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'{{Short description|Overhead interior surface}} {{Other uses}} {{multiple image|perrow = 2|total_width=500 | image1 = Ravenna, basilica di San Vitale (036).jpg|width1=300|height1= | image2 = Exeter Cathedral star ceiling.JPG|width2=300|height2= | image3 = Paris, Notre-Dame, innen 2014-12 (3).jpg|width3=300|height3= | image4 = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow 06.JPG|width4=300|height4= | image5 = Dome of Church of the Gesù (Rome).jpg|width5=300|height5= | image6 = Paris - Palais du Louvre - PA00085992 - 2015 - 002.jpg|width6=300|height6= | footer = Various examples of ceilings }} A '''ceiling''' {{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|iː|l|ɪ|ŋ}} is an overhead interior surface that covers the upper limits of a [[room]]. It is not generally considered a structural element, but a finished surface concealing the underside of the roof structure or the floor of a story above. Ceilings can be decorated to taste, and there are many fine examples of [[fresco]]es and artwork on ceilings especially in religious buildings. A ceiling can also be the upper limit of a [[tunnel]]. The most common type of ceiling is the [[dropped ceiling]], which is suspended from structural elements above. Panels of [[drywall]] are fastened either directly to the ceiling [[joist]]s or to a few layers of moisture-proof plywood which are then attached to the joists. Pipework or ducts can be run in the gap above the ceiling, and insulation and fireproofing material can be placed here. Alternatively, ceilings may be spray painted instead, leaving the pipework and ducts exposed but painted, and using [[spray foam]]. Booby ceiling A subset of the dropped ceiling is the supsended ceiling, wherein a network of alumminum struts, as opposed to drywall, are attached to the joists, forming a series of retcangular spaces. Individual pieces of cardboard are then placed inside the bottom of those spaces so that the outer side of the cardboard, interpsersed with aluminum rails, is seen as the ceiling from below. This makes it relatively easy to repair the pipes and insulation behind the ceiling, since all that is necessary is to lift off the carbdoard, rather than digging through the drywall and then replaking it. Other types of ceiling include the cathedral ceiling, the concave or barrel-shaped ceiling, the stretched ceiling and the [[coffer]]ed ceiling. [[Mokding (decorative)|Coving]] often links the ceiling to the surrounding walls. Ceilings can pay a part in reducing fire hasard, and a system is available for rating the fire resistance of falling ceilings. ==Types== [[File:California Mid-Century Modern Home with open-beam ceiling 1960.jpg|thumb|[[California]] [[tract housing|tract home]] with an open-beam ceiling, 1960]] Ceilings are classified according to their appearance or construction. A [[cathedral]] ceiling is any tall ceiling area similar to those in a [[Church architecture|church]]. A [[dropped ceiling]] is one in which the finished surface is constructed anywhere from a few inches or centimeters to several feet or a few meters below the structure above it. This may be done for aesthetic purposes, such as achieving a desirable ceiling height; or practical purposes such as acoustic damping or providing a space for [[HVAC]] or [[piping]]. An inverse of this would be a [[raised floor]]. A [[wikt:concave|concave]] or barrel-shaped ceiling is curved or rounded upward, usually for visual or acoustical value, while a [[coffer]]ed ceiling is divided into a grid of recessed square or octagonal panels, also called a "lacunar ceiling". A cove ceiling uses a curved [[Molding (decorative)|plaster transition]] between wall and ceiling; it is named for cove molding, a molding with a concave curve.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.manleylabs.com/galleria/casaratas/casaratas52.html |access-date=September 14, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080929160228/http://www.manleylabs.com/galleria/casaratas/casaratas52.html |archive-date=September 29, 2008 }}</ref> A stretched ceiling (or stretch ceiling) uses a number of individual panels using material such as [[PVC]] fixed to a perimeter rail.<ref>{{cite book|title=Interior Graphic Standards: Student Edition|author=Corky Binggeli|page=220|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|year=2011|isbn=978-1-118-09935-3}}</ref> ==Elements== Ceilings have frequently been decorated with [[fresco]] painting, [[mosaic]] [[tile|tiles]] and other surface treatments. While hard to execute (at least in place) a decorated ceiling has the advantage that it is largely protected from damage by fingers and dust. In the past, however, this was more than compensated for by the damage from smoke from candles or a fireplace. Many historic buildings have celebrated ceilings. Perhaps the most famous is the [[Sistine Chapel ceiling]] by [[Michelangelo]]. Ceiling height may have psychological impacts.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Meyers‐Levy|first1=Joan|last2=Zhu|first2=Rui (Juliet)|s2cid=16607244|title=The Influence of Ceiling Height: The Effect of Priming on the Type of Processing That People Use|journal=Journal of Consumer Research|date=August 2007|volume=34|issue=2|pages=174–186|jstor=10.1086/519146|doi=10.1086/519146}}</ref> ==Fire-resistance rated ceilings== The most common ceiling that contributes to [[fire-resistance rating]]s in commercial and residential construction is the [[dropped ceiling]]. In the case of a dropped ceiling, the rating is achieved by the entire [[system]], which is both the structure above, from which the ceilings is suspended, which could be a [[concrete]] floor or a timber floor, as well as the suspension mechanism and, finally the lowest membrane or dropped ceiling. Between the structure that the dropped ceiling is suspended from and the dropped membrane, such as a T-bar ceiling or a layer of [[drywall]], there is often some room for mechanical and electrical piping, wiring and ducting to run. An independent ceiling, however, can be constructed such that it has a stand-alone fire-resistance rating. Such systems must be tested without the benefit of being suspended from a slab above in order to prove that the resulting system is capable of holding itself up. This type of ceiling would be installed to protect items above from fire. <gallery mode="packed" heights="180"> Image:Durasteel_4h_ceiling_1.jpg|An unrestrained non-loadbearing ceiling undergoing a 4-hour fire test. Deflection is measured off the I-beam. Image:Durasteel_4h_ceiling_2.jpg| Durasteel ceiling after successful fire test, being raised from the furnace and readied for an optional 45PSI (3.1 bar) hose-stream test. </gallery> ==Gallery== <gallery widths="170px" heights="170px"> Image:Ste Chapelle Basse s.jpg|Ceiling from the [[Sainte-Chapelle]] in [[Paris]] Image:Notre-Dame de Nazareth - Toulouse - JEP 2013 03.JPG|Detail of the ceiling from Chapelle Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth de Toulouse ([[Toulouse]], France) Image:Oreste Sercelli - Matriz do Espírito Santo esboço do tecto da Capella Mor (Zimborio), Acervo do Museu Paulista da USP (cropped).jpg|Watercolor illustration of a ceiling, by Oreste Sercelli Budynok-vchenyh 05.jpg|[[Baroque Revival architecture|Neo-Baroque]] ceiling in the House of scientists, in [[Lviv]] ([[Ukraine]]) Image:Interieur begane grond, linker voorkamer, stucplafond met stucornament - Baarn - 20338549 - RCE.jpg|Detail of a [[stucco]] ceiling from [[Baarn]] (the [[Netherlands]]) Image:Trier.ceiling.jpg|Demonstrative reconstruction of a Roman suspended ceiling in an Imperial palace of circa AD 306 at [[Trier]] (Italy) Lightmatter Sistine Chapel ceiling.jpg|Part of the ceiling of the [[Sistine Chapel]] in [[Vatican City]] in Rome, showing the ceiling in relation to the other frescoes Vatican museum (15205535352).jpg|Corner of the ceiling from the Hall of the Papyri, in the [[Vatican Museums]] (Varican City) Villa Schutzenberger, ceiling.jpg|Ceiling of the [[Villa Schutzenberger]] from [[Strasbourg]] (France), decorated with [[Art Nouveau]] ornaments D.A. Sturdza House, Bucharest (Romania) 7.jpg|Corner a ceiling with [[stucco|stuccos]] in the D.A. Sturdza House, from [[Bucharest]] (Romania) Image:Palatul Bragadiru - detaliu.jpg|Neoclassical ceiling from the Bragadiru Palace, in Bucharest Image:Plafond du grand salon Comte Velbruck - Société littéraire Liège.jpg|Painted ceiling in [[Liège]] (Belgium) File:Suspended-ceiling-0a.jpg|[[Dropped ceiling]] File:Torun Kopernika 21 pietro strop (2).jpg|Wooden beam ceiling </gallery> == See also == * [[Beam (structure)|Beam]] ceiling * [[Hammerbeam roof]] * [[Hollow-core slab]] * [[Moulding (decorative)]] * [[Popcorn ceiling]] * [[Scottish Renaissance painted ceilings]] * [[Tin ceiling]] * [[Passive fire protection]] * [[Fire test]] * [[Hy-Rib]] ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== {{wiktionary|ceiling}} *{{Commons category-inline|Ceilings}} *{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Ceiling |volume=5 |short=x}} * {{cite NIE|wstitle=Ceiling|year=1904|short=1}} *[http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ceiling Merriam-Webster ceiling definition] {{Room}} {{Authority control}} [[Category:Ceilings| ]]'