tray ceilings directly under a second floor

[winterdd]

Hey guys, second floor of the home has either i-joists or webbed trusses. I am having requests for tray ceilings under the second floor. Is this possible and can you even cut into floor members to do this? I mean if I am using 16" i joists or trusses and the minimum tray depth is 12" that doesn't leave much structure.

[basketballman]

Create a tray ceiling effect by using a dropped perimeter soffit; without going up into existing ceiling structure.

 

There is an option to do this in tray ceiling dialog box

[winterdd]

16 minutes ago, basketballman said:

Create a tray ceiling effect by using a dropped perimeter soffit; without going up into existing ceiling structure.

 

There is an option to do this in tray ceiling dialog box

thanks, I was trying to avoid that because they wanna keep the 9' ceilings and then go up with the tray.

[basketballman]

You do not have to have a 12" dropped soffit; it can be 6" or any thing you like ..thereby lessening the drop effect 

As I am sure you know going up is gonna be involved and expensive.

[Joe_Carrick]

If the structure of the floor above includes an air gap and ceiling joists then you can cut into the ceiling.  Cutting into the actual floor joists would not be practical without a structural analysis.

[robdyck]

2 hours ago, winterdd said:

Hey guys, second floor of the home has either i-joists or webbed trusses. I am having requests for tray ceilings under the second floor. Is this possible and can you even cut into floor members to do this? I mean if I am using 16" i joists or trusses and the minimum tray depth is 12" that doesn't leave much structure.

This is easier with floor trusses than with I-joists, but either one could be possible depending on the load and span. If you already have 16" for the floor system, then check to see if 11 7/8" or 12" is suitable for the span / load of the floor above.

[GeneDavis]

You need more depth for the floor structure, which adds cost in not just floor structure, but labor to build whatever fill and corner work is needed, plus the cost of extra stairs height, more exterior wall sheathing and finish.  Explain this to the client and produce good 3D renders of it done with both six and twelve inch tray height, both dropped and not.  Further, more stair height means more stair area in the floor plan and reduction of living space.

[winterdd]

Well after all the talking with the client we decided to make the ceilings 10’ which made my job a lot easier. Thanks everyone, I am sure I will need to come back to this thread sooner or later if this topic is brought up again with new jobs.