Would this basement ceiling idea pass fire code?
The background: I have a 14" floor truss system, 16 OC. which requires the same fire protections as I-joist. Wires, plumbing, HVAC, everything is run in the truss webbing, and some of that stuff needs to be accessable; enough of it that I would rather not create 5-6 access holes in a finished drywall ceiling. I have some extra head room to install a drop ceiling, and still have 8' height. It's about 1900 Sq ft. I would rather avoid a drop ceiling though. I plan to finish the space years down the road, so don't want to make a huge investment now, for something I will likely tear down later. Something customizable would be best.
My idea: could I attach a 1/16th inch by 5 inch metal (aluminum, steel, or tin?) to the bottom of each truss, and use that as the "web" for a drop ceiling, and use 5/8 drywall as drop ceiling board? Strips would be 13 inches wide or so, and 8ft long. I would put cross members of metal on the butt joints. Is there anything I'm not considering with this approach?
Posted Nov 1, 2025, 11:59 PM UTC