Tongue and Groove Ceiling Help

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remout

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10' Ceilings
3/4" Cypress T&G with 5 1/4" net coverage
Lengths up to 16'
No finish flooring to protect, just subfloor
Joists 16" OC
My wife and I will be doing this, we're newbies but doing pretty well on our remodel
560 sq ft now with 280 in phase two

1. Should I buy/use the longest length of wood possible ( the 16 footers)?

2. I have a air powered nail gun shooting 2" finish nails or I have a Passload gas fired framing gun. I've used the finish gun for T&G walls with good success. I've never attempted the Passload. What to use for the Ceilings?

3. I'm 58 y/o. Any advice on ladders/scaffolding. I have one step ladder and one of those folding metal ladders that you can configure into a step or straight.

Many Thanks!
 
16’ will wear you out doing them alone but with a helper and two stepladders won’t be bad. Depends on how long your room is if its 14’ cutting 2’ off each one wouldn’t be logical. If it was 12’ you cut off 4’ and use that piece to start the next row, then you cut off 8’ and start the next row. Zero waste and staggered joints. I’m 60 y/o and still put up 4x8 sheets of drywall alone without a lift but I do a lot of jigging and use props. As you get older you get smarter and sometimes a jig can help a lot. In your case I would build a strap of wood with a 1” step in the end and screw it to the center joist then you climb up with your strip and shove it in the space and let that hold it up as you move your ladder to the end. More messing around but saves the back.
 
lol, we posted at same time, i deleted mine, no since saying the same thing twice
 
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I installed one in a screened porch. We were able to go wall to wall with 12's. I used a finish nailer. It will definitely pay for itself on this job. A framing nailer will shoot too big of a nail for this project. Definitely use the finish nailer. As long as you stagger the joints it won't hurt to have joints in your ceiling. If you can't get 10's and you're cutting off 6' I'd definitely do as Bud mentions.
 
I would build a couple of deadman braces and use the longest boards that fit your project. With 3 braces you'll be able to get a board in place, fit it tight and nail them off without anyone complaining that it's getting heavy, move it over a bit...or my arms are tired. Instead it will be....while I nail this off hon...get me a sandwich and a beer.
 
beachguy005 said:
I would build a couple of deadman braces and use the longest boards that fit your project. With 3 braces you'll be able to get a board in place, fit it tight and nail them off without anyone complaining that it's getting heavy, move it over a bit...or my arms are tired. Instead it will be....while I nail this off hon...get me a sandwich and a beer.
Click to expand...


The wood he's talking about doesn't weigh much. It is just a 1x6 with a T&G. Once you slip it on to the tongue of the previous piece it will stay in place until you shoot a nail. Once one nail is in it isn't going anywhere. Scaffolding is definitely a must to save climbing a ladder 4 times for every board.
 
I use a narrow crown staple gun for this one.
Far more holding power then a finish nail.
 
Sparky617 said:
The wood he's talking about doesn't weigh much. It is just a 1x6 with a T&G. Once you slip it on to the tongue of the previous piece it will stay in place until you shoot a nail. Once one nail is in it isn't going anywhere. Scaffolding is definitely a must to save climbing a ladder 4 times for every board.
Click to expand...

I havn't tried this but I would think trying to get a long length T&G to slide together, might be a trick in itself.
 
It's not about the weight, it's about making it easier to install 16', or whatever length he uses, boards overhead with 2 people while using a nail gun.
 
So...one of them holds it up, uses a tapping block and nails it? Plus you need a tool to tap that tapping block and deal with the air hose. Great it you have 3 hands.
Use 3 deadman braces made out of 2x4s with a 12" top. Once the first plank is installed you still have supports from the deadman to hold the next plank. Move the braces over 6" and again you have support for the next plank. Slip it in and nail it. The braces under the previous plank will give you a gap the thickness of the plank to install the next without either of them needing to hold the planks up. Frankly he could do the job alone.
Cost you for three, 12' 2x4s.
 
I think Beachguy 005 is suggesting “dead man” coming from the floor up to hold the plank. If I got that right we always just called that a “prop”. What I was suggesting and also a method to work alone as I mostly do and keeping in mind this is a DIY forum and geared to the guy that’s not getting paid for speed but needs a way to do the job as best he can. My suggestion was similar to the dead man only I would just have a 2x4 block with a spacer and one screw holding it to the ceiling joist to add a hand or two to holding the piece up. I do this type thing all the time because I’m old and working alone and not in a hurry. Just rig something to hold something up till I get a nail or a screw in to hold it. if you don’t want to run a screw in and out to hold some kind of an aid up you can use a C clamp also.
 
remout said:
10' Ceilings
3/4" Cypress T&G with 5 1/4" net coverage
Lengths up to 16'
No finish flooring to protect, just subfloor
Joists 16" OC
My wife and I will be doing this, we're newbies but doing pretty well on our remodel
560 sq ft now with 280 in phase two

1. Should I buy/use the longest length of wood possible ( the 16 footers)?

2. I have a air powered nail gun shooting 2" finish nails or I have a Passload gas fired framing gun. I've used the finish gun for T&G walls with good success. I've never attempted the Passload. What to use for the Ceilings?

3. I'm 58 y/o. Any advice on ladders/scaffolding. I have one step ladder and one of those folding metal ladders that you can configure into a step or straight.

Many Thanks!
Click to expand...

Been in your position several times, a year, commercially.

If the installation is dia. some of the following does not apply.

Aesthetics are the provenance of the customer, and with the height of the ceiling, is the room a rectangle with a window wall on one end, or just and interior square.

In a rectangle you can amplify the perception of length or diminish that perception by the direction of application.

In both a square or rectangle the reveal should be considered, in that, will you have a 5" board on one end and a 2" on the other, and does it matter.

Or are you planning a technical crown mold to mitigate that.

The 1st step is to survey and square the room.

There have been times when we star from the center and work both ways.

Dead men are an efficient assistant and when I started I glued carpet to the surface to protect the product, now they are aluminum tubular, adjustable and distinctly similar to cabinet installers props.

Setting blocks are nothing more than a piece of the product, split in 1/2, which gives you both the tongue and grove to fit, which reduces the chance of flattening or deforming one or the other.
 
beachguy005 said:
A prop is what you do...a deadman is what you do it with.
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They say a dead man tells no tales.

It’s interesting how in different parts of the country people use different terms to describe things. Around here the common usage of a dead man in construction is when you lay a beam or post in a retaining wall into the bank side and bury it to lock the wall into the bank.

Doing a google I see many call our “Props” a dead man. At least the DIY ones. The store bought ones they seem to call props at least in the UK.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003C5IW46/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Couple more reads for the OP if he wants to do a dead man.

http://www.finehomebuilding.com/how-to/tips/sawhorse-steadies-drywall-deadman.aspx
http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/how-to/step/0,,20745179_30040404,00.html
 
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Here is the slick set up and even better than what I suggested.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CPURoDT4MA[/ame]
 
joecaption said:
I use a narrow crown staple gun for this one.
Far more holding power then a finish nail.
Click to expand...

If I had a stapler when I installed mine I would have used it instead of the nailer. However, it doesn't really require a lot of holding power when you're installing a 2" finish nail every 16 or 12 inches depending on the framing of the roof above.
 
Interesting video. I noticed he doesn't worry about landing the ends on a rafter. I guess with the tongue and groove the wood gets held in place well enough for a ceiling.

If you have two people it does go a bit faster, even if you only have one nailer you can pass it between partners to nail it up faster. Scaffolding makes it easier than stepping from ladder to ladder.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200441242_200441242?cm_mmc=Google-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Construction%20%3E%20Scaffolding&utm_campaign=Metaltech&utm_content=405930&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=405930&gclid=CLrCwL2p3skCFdcegQodtpQNGQ
 
Sparky617 said:
Interesting video. I noticed he doesn't worry about landing the ends on a rafter. I guess with the tongue and groove the wood gets held in place well enough for a ceiling.

If you have two people it does go a bit faster, even if you only have one nailer you can pass it between partners to nail it up faster. Scaffolding makes it easier than stepping from ladder to ladder.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200441242_200441242?cm_mmc=Google-pla&utm_source=Google_PLA&utm_medium=Construction%20%3E%20Scaffolding&utm_campaign=Metaltech&utm_content=405930&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=405930&gclid=CLrCwL2p3skCFdcegQodtpQNGQ
Click to expand...

I'll do a 2 for 1; There are finish nailers such as BOSTICH which use a wider/larger crowned nail than SENCO, HITACHI and most used by cabinet makers.

Also a small rolling scaffold works well, as long as the floor is clean.
 
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