Gasketed ceiling system

Abstract

A suspended ceiling system in one embodiment includes a grid support member and a ceiling panel supported on the member. A resiliently compressible gasket is disposed at the interface between the grid support member and peripheral edge of the panel. The gasket may be fixedly attached to the panel peripheral edge in the factory under controlled conditions before shipment to the ceiling installation site. In one embodiment, the gasket may be adhesively attached to the panel. Mounting the ceiling panel on the grid support member compresses the gasket to preferably form a minimally visible air leakage resistant seal between the air plenum space above the ceiling panels and the occupied space below. This retards air exchange between the spaces which enhances heating/cooling efficiency, noise reduction and allows formation of pressurized clean rooms.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A gasketed ceiling system comprising:
 a plurality of grid support members arranged to collectively define a plurality of grid openings;   a plurality of ceiling panels positioned in the grid openings, each ceiling panel comprising:
 a plurality of peripheral edges collectively defining a perimeter; 
 a resilient gasket comprising one or more pieces extending perimetrically around the entire ceiling panel to form a continuous air-leakage resistant barrier at an interface between the plurality of grid support members and the ceiling panel. 
   
     
     
         2 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket isolates an air plenum formed above the ceiling panel from an occupiable space formed below the ceiling panel. 
     
     
         3 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket is formed of polyethylene foam. 
     
     
         4 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the polyethylene foam has a density between and including four pounds/cubic foot to six pounds/cubic foot. 
     
     
         5 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket is adhesively attached to the peripheral edge ceiling panel with an acrylic adhesive. 
     
     
         6 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 5 , wherein the gasket is fixedly attached to the peripheral edge of the ceiling panel by a non-adhesive edge coating material applied first to the peripheral edge beneath the gasket. 
     
     
         7 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the peripheral edge of the ceiling panel has a tegular profile. 
     
     
         8 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket is linearly elongated and extends for an entire length of the peripheral edge of the ceiling panel. 
     
     
         9 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the ceiling panel compresses the gasket by at least 40 percent of the uncompressed thickness. 
     
     
         10 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket has an uncompressed thickness no greater than ⅛ inch. 
     
     
         11 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket has an uncompressed thickness of about 1/16 inch. 
     
     
         12 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket has a compressed thickness of no more than about 1/32 inch. 
     
     
         13 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket is attached to a downward facing load bearing surface on the peripheral edge of the ceiling panel. 
     
     
         14 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 13 , wherein the gasket is compressed between the load bearing surface of the ceiling panel and an upward facing second support surface of the grid support member. 
     
     
         15 . The gasketed ceiling system according to  claim 1 , wherein the gasket has a rectilinear cross-sectional shape. 
     
     
         16 . A method for isolating a plenum space above a ceiling system and an occupiable space below the ceiling system, the method comprising:
 providing a plurality of grid support members arranged to collectively define a support grid having a plurality of grid openings; and   mounting a plurality of ceiling panels in the grid openings, each ceiling panel comprising a plurality of peripheral edges collectively defining a perimeter and a resilient gasket comprising one or more pieces extending perimetrically around the entire ceiling panel to form a continuous air-leakage resistant barrier at an interface between the plurality of grid support members and the ceiling panel.   
     
     
         17 . The method according to  claim 16 , further comprising compressing the gasket to form an air leakage resistant seal at the interface between the ceiling panel and the support grid. 
     
     
         18 . The method according to  claim 16 , wherein the gasket is polyethylene foam and compressed by at least  40  percent of an original uncompressed thickness of the gasket by the ceiling panel. 
     
     
         19 . The method according to  claim 16 , wherein a final compressed thickness of the gasket is no more than about 1/32 inch.