer to Armstron
g
World Industries
S
afety Data
S
heet for more information.
M
ade in the United States by Armstrong World Industries, Inc., Lancaster, Pennsylvania 17604
.
If you have any technical or installation questions, or to request a
S
afety Data
S
heet, please call: 1 877 ARM
S
TR
O
N
G.
Do not store or install under conditions where relative humidity exceeds 70%.
(
Except Humi
G
uard
®
Plus and Humi
G
uar
d
®
Max
)
C
lass A per A
S
TM E 1264.
/
