Ceiling Tiles Below Sprinklers

By eric marino csc ed davis and michael chusid fcsi.

Ceiling tiles below sprinklers.

The 18 inch vertical clearance requirement is treated as a horizontal plane throughout the storage. Approved drop out ceiling panels can be installed beneath fire sprinklers. Melt away foam ceiling tiles 2 feet x 4 feet x 1 inch are specially made to melt out of a suspended ceiling grid system. Empire west ceilume produces polymeric ceiling panels in two thicknesses.

A suspended ceiling system which is installed below the sprinklers with listed translucent or opaque panels that are heat sensitive and fall from their setting when exposed to heat. When exposed to heat from a small fire drop out ceiling panels soften distort and fall from ceiling grid. Melt away tile is factory mutual approved for installation below an automatic sprinkler system. Drop out ceiling systems have been in use since the development in the mid 20th century of modern suspended ceiling systems and suitable plastics.

The tiles may be removed and cleaned with mild soap and water. 29 cfr 1910 159 c 10 in part states the minimum vertical clearance between sprinklers and material below shall be 18 inches 45 7 cm does this apply only to materials placed directly below the sprinkler heads. The ceiling tiles and panels are mounted in a ceiling grid system to provide a finished ceiling appearance and a sprinkler system located in the interstitial space above the drop out panels is installed in accordance with nfpa 13. The expense of double sprinklers can be avoided by using approved drop out panels that can be installed beneath sprinklers.