Frame a Wall With a Drop Ceiling
The wall framing required in an area that is going to have a drop ceiling is only slightly different from standard framing practices, with the addition of a line of blocking as a fire stop precaution at the lowered ceiling plane. The modification can be easily handled when constructing the walls adjacent to where the lower ceiling structure will be added.
Local and national building codes have specific requirements on wall framing. Consult your local building department before beginning this project.
Instructions
Framing the Wall
1. Cut three pieces of 2-inch by 4-inch lumber to the desired length of the wall. These are the top and bottom plates of the wall section.
2. Place two of the three boards against each other with the ends flush.
3. From one end, make a pencil mark at 15 ¼ inches and use a hand square to align marks on both pieces. Then place a pencil mark at 16-inch increments along the full length of both pieces, squaring each of the marks to insure the layout matches on both plates.
4. Separate the pieces and place both of the plates on edge, spaced sufficiently apart to insert 92 ¼-inch standard 2-inch by 4-inch stud perpendicular to and in between the top and bottom plates.
5. Position a single 92 ¼-inch stud, on edge, for each of the pencil lines of the layout on the plates.
6. Attach each stud to the plate pieces on the 16-inch layout line with two 16d nails through the plate into each stud end. Be sure to attach all the studs to the same side of each layout line. Repeat at the other end of the studs to attach the opposite plate piece.
7. Determine which end you wish to designate as the top of the wall and attach the third length of the 2-inch by 4-inch plate cut in step 1 on top of that end to create a double plate at the top of the wall.
8. With the wall section assembled and lying flat on floor, make certain the section is sitting square by measuring the wall section diagonally from opposite ends. The measurement should be identical when the wall is square.
9. Measuring from the bottom of the bottom plate, make a mark on each of the end studs at the desired height of the drop ceiling. Snap a straight chalk line between these two pencil marks, and then use a hand square to mark both sides of each stud at the chalk line.
10. Cut sufficient 2-inch by 4-inch blocks to fit between each of the studs as fire-stop blocking, nailed inline and directly below the drop ceiling line marks. Secure each block with two 16d nails in each end of the block.
11. Stand the assembled wall frame up and secure it in place. When the area's perimeter walls are standing, the fireblocking should be tight and continuous around the full perimeter of the drop ceiling area.
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