Resilience Treatments & Strategies
Ceilings
Description
Surfaces that cover the underside of your building’s roof structure or an above story’s floor structure. Sometimes the roof structure may be exposed, such as wood trusses, and the ceiling is between these structural components. Sometimes drop ceilings mimic structural elements (e.g., faux beams or trusses), especially in vaulted spaces. Historic finish materials often include wood and plaster.
Typical risk factor of this component:
Low
Ceilings are typically not exposed to elements such as wind and rain. Their importance to the structure’s stability and the impact their failure might have on other assemblies are both low.
Typical Damages from Floods or Hurricanes
- Mold growth
- Waterlogged or otherwise water-damaged finishes
Other common conditions contributing to vulnerability towards floods or hurricanes
- Defects (e.g., flaking paint) in finishes
Resilience Treatments and Strategies
In-house
- Carefully remove all finishes that are waterlogged and cannot be saved (if it is safe to do so, e.g., there is no mold or asbestos). Replace with in-kind. Refinish/restore anything that can be saved.
Professional needed [type]
- Restore decorative painting or plasterwork (see also NPS Preservation Briefs #23, #28, and #49) [building or art conservation professionals].
Ceilings
Description
Surfaces that cover the underside of your building’s roof structure or an above story’s floor structure. Sometimes the roof structure may be exposed, such as wood trusses, and the ceiling is between these structural components. Sometimes drop ceilings mimic structural elements (e.g., faux beams or trusses), especially in vaulted spaces. Historic finish materials often include wood and plaster.
Typical risk factor of this component:
Low
Ceilings are typically not exposed to elements such as wind and rain. Their importance to the structure’s stability and the impact their failure might have on other assemblies are both low.
Typical Damages from Floods or Hurricanes
- Mold growth
- Waterlogged or otherwise water-damaged finishes
Other common conditions contributing to vulnerability towards floods or hurricanes
- Defects (e.g., flaking paint) in finishes
Resilience Treatments and Strategies
In-house
- Carefully remove all finishes that are waterlogged and cannot be saved (if it is safe to do so, e.g., there is no mold or asbestos). Replace with in-kind. Refinish/restore anything that can be saved.
Professional needed [type]
- Restore decorative painting or plasterwork (see also NPS Preservation Briefs #23, #28, and #49) [building or art conservation professionals].