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How Thick Should Plywood Ceiling Be? (Explained)

Plywood is a popular material that is generally used to build cabinets, furniture, concrete forms, and almost all the run-of-the-mill construction projects that require large and flat pieces of wood.

This jack of all trade material is made with excessive pressure in a hydraulic press. There are different iterations of this material as well, like the softwood plywood that is normally used for structural building and there is the hardwood plywood that is used for cabinets and furniture.

You might be thinking that if this material is so great for constructing and making so many things then it must be good for other things as well. Such as, maybe it could be used for ceiling material as well?

In order to answer that question, we need to go into detail about the different types of plywood and the different nuances of the structural integrity of the product. 

Otherwise, for such a critical part of the construction, we would not just simply use something that will not be able to withstand pressure.

Therefore, let us go below and discuss the different aspects of the plywood as a construction material as well as answer the question of whether it is usable as a ceiling material or not. Keep reading below to know more about the material. 

How thick should the plywood ceiling be?

When working with plywood we do not want anything to be inaccurate regarding the measurements. And for the plywood ceiling, we do not need anything thinner than ½”. That is the recommended measurement for plywood ceilings. Otherwise, there might be a case of sagging if it is any thinner than that.

Plywood is a composite product of wood. The way it is produced is actually by using wood veneers that are striped from wood logs or other wooden materials. These veneers go through an elaborate process and those that do are the premium ones among the bunch. 

All the while the lower graded plywood goes through a gluing process. Generally, there are many types of plywood. The common variant among them is the 3-ply, then there are the much stronger ones like the 5-ply.

Plywood can be used as a ceiling material basically because of its properties. It can be great for basements. Plywood is also much easier to work with when compared with building materials.

We can see plywood ceilings in aesthetic shops due to their minimal design. There is some particular plywood that is an amazing soundproofing material for construction. When we hear about the soundproofing of media rooms, then we think of plywood. 

Can you use 1/4-inch plywood for the ceiling?

When it comes to measurements during the construction of the homestead. We do not usually think much about the nuances of its accuracy. However, it is of utmost importance that we maintain a standard measurement system when constructing one.

Although there are multiple things in a home that have standard measurements, there is no standard measurement for the ceilings of all the buildings. However, the average size of the board is usually 2/6 inches and sometimes even 2/12 inches for a standard home ceiling.

However, ¼” size of plywood for the ceiling of a house, is not recommended due to the large spans. You should go for this measurement only when you have braces in short spans. Only then can it be safe from sagging.

4 factors that determine the ceiling plywood thickness

Plywood as a building material is quite strong. Strong to the point that in most cases during construction buildings with said material, we most of the time use it more than the required amount. It provides stiffness and strength like no other similar material of the same criteria.

As to how many factors there are when determining the ceiling plywood thickness, there are few. So, keep reading below as we discuss them in brief.

Number of Plywood:

It is quite simple, and it is just as the bullet point suggests. Each layer of plywood will make the ceiling thicker and stronger. The greater number of sheets will make it stiffer which will result in safe strong stable ceilings. 

Support Span:

When the supporting panels are relatively apart from the supporting elements. Then the chance for the plywood to flex is exponentially higher. Therefore, there need to be adequate panels in between each of them otherwise they will sag. 

Thickness:

The most obvious factors for the thickness of the plywood ceiling are the thickness of the plywood sheet. The thicker the plywood sheet the stronger the ceiling gets to be. 

Direction:

If we place plywood along the “Strength Axis”, then the plywood will be stronger, no pun intended. This is self-explanatory but to clarify why this happens is because it has one more plywood with the grain running in that particular direction.

What kind of plywood do you use for ceilings? 

When it comes to plywood, they come in a grading system. This grading system of the plywood tells us about the material’s quality. Typically, A, B, C, and D grades are used to denote the quality of the product. 

However, we will be discussing the only particular plywood that is used as ceiling material.

Fir Plywood:

Is known to be the best budget friendly with high-quality panels for ceilings. Fir Plywood is known for its dimensional strength. It also resists the natural elements better than the other variation of these woods. 

Any kind of strong weather, storms, or even earthquakes, the plywood made of Fir wood can resist them quite well and stand strong. 

SONOPan Plywood:

This is an excellent choice for ceiling if you do not want any sort of noise from going upward or outside for that matter. The SONOPan plywood can provide astounding sound absorption after installation. 

SONOPan is a good choice not just because of its efficient acoustical insulation offering soundproofing board, but in addition to all of that they are adaptable in all kinds of construction. 

To put a cherry on top of the cake they are excessively reasonable in pricing.

OSB & CDX Plywood:

The OSB & CDX plywood are generally considered the better exterior sheathing plywood. These are re-configured plywood that is at least two times stronger than the usual plywood. However, they are still soft enough for nailing. 

These two types of almost similar grade plywood are mainly used as roofing, roof decking as well as exterior sheathing of homes. Moreover, they can be used as an excellent alternative for a ceiling.  

Although while installing them we need to make sure that they are adequately covered from any exposure to the elements when used as ceilings. 

How to install a plywood ceiling?

When we DIY construction materials, things might seem a little bit daunting. However, now we have a small step-by-step guide for your ease.

Understand and decide:

The first step is understanding if we are working with open joists or not. If we are working with open joists, then skip this step. 

If not then we need to run a stud finder along drywall ceilings to locate the joists. After that, we mark the lengths and positions of each joist. 

Measure:

Then we need to measure perpendicular across the joists from the wall and carry on the center of the joist that is nearest to 96 inches.  

Keep in mind that the ends of two adjoining pieces of plywood must center on a joist. Use whatever tools we find necessary to cut the plywood according to our measurement from earlier. 

Screw the joist:

This step requires us to have a screwdriver with 3-inch screws, so keep one ready. First, we have to measure and cut a 2/4 stud with tools that we need for support on the opposite end of the plywood. Then we just screw it flush inside the joist. 

Premium side facing down:

Since we know plywood has two different sides, we need the premium side facing down and the one with defects facing up. We place the ¼” hardwood plywood for drywall installation and 3/8” for joist installation. 

Sand and add adhesives:

Finally, we sand the edges, apply construction adhesive and simply fit each of the pieces in succession.

Final Thoughts

When we are dealing with construction, we need to make sure everything is on par with the recommended measurements. Otherwise, things might go wrong badly and it could get dangerous for people. Therefore, we should know when working with plywood the thickness of it should not be any lesser than ½”.