If your home is older than 50 years or more, chances are that somewhere you have a room or two with an acoustical tile ceiling. These thick paper-like tiles first hit the scene in the late 1950s and were touted as a way to baffle noise, beautify the home, and cut the cold draft coming from those old ceilings.
For old house owners tired of cracked plaster ceilings and noisy rooms, I’m sure acoustical tile was the best home improvement product to hit the market since aluminum siding. Old timers still like it, but our family thinks it’s pretty ugly stuff. Our 130 year old Victorian home has two bedrooms cursed with acoustical tile ceilings that were installed in the 1960s.
The only reason the acoustical ceiling hasn’t come down in our house yet is because I’m afraid what horrible things might be lurking behind the tile. Cracked plaster? Open rafters? Electrical wires, squirrel nests, bats, spiders or ……worse? Instead of tearing it down, we decided to give the tile a face lift instead.
Paint it
Yes, acoustical tile can be painted. However, because old acoustical tile is paper, the paint needs to be applied with a light hand. We used latex paint, which was applied in thin layers using a roller. Between applications, we made sure the paint was thoroughly dried before applying another coat.
Since most acoustical tiles are white, staying with a lighter ceiling color is best, and requires less applications to cover. We painted our ceiling yellow, and drew the eye away from the tile by painting the ceiling trim pieces in a contrasting color.
Wall paper it
Up until the 1950s, wallpapering the ceiling was a fairly common practice. Ceilings can still be papered with a new generation of embossed papers that resemble old fashioned embossed tin ceilings. These papers are much easier to apply than the old styles, and can dress up even the ugliest ceiling.
Some wallpaper companies have developed new lines of prepasted ceiling papers that can be used to cover up wall paneling and acoustical ceiling tiles. The paper is easy to apply, and has a easy pattern match to follow. Once the paper is in place and has been allowed to dry for several days, it can be painted over.
Cover it with cloth
For rental units, residents might not feel comfortable with painting or papering over old acoustical tile. As an alternative, the ceiling can be covered with cloth instead. Sarongs, tulle, muslin, or inexpensive fabrics from the $1 bin can be used to cover an acoustical tile ceiling. The best way to attach fabric to the ceiling is with thumbtacks pressed into the seams. How the fabric is draped is completely up to you.
Hide it with art work
One of the advantages of acoustical tile is that you can put all sorts of thumbtacks into the joints without leaving a trace. Hang dozens of small mobiles from these areas or even thumbtack huge illustrated mod daisies, stars, snowflakes, or some other decorative paper craft instead.
Just because you have an acoustical tile in your home doesn’t mean you’re out of luck. By using one of these tips, you’ll soon discover how easy it is to freshen up that tired old ceiling and give it a brand new look.
