Metallaire
™
Installation Instructions
R
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CEILING INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS
NAIL-UP INSTALLATION
C
AUTI
O
N: The edges of the metal panels are sharp! Wear heavy protective gloves when handling the metal panels.
Metallair
e
™
panels are steel and designed to emulate an antique tin type visual. Periodic “wrinkles” or dents may cause the panel to
appear not to be fl at; these characteristics add to the antique affect and are not considered manufacturing defects.
Preparation for Nail-up Ceilin
g
Panel Installatio
n
Y
ou may fi nd it benefi cial to rent or build scaffoldin
g
so you can reach the ceilin
g
comfortably and walk about freely without climbin
g
up
and down ladders
.
N
O
TE
:
Metallaire panels come prepainted. Remove protective PV
C
fi lm before or during installation.
I
nsta
lli
ng
M
eta
ll
a
i
re
d
ecorat
i
ve meta
l
pane
l
s
i
s a two-person
i
nsta
ll
at
i
on
;
o
ne
p
erson
i
s nee
d
e
d
to
h
o
ld
t
h
e
p
ane
l
i
n
p
os
i
t
i
on an
d
t
h
e
other
p
erson is needed to fasten it
.
Installation of Substrate
Pl
y
wood option
:
Check the joists to see if they are level or fl at. To do this, mark a level line around the room using a laser, water level, or carpenter’s level.
Stretch several strings from side to side using the level line as a reference. Mark where you will fasten 3/8-in or 1/2-in plywood or OSB
(oriented strand board) sheets to the ceiling. Measure from the strings to the bottom of the joists. Secure shims to the joists at the points
where the plywood will be
f
astened. This will ensure that the plywood will be level
(
or
fl
at
)
. The shims you install to level the plywood must
be fastened to joists.
I
f you are installing over an existing plaster or drywall ceiling, locate the hidden joists by using a purchased stud fi nder or by tapping on
the ceilin
g
until you hear a solid thud. Drive in a nail to ensure you found a
j
oist. Tap to the side of this
j
oist to fi nd the next
j
oist. Joists are
usually 16-in or 24-in on center. Find and mark the location of each
j
oist.
La
y
Out the Room
Measure the room to determine the la
y
out of the
p
anels. The metal
p
anels are 24-3/8-in x 48-3/8-in. The 3/8-in oversize measurement
is to account
f
or the overla
p
when
p
anels meet. The
f
ull-size decorative metal
p
anels will be installed in the center o
f
the room. You will
install border panels along the edges of the room. Border panels have shallower
embossing than the decorative panels and form a more attractive interface with
t
h
e corn
i
ce
.
T
he la
y
out should be balanced so the borders on o
pp
osite sides of the room are e
q
ual.
T
o do this, fi nd the center of the room in both directions.
S
trike a chalk line in one
direction down the center o
f
the room. Find the center o
f
the room in the other direction
and strike another chalk line at a 90–degree angle to the
fi
rst (
S
ee Illustration A)
.
Determine the direction you want to run the 2-ft x 4-ft panels in the room. Startin
g
with
a
f
ull panel near the center o
f
the room aligned with the two chalk lines, measure how
much is le
f
t at the wall when the last
f
ull panel would be installed. I
f
this border is too
lar
g
e or too small, shift the center line half the panel width
(
or len
g
th
)
short of the
center of the room. Do the same in the other direction and shift the other center line
if necessary. Resnap the chalk lines to indicate the new “centerin
g
.” Use the resultin
g
chalk lines as a guide to install the
f
ull panels.
90 deg.
Chalk Line
Ill
us
tr
a
ti
o
n A
90
d
e
g
.
C
halk Line
Metallaire
™
Installation Instructions
Wood Furring Option
:
Nail furrin
g
strips to the ceilin
g
around the perimeter of the room about 1-1/2-in from the walls. Nail furrin
g
strips across the
j
oists where the
panels will overlap each other every 24-in
(
check your layout for these locations
)
. Nail furrin
g
on 12-in centers between the furrin
g
you have
already installed.
S
him the furring to make it level. Fasten cross furring to the ceiling where the panels will overlap on the ends (again, chec
k
your layout for these locations
).
B
o
r
de
r P
a
n
e
l In
s
t
a
ll
a
ti
on
Install border panels fi rst.
O
nce you know the width of the borders on each side of the room, cut and install border panels to reach from the
wall to 1 inch past the edge of where the last full panel will be installed along that wall. You can use tin snips or electric sheet metal shears to
cut the
p
anels.
U
se cone head nails to secure the panels to the plywood or furring strips.
With the long edge o
f
the border panel against the wall, place the nails close to the wall so that the cornice will hide the nails when it is
installed later. Nail the other long edge o
f
the border panels very close to the edge toward the center o
f
the room. The
f
ull panels will later
hide these nails. Overla
p
the border
p
anels when the
y
meet b
y
1/2-in – 3/4-in. Com
p
lete the border
p
anel installation around the
p
erimeter
o
f th
e
r
oo
m.
Wh
en t
h
e
b
or
d
er pane
l
s meet eac
h
ot
h
er, t
h
ere w
ill
b
e
hi
g
h
spots on one pane
l
meet
i
ng
l
ow spots on t
h
e ot
h
er pane
l
.
T
ap t
h
ese
hi
g
h
spots
down usin
g
a nail head or small tack hammer
.
F
u
ll D
eco
r
a
t
i
v
e
P
a
n
e
l In
s
t
a
ll
a
t
ion
Install full panels startin
g
in the center of the room. Ali
g
n the ed
g
es of the fi rst panel
with the
p
er
p
endicular chalk lines and nail the
p
anel in
p
lace. Nail down the center of
the panel using cone head nails every 12-in before nailing the edges. Place cone head
nails alongside the buttons or raised bumps along the edges to secure the
fi
rst panel.
These nails will not inter
f
ere with the overlap o
f
the next
f
ull panel.
When the
p
anels overla
p
, the buttons will fi t over each other like a ball and socket. Drive
cone
h
ea
d
na
il
s
di
rect
l
y t
h
roug
h
t
h
e
b
uttons every 6-
in
at the edges of the panels.
n
Ti
g
h
ten any seams t
h
at are not c
l
ose
d
b
y tapp
i
ng aga
i
nst t
h
e over
l
app
i
ng e
d
ge w
i
t
h
a
block of wood and a hammer. When four panels overlap at a corner, you might have to
predrill a hole through the four layers of metal for the cone head nail
.
Co
rni
ce
In
s
t
a
ll
a
ti
o
n (Used onl
y
with nail-up panels
)
Install the cornice so it covers an equal amount o
f
the ceiling and the wall. Fasten the
cornice to the ceiling with cone head nails driven through the buttons. We suggest that
y
ou
p
redrill the buttons on the cornice. This makes it much easier to nail the cornice to
the ceiling. I
f
you predrill the cornice,
d
rill the buttons
f
rom the back sid
e
,
as t
h
e
d
r
ill
will walk off the button if
y
ou drill from the front side. It is not necessar
y
to drive cone
head nails in the bottom o
f
the cornice. The nails in the top will hold the cornice tight
against the wall.
Y
ou can make inside corners relatively easy by installing wood blocks (plinths) in the
corners of the room so the cornice simply butts a
g
ainst them
(
See Illustration B
)
.
They can be made
f
rom solid wood or made up
f
rom lumber pieced together. No
miters or coping necessary. We recommend fi nishing the wood block the same as the
panels to create a pleasin
g
appearance.
Illustration B Plinth O
p
tio
n
Illustration C Cope Optio
n
R
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Metallaire
™
Installation Instructions
Y
ou can also cope inside corners. Butt one piece into the corner. Then trim the second
piece on the adjacent wall to fi t. First place a strip of masking tape across the end of a
scrap piece of molding. (See Illustration C
)
.
Hold the scrap molding in the corner and
use a compass or scribing tool to trans
f
er the pro
fi
le o
f
the nailed-in-place piece to the
scrap piece.
Cut alon
g
the scribed line and test fi t the coped cut. You may have to make some
minor trim cuts to make the parts fi t.
O
nce the coped end fi ts, you can use it as a
template to mark a length of cornice for installation. If you are using bare steel that will
be painted, you can use putty to fi ll in any bad fi ttin
g
j
oints
.
Outside corners are the toughest ones to make
.
Use masking tape to defi ne a line
parallel to the wall where the cornice will meet the ceiling (See Illustration D
)
.
D
o
thi
s
o
n
eac
h
s
i
de
o
f th
e
ou
t
s
i
de
co
rn
e
r.
Hold a piece of cornice against one wall aligning it with the tape on the ceiling. Let it
exten
d
out past t
h
e corner an
d
past t
h
e
i
ntersect
i
ng mas
ki
ng tape.
M
ar
k
t
h
e mo
ldi
ng
at t
h
e
b
ottom w
h
ere
i
t
i
ntersects t
h
e corner, an
d
at t
h
e to
p
w
h
ere
i
t meets t
h
e ta
p
e
i
ntersect
i
on (
S
ee Illustration E
)
.
D
raw a
li
ne to connect t
h
ese two mar
k
s
.
Cut the molding with snips. Do the same for the other side of the corner using another
p
iece of cornice. Check the fi t of the two
p
ieces. Trim and fi t the two
p
ieces until the
j
oint makes a satisfactory appearance. Use these pieces as templates for marking and
cutting the actual pieces that will be installed. If the moldings will be painted, fi ll the
j
oint line with caulk. If the moldings will be left unpainted, fi le the joint until it fi ts. It
takes time and patience to make a good fi t.
METAL LAY-IN PANEL INSTALLATION
C
A
U
TI
O
N
:
The ed
g
es of the metal panels are sharp! Wear heavy protective
g
loves
w
h
en
h
an
dli
n
g
t
h
e meta
l
pane
l
s
.
NOTE
:
Metallaire
p
anels come
p
re
p
ainted. Remove
p
rotective PVC fi lm before or
d
ur
i
ng
i
nsta
ll
at
i
on
.
Lay out and hang grid as you would
f
or any other 2-
f
t x 2-
f
t ceiling panel
.
When you use the lay-in border panel, you should rein
f
orce the back o
f
the panel so
it does not sag. You can do this by nailing the panel to
f
urring strips as shown using
cone head nails. Make the furrin
g
strips about 3/4-in shorter than the panel.
N
O
TE
:
If you are going to paint the panels, paint them before installing them using an
o
il
-
b
ase
d
pa
i
nt.
W
ater
b
ase
d
pa
i
nts may rust t
h
e pane
l
s.
Due to the strains
p
ut on the metal
p
anels when the
y
are embossed,
y
ou ma
y
fi nd it
necessary to use hold-down clips to keep the panels
fl
at in the grid.
Panels can be cut with tin sni
p
s or with electric metal shears.
Ill
us
tr
a
ti
o
n D
Ou
t
s
i
de
Co
rn
er
Illustration E
O
utside
C
orne
r
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Metallaire
™
Installation Instructions
A
CCENT CEILING CLOUD INSTALLATION
A
ccent ceiling cloud installation requires a minimum of two people. Please wear appropriate safety equipment. This installation is similar to
the nail-up installation, but the ceiling does not go wall to wall. Accent ceilings are typically installed below a fi nished drywall ceiling on a
backer layer of 3
/
8-in or 1
/
2-in plywood or
OS
B (oriented strand board)
.
Preparation for Accent
C
eiling
C
loud Installation
S
tart by determining the size and shape of the accent ceiling. You will need this information when you move to work on the ceiling.
Check the ceiling to see if it is level and fl at. Locate the ceiling joists with a stud fi nder or by knocking on the drywall. The backer material will
need to be attached to the ceiling joists. Mark your joist locations on the drywall. Mark the center and the perimeter location o
f
your accent
cloud on the ceilin
g
. It is best to have any
j
oints in the backer material located alon
g
a
j
oist
.
Use the above in
f
ormation to layout and mark your
j
oists on the backer material and center lines
f
or ali
g
nin
g
the Metallair
e
™
p
anels.
C
ut
y
our
backer to size. You will also want to mark and cut openings for any light fi xtures at this time
.
Install your backer material to your drywall with appropriate length screws, making sure there is a solid connection with the joists. You may
need to sand any
j
oints i
f
there is lippin
g
in the backer material
.
Install
i
ng
y
our Metalla
i
re
™
P
ane
ls
Dependin
g
on the size of your accent cloud, you may want to start with the fi rst metal panel centered on the accent cloud or with the 4
corners of the panels meeting at center line. Working from the center to the perimeter of the accent ceiling, attach the panels to the backer
mater
i
a
l
w
i
t
h
cone
h
ea
d
na
il
s
(
so
ld
separate
l
y
)
.
Nail the panels to the backer every 6-in. The panels will overlap 3/8-in creating a perfect
24-in x 48-in pattern. When 4 panels overlap you may need to predrill the corner nail hole. Continue attaching the panels until the entire
cloud is covered. Trim the
p
erimeter tiles with tin sni
p
s or an electric metal sheer
.
Finish off the perimeter of the accent cloud with wood molding painted to coordinate with the metal ceiling
.
For a more dimensional cloud, use 2 x 4s to drop the accent cloud further from the drywall ceilin
g
. Install the backer material to the 2 x 4s
and follow the
p
revious instructions to install the Metallair
e
™
pane
l
s.
U
se tr
i
m an
d
crown mo
ldi
n
g
to cover t
h
e per
i
meter, an
d
pa
i
nt.
WALL IN
S
TALLATI
O
N IN
S
TR
UC
TI
O
N
S
BA
C
K
S
PLA
S
H IN
S
TALLATI
O
N
C
A
U
TI
O
N
:
The ed
g
es o
f
the metal panels are sharp! Wear heavy protective
g
loves when handlin
g
the metal panels.
Prepare the wall for installation by cleaning it thoroughly. Protect work surfaces from getting nicked by the sharp edges of the metal
b
ac
k
sp
l
as
h.
Metallaire backs
p
lash
p
anels are sized to fi t most standard kitchens, but measure the cabinet to counter distance and determine if
y
ou
nee
d
to tr
i
m t
h
e p
i
eces.
Measure and use tin snips, or an electric rotary tool with the appropriate metal cuttin
g
blade, to make cut outs for receptacles, li
g
ht switches,
an
d
ot
h
er o
b
stac
l
es on t
h
e wa
ll
.
Y
ou w
ill
use an a
dh
es
i
ve to secure t
h
e meta
l
pane
l
s to t
h
e
b
ac
k
sp
l
as
h
area.
B
e sure to use an a
dh
es
i
ve t
h
at
will adhere to both the metal panels and to the wall surface where the panels are to be mounted. Suggested adhesives include Liquid Nail
s
®
or
A
cry
lP
r
o
®
. Follow the adhesive manu
f
acturer’s instructions
f
or proper usage and application. Armstrong World Industries, Inc. does not
guarantee the performance of these adhesive products, either alone or in conjunction with Armstron
g
®
products.
Ensure wall is clean and clear o
f
debris. Apply the adhesive and place the Metallaire panel into position on the wall. Press
fi
rmly when it
is in the correct
p
osition. Each
p
anel overla
p
s the next on its nail rail, located on the
p
erimeter of each
p
anel.
R
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U
se just enough Metallaire cone head nails
(sold separately)
to secure the
p
anels to
)
the wall while the adhesive sets u
p
. I
f
desired,
y
ou ma
y
p
lace additional cone head
nails
f
or a pre
f
erred visual e
ff
ect. Hammer the cone head nails into the panel through
the buttons on the nail rail
(S
ee Illustration F
)
until the head of the nail sits on the
button. Hammering the nail any further into the button will dent the panel. Do not
remove the nails.
C
aulk the bottom of the backs
p
lash
p
anel where the
p
anels meet the counter to
p
.
A
c
lear
p
ainters caulk or clear silicone is best to use.
Y
ou may choose to use Metallaire Girder Nosin
g
(
so
ld
separate
l
y
)
, or a woo
d
mo
ldi
n
g
o
f your choice, to create a border or cover the ed
g
e of the backsplash installation.
Paint the wood trim to match the metal panel, or paint to match the color of the
ki
tc
h
en ca
bi
net tr
i
m
.
ACC
ENT WALL IN
S
TALLATI
ON
Please wear appropriate safety equipment. This installation is similar to the backsplash installation, with the addition of a backer layer of
3/8-in or 1/2-in plywood or OSB
(
oriented strand board
).
P
re
p
arat
i
on
f
or Accent Wall Installat
i
o
n
S
tart by determinin
g
the size and shape of the accent wall. Remove all outlet covers and wall mounted fi xtures and check the wall to see if
i
t is fl at. Locate the studs with a stud fi nder or by knockin
g
on the drywall. The backer material will need to be attached to these studs. Mar
k
your stud locations on the drywall. Mark the center and the perimeter of your accent wall. It is best to have any
j
oints in the backer material
l
ocate
d
at a stu
d.
U
se the above information to layout and mark the stud locations on the backer material. Also mark the center lines for aligning the
Me
t
a
ll
a
ir
e
™
panels.
C
ut your backer to size. You will also want to mark and cut openin
g
s for outlets and fi xtures
.
Install your backer material to your drywall with appropriate length screws, making sure there is a solid connection with the studs. You may
need to sand any joints i
f
there is lipping in the backer material
.
Installing your Metallaire Panel
s
Depending on the size and shape o
f
your accent wall, you may want to start with the
fi
rst metal panel centered or with the 4 corners o
f
the
panels meeting at center line. Working
f
rom the center to the perimeter, attach the panels to the backer with cone head nails and adhesive
(
sold separately
)
. Use enough nails to hold the panels in place as the adhesive sets.
S
elect an adhesive that is appropriate for metal and the
backer material. Additional cone head nails can be used to achieve your intended visual. The panels will overlap 3
/
8-in creating a perfect
2
4-in x 48-in pattern. When 4 panels overlap you may need to predrill the corner nail hole.
C
ontinue attaching the panels until the backer is
c
overe
d
.
T
r
i
m t
h
e per
i
meter t
il
es w
i
t
h
t
i
n sn
i
ps or an e
l
ectr
i
c meta
l
s
h
eer
.
Finish o
ff
the perimeter o
f
the accent wall with wood moldin
g
painted to coordinate with the metal
.
T
ELL U
S
WHAT Y
O
U THINK!
T
hank you
f
or your purchase. We hope you’re happy with your Armstron
g
®
product and want to hear
f
rom you. Please visit
c
eilings.com
/
review to write a review
.
LIMITED
WARRANTY
For warranty information, please visit ceilin
g
s.com
.
For additional information on installing ceilings, including special installation tips, please visit our website at ceilings.co
m
o
r call 1-877-ARM
S
TR
O
N
G
(276-7876
)
Metallaire
™
Installation Instructions
Ill
us
tr
a
ti
o
n F
Co
n
e
H
ead
N
a
il Pl
ace
m
e
n
t
N
a
il
R
a
il
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