Basement Drop Ceiling
When you are looking for creative drop ceiling ideas, beadboard is something you could consider. We loved the beadboard in our basement bathroom so much, that we decided to use it for our entire basement drop ceiling!
We hired someone to install this ceiling for us. It was a special arrangement because– because we had recently bought a new Dewalt Power Tool set— and let them use it!
Another tool that we borrowed and later bought– was this Laser Level. This job would have been a lot harder without this level.
Drop Ceiling Options
Now that we have the tools– next step is purchasing the materials. Beadboard (of course), and drop ceiling rails. We chose standard beadboard with the narrow lines. You could choose the wider lined board, known as shiplap. Either option will work– with shiplap panels you have fewer stripes, and with beadboard you have more stripes.
[*I’m going to brutally honest here. While I LOVED beadboard in my basement bathroom, once all these stripes were in my basement ceiling— it seemed like a lot of stripes! So I knew that the next time I chose a ceiling option, I would choose the wider striped shiplap.]
Our basement was crowded, and we had to move the furniture around so there was room to work– so there was absolutely no space left in the basement for a work area. So this makeshift space was made just outside the basement door.
First ceiling rail is up!
You can see that we had a lot of duct work to cover, and you can also see that we have a potential problem with the ceiling running into the exterior basement door. Thankfully, our contractor was one of the best out there, and angled the ceiling at the door to allow for the door to swing open. (At the end of this post you can see a finished look at the door.)
Now, drop ceilings in a home is one of my most unfavorite things. But in a basement where you have to access pipes and such, it just makes sense. One of our water pipes ran diagonally all the way across half of the basement (See it below?!). So with a suspended ceiling, it would all be accessible if necessary.
Basement Ideas
Floating Ceiling Ideas
And after seeing our basement bathroom with beadboard ceiling tiles, it looked better (and was cheaper) than other options.
It was tricky to suspend the drop ceiling around the ductwork.
Rivets were used to hold it all together at the intersections and corners.
We could have made the ceiling as low as the bottom of the ductwork– but that would have just been too low for comfort. A basement needs as tall of a ceiling as possible. So bumpouts were formed around the ductwork as necessary.
Drop Ceiling Design
You can see in this picture how the grid is bent upwards– on this side to meet the stairway opening. Then 2 pieces of beadboard were cut to fit into the one space, so that one piece could lean at an angle. (And perhaps an extra grid there too).
Again, another tricky place where the grid has to turn to meet the ductwork. For tricky angles like this, you need to be sure you are up to the challenge if you are going to do this yourself. And if you hire someone else– make sure they have the talent to meet challenges like this, too!
Here is another angled part. Several years prior, I really wanted a solution to covering all of these pipes.
So I stapled up some fabric– a curtain, actually! Doesn’t my ceiling cover idea look better than the pipes?!
So first the drop ceiling grid— and then….
With the beadboard panels! And a light. Yes– don’t forget when you are planning out the ceiling that you will need to place some lighting. These are easy drop in 2×4 lights. At some point we had an electrician come and run the wire for where these lights would be placed.
We had just pull string lights before.
Our washer and dryer were stacked– so again– lots of stuff to work around.
Once the grid was up, and the 2×4 foot beadboard squares were cut….. finally, the ceiling was finished!!
Basement Drop Ceiling Ideas
I had lived with an unfinished basement ceiling for a long time. It was so nice to have it all finished!
From this……
To this!! This was my favorite part– seeing my Music Stair Railing with a finished ceiling. Do you like the very light shade of green on the walls? I’ve used that color in my kitchen, too.
This is the multipurpose Laundry/ Exercise Room. When you live in a small rancher practically every room is multipurpose!
And lastly, the picture showing how the ceiling was fit around the basement door. What a puzzle, and what a genius solution!
Let me know if you have any questions. I hope this has inspired you as you think about your drop ceiling options.
