How to Enclose Heat Ducts With Suspended Ceiling

Measure the lowest point that the ducts extend down from the ceiling. Measure and mark spots on the walls 4 inches below the duct. Connect the marks by lightly drawing a line onto the walls, using a level as a guide.

Locate and mark the location of the studs with a stud finder and mark them on the wall. You'll nail the molding to the walls at the studs.

Nail the molding to the walls with 6d finishing nails. Place the molding along the top edge of the line and drive the nails into the studs. Cut the pieces of molding with tin snips when needed. If you need to place the molding around a corner where a section of the wall sticks out, cut the molding at a 45-degree angle and join the two adjacent pieces to make a 90-degree angle.

Measure the length and width of the room and convert the measurements to inches. Measure the length and width of one of the ceiling panels you're using. Divide the length of the room by the length of the ceiling panel, and the width of the room by the width of the ceiling panel. This determines how many panels you need to install.

Add together the length and width of the full-sized panels you are going to install in the ceiling, and subtract those totals from the length and width of the ceiling, respectively. The difference is the gap you'll need to fill around the perimeter of the room. Placing evenly-sized cut panels around the perimeter of the room makes the ceiling look better.

Mark the location of the main runners by snapping chalk lines onto the ceiling joists. Snap the chalk lines perpendicular to the ceiling joists. Measure the distance for the perimeter panel from the wall out to the joist to snap the first chalk line, then snap a chalk line every 4 feet afterward.

Screw 1/2-inch eye bolts into every third ceiling joist where you snapped the chalk lines. Attach 16-gauge wire to the eye bolts, wrapping it around the top three times to ensure that it will hold the main runners and the ceiling panels.

Tie a string tautly to the perimeter molding every 8 feet and stretch it across the room, positioning the strings so that they are along the bottom edge of the molding. You will use these strings as a guide when setting the runners.

Place one end of the first runner into position in the molding. Line it up with the eye bolts and run the wires through the holes in the runner, twisting them three times after looping the wires through the runners. Use the strings as a guide when setting the height of the runners. Attach extra wires to any point where two runners meet.

Install the cross tees parallel to the runners every 2 feet. When installed, the cross tees and runners create the grid of supports for the ceiling panels.

Install the ceiling panels into the grid. Wear gloves and safety goggles when installing the panels. One at a time, slide the panels through the corresponding holes in the grid at an angle, then straighten them out and drop them into position. If a panel won't fully drop, stick your arm through a hole adjacent to the panel and press down on it from above. Cut panels as needed to fit along the perimeter of the ceiling, as well as around lights and around vents, with a utility knife.