Hi, I'm getting ready to help a friend frame in a basement, and have a question about the ceiling. He wants to use drywall instead of putting in a drop ceiling, but I'm not too sure how to handle that with all of the pipes hanging down. Virtually all of the pipes are attached to the underside of the floor joists, or extend down below them. What's the best way to handle this? If it were just a couple I would frame around them, but there are lots of them all over the place. ...Thanks!

 

a drop down ceiling would be much easier than trying to put drywall up.

 

I am doing the same thing and found a product called grid-x. Not sure of the manufacture (i'll post on Monday or Tuesday), but it installs the same as a regular drop ceiling , only you screw your sheetrock to the grid. Pioneer building materials in Denver, CO carries the product.

 

Thanks for the replies! I'd definitely like to find out more about grid-x. If all else fails, I guess we'll start looking into different types of drop ceilings.

 

If your friend really wants a drywall ceiling, then he can certainly have one. Don't let the fact that you don't currently know how to handle it stop you. Be assured that this problem is dealt with in many thousands of basement finishes ever year.

It's hard to give general advice, but you have lots of options to consider. Many people reroute pipes to cluster them together and then build a soffit around them. It's not so hard. If they are really all over the place, you could alternatively add furring (2x2, 2x4) to drop the ceiling below the level of the pipes. If they are too thick for furring strips, you could build multiple soffits. Or you can use a combination of techniques.

Once you learn more about your options, you can then make the drywall vs. drop choice.

 

One important thing for your friend to consider is that should there ever be a leak in a pipe or in the upstairs, he'll have a nasty repair job. A drop ceiling can be repaired much quicer and easier and he can access wiring or plumbing much easier.

 

I was wondering about the furring stip option. I noticed that yesterday in a post on another website. A combination of that and soffits might work. I had to build a soffit around the duct work in my basement, and that wasn't too bad. That would only leave the problem of how to handle the windows. The basement windows go right up to the level of the joists, so we may end up partially blocking them. I'm sure we can figure out a creative way of handling that, though.

I thought about the issue of leaks and the convenience and savings that could result from having a drop ceiling. I mentioned this to my friend as well. The point he made was that it's the same risk you have elsewhere in the house where everything is covered with drywall, so it's no different. I think it is somewhat different because there are so many more pipes running through the basement than the rest of the house, but it seems to be a risk he's willing to accept.

Thanks again for the replies!