Luminous lay-in panels allow fluorescent light to enter a room.
A luminous lay-in panel is a translucent ceiling tile that lets light shine into the room. During the planning stage for your drop ceiling, you need to determine which ceiling grid squares will house solid tiles and which will hold luminous lay-in panels. The light source above the luminous lay-in panel is typically a fluorescent light fixture centered above the grid opening, which you install prior to the ceiling tiles.
Instructions
1. Cut power to the room where you are working at the household breaker box.
2. Remove one of the fluorescent light fixture's round knockout holes so the power source's electrical wiring can enter the fixture. Tap the knockout hole lightly with a screwdriver then grasp it with a pair of pliers and bend it back and forth until it breaks off.
3. Push a rubber grommet into the knockout hole. This prevents the knockout hole's sharp edges from cutting the power source's wiring.
4. Lift the fluorescent light fixture through the ceiling grid opening. Push the electrical wires from the power source -- typically a light switch -- through the knockout hole. Center the fixture over the grid opening and push it snug against the ceiling joists.
5. Drive screws through the holes in the fixture and into the ceiling joists to hold the fixture in place. If the screw holes do not line up with a ceiling joist, drill 1/8-inch pilot holes through the fixture and into the nearest ceiling joists. Drive screws through the pilot holes to hold the fixture.
6. Connect the power source's black wire to the fixture's black wire and twist a wire nut over the ends to hold them together. Repeat with the two white wires. Push the wiring into the fixture and attach the wiring cover if one was supplied with the fixture.
7. Install fluorescent bulbs into the fixture. Lift the luminous lay-in panel up to the ceiling grid opening. Tilt it slightly to lift it above the grid then straighten it out and lower it into place.
8. Restore power to the room at the household circuit breaker.
Tags: grid opening, knockout hole, power source, ceiling grid, ceiling joists, fluorescent light fixture, lay-in panel