Foam tiles for the ceiling: the pros and cons, the steps of gluing

Foam tile on the ceiling allows you to quickly change the interior of the apartment, budget funds to update the situation, in addition, to install such a ceiling under the power of even a layman. The foam panels are very light, so anyone can work with them. They are moisture resistant, which allows them to be used for finishing ceilings in any room, including kitchen, bathrooms and bathrooms.

The colors, shapes and volume patterns on the tiles allow you to create ceilings of any appearance, they can imitate rough plaster in the style of country, and the luxury of stucco molding in the rococo style, and the caissons of the ancient style. Any design request can be satisfied by using foam ceiling tiles.

A necessary addition to this ceiling are decorative plinths that close joints and irregularities. If desired, they can be mounted LED strip for illumination. So that the foam does not shine, after installation it is painted with water-emulsion or acrylic paints.

Kinds

The following types of foam ceiling tiles are available:

  • Pressed. Have a thickness of up to 7 mm.
  • Injection. Thickness up to 14 mm. They are made by sintering foam at a high temperature.
  • Extruded. They are made by extruding the polystyrene mass, after which the tiles are either painted or covered with a film with a pattern.

Tiles differ in shape. Most often they are square with a side of 50 cm, but there are also tiles in the form of rectangles, rhombuses, regular hexagons (honeycombs). Also popular is the tile, imitating the shape and colors of the wallboard.

On the front side of the tile can be smooth or have a relief, laminated or plain or covered with a film. Film, as well as color, can imitate the texture of stone, fabric, plaster, wood, stucco, or even woodcarving. Tiles with lamination are used in rooms allotted for the kitchen. For bathrooms and bathrooms more suitable panels with waterproof properties.

Virtues

The main advantage of such a ceiling - gluing foam tiles to the ceiling is very easy, and even an unprepared person can handle it.

In addition, you can note the following advantages:

  • Low weight allows you to use tiles on the ceilings of any design.
  • The tile has sound and heat insulating qualities, and is not afraid of changes in temperature and humidity.
  • The low weight of the tile makes it possible to use simple glue that does not have ultrahigh strength and, hence, a high price.
  • This ceiling coating will save not only on the material, but also on the job - because it can be done independently.

ATTENTION! Foam tile on the ceiling can change the physical properties (melted) under the action of high temperature, so installing powerful lights in close proximity to it is not recommended. It is better to use lamps-suspensions, and place them at a distance of at least 20 cm from the surface of the tile. The tile can withstand the temperature of hot water without changing its shape, so it can contact with the pipes that are being heated.

disadvantages

Ceiling tiles of foam plastic differ in the method of production, quality and price. Cheap tile quickly turns yellow under the influence of ultraviolet radiation, and in some cases is destroyed by moisture. In order to protect it from exposure to light and moisture, it is enough to paint the mounted ceiling with water-based paint.

The main disadvantage is moisture vapor impermeability. If you cover the ceiling with foam tiles in a room whose walls are covered with vinyl wallpaper, the humidity in the room will increase dramatically, which can lead to the appearance of fungus.

Payment

Before gluing foam tiles to the ceiling, it is necessary to determine how much and what kind of tile you need, to do the calculation, purchase the required quantity, and prepare the surface of the ceiling for installation.

  • 1 way: math

For the correct calculation of the number of tiles required for repair, you need to know the length and width of the room. Multiplying these numbers will give the ceiling area, but you shouldn’t buy tiles considering only this number. Since part of the tiles can be damaged by cutting, besides the shape of the ceiling is not ideal, material overrun is inevitable. Therefore, be sure to include a stock in an amount of at least 15% of the total area.

For example, in a room measuring 2x3 meters, the ceiling area is 6 square meters. To cover 1 square meter you need 4 tiles of a standard size of 50x50 cm. Thus, you will need 24 tiles for pasting the entire ceiling, and another 2-3 tiles as a reserve. In total, you will need to buy 26-27 tiles.

  • 2 way: on paper

On a sheet of paper, you must draw a plan of the room, with the scale. Next, you need to hold the diagonal and place with maximum precision tiles from the center to the edges of the room.

If there is a gap of less than 1/2 tile at the wall, then 1 pc of tile will cover 2 such gaps. If the gap is more than 1/2 of the tile, then it should be noted that the whole tile will be consumed.

Glue

Foam tile is attached to the ceiling with glue, and when choosing it you need to know some subtleties. So, it is very important how quickly the glue sets, how long it takes to dry completely, and how thick it is. All this will affect the quality, speed and complexity of the work.

  • Choose a thick glue, it will not “merge” from the tile and get dirty. Moment-liquid nails, for example, has a suitable consistency, in addition it sets in 10 minutes - which means that you will not have to stand for a long time with your arms extended upwards waiting for the moment when you can let go of the tile. In addition, the consumption of this glue is small - an average of about 6 ml per square meter, or four tiles, takes. Thus, for a medium-sized room, one tube with a capacity of 400 ml is enough, but it is more advantageous to take a 450 ml tube — such is a gun with which it is easy to apply glue, besides, some reserve is needed for gluing at the end of the ceiling plinth.
  • Another suitable glue is “Titan”. It is very durable and quickly sets, but in its application there is one subtlety: after applying it to the tile, it must be attached in place, then removed, and kept for one minute in air, then reapplied to the same place and firmly pressed. The main difficulty with this - just get to the same place, especially at the beginning of work.
  • You can glue foam tiles on the ceiling using cheaper adhesives such as Dragon, Eltitans, Power. They are made in China, and do not differ in high quality. The main drawback of these adhesives is a long setting time, so you have to stand for a long time with your hands up, which is quite difficult for untrained people.

Tool

Tools for working with foam tiles need a bit, and all of them are quite accessible.

You will need:

  • paint cord for marking the ceiling before sticking;
  • scissors or a special installation knife for tile cutting;
  • spatula (as well as putty) to level the surface of the ceiling before sticking;
  • roller for application and primer;
  • thread, tape measure and pencil for marking tiles;
  • brush (or gun) for glue, clean cloth to remove its excess.

Training

Before starting to work with a tile for a ceiling from polyfoam, it is necessary to perform works on surface preparation.

  1. Packaging of tiles must be opened a few hours before the start of work. During this time, it will throw off the strain of the stress, which appears due to packing in polyethylene, and will take the temperature and humidity of the room where it will be glued.
  2. The old coating from the ceiling can not be removed, if it is flat and durable, in other cases it is necessary to get rid of it. On whitewash tile will not hold, it must be removed on a mandatory basis.
  3. If there are significant defects on the ceiling - potholes, gaps, they need to be filled. Minor defects in the seal do not need, they will close the tiles.
  4. Before starting to glue the tiles, the ceiling should be primed with a roller to ensure better adhesion of the two surfaces. The primer should dry for at least three hours, and even better - four. After that, you can start the markup.

Markup

Before you glue foam tiles on the ceiling, you need to plan how it will be located. This is done as follows:

  • Determine the center of the ceiling. To do this, from the corners of the room is carried out through the diagonal ceiling, and mark the center of their intersection. Do this in any case, are you going to glue the tiles parallel to the walls, or diagonally to them.
  • On each wall, find and mark the middle, and stretch a thread between parallel walls - from one mark to another. The thread must pass through the center point.
  • Perhaps the walls will be of different lengths, and the thread will shift - then you have to make an amendment.
  • Draw lines using a pencil on the strained threads - they will serve as a guide when sticking tiles.

Sticking

The tile can be glued in rows, rows with a shift, parallel to the walls or in a diagonal direction. The glue is applied to the tile with stripes, leaving between them one and a half or two centimeters - otherwise the excess amount will be squeezed out when pressed and can get on the front side of the tile, spoiling its appearance.

The first foam tile is laid on the ceiling at any angle, from the axial intersection at the central point. It must be pressed tightly to the surface and held until the glue grabs. If there is excess adhesive mass around the edges, it will be removed either with a dry cloth, or with a sponge. The second tile is glued end to the first in the second corner from the intersection of the axial ones. It is also held in place until the glue sets, after which it is released and continues to work.

TIP: Before you begin working with foam ceiling tiles, check their edges, and if there are burrs, carefully cut them with a sharp knife, otherwise the joints will be visible.

Work continues in a circle, starting from the center and moving to the periphery of the ceiling. When the need arises, the tile is trimmed, for which pre-marking is done with a pencil. Cutting is best done with a stationery knife.

ATTENTION! Do not forget to cut a hole in the center of the chandelier! After pasting, seal the joints if visible. The easiest way to do this is with an acrylic sealant. Upon completion of work, allow the ceiling to dry for a day, and then coat with paint, water-based or acrylic.

Plinth mounting

After painting is finished, you can start gluing the ceiling plinth. In this case, there are tricks that facilitate the work:

  • Keeping the baseboard near the wall is harder than tiling because it is long. Therefore, the baseboard smeared with glue and attached to the place is fixed with small nails every half meter, driving them into the wall. After a day, the nails can be removed, and the holes from them can be repaired with acrylic putty.
  • It is very difficult to join parts of the plinth, converging in the corners of the room. In order to make them look beautiful, it is necessary to use a hammer box - a special joiner's device for cutting material at an angle. The angle is set at 45 degrees. After gluing the baseboard, the slots in the corners are coated with acrylic putty.
  • The final stage of the work is to paint the baseboards with water-based or acrylic paint.

Watch the video: Best Glue For Styrofoam. Spray Foam Adhesive For Polystyrene. Foam Carving Techniques (March 2024).

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