fan-of-fans
Well-known member
As a kid I was always looking up at the ceilings in stores. I was always looking at how the ceiling tiles, HVAC diffusers, lighting, speakers and fire sprinklers differed between the stores.
Some of my favorites when I was really little were on main street. I remember one really old store, I don't recall what they sold, may have been a hardware store, had the old tin ceiling tiles.
Another store that I think was an art studio that my mother would take her art to had the old paper ceiling tiles in a staggered pattern.
Finally another store on main street was called Ben Franklin. I think they were sort of what was called a variety store. It also had the paper ceiling tiles and huge round HVAC diffusers that were silver.
The other store that really caught my eye was our Publix. It had a suspended ceiling with very old looking tiles with lines in them, old looking floursecent strip lighting and huge HVAC diffusers in silver with a big circle in the center of each. It was remodeled later on, and that too was interesting, because as the remodel was done, parts of the store gradually got a new suspended ceiling that was 2x2 tiles and new square vents. The new light fixtures were square and had an eggcrate like diffuser in a 3x3 pattern. They had torpedo looking bulbs in them but for some reason some of the fixtures just had plastic diffusers with 3 fluorescent tubes. It seemed the ones over the shelving were those type. They also replaced the speakers and sprinklers as they went.
But gradually they replaced the ceiling until just the last part still had the old ceiling and vents, and then it was all redone.
Some of my favorites when I was really little were on main street. I remember one really old store, I don't recall what they sold, may have been a hardware store, had the old tin ceiling tiles.
Another store that I think was an art studio that my mother would take her art to had the old paper ceiling tiles in a staggered pattern.
Finally another store on main street was called Ben Franklin. I think they were sort of what was called a variety store. It also had the paper ceiling tiles and huge round HVAC diffusers that were silver.
The other store that really caught my eye was our Publix. It had a suspended ceiling with very old looking tiles with lines in them, old looking floursecent strip lighting and huge HVAC diffusers in silver with a big circle in the center of each. It was remodeled later on, and that too was interesting, because as the remodel was done, parts of the store gradually got a new suspended ceiling that was 2x2 tiles and new square vents. The new light fixtures were square and had an eggcrate like diffuser in a 3x3 pattern. They had torpedo looking bulbs in them but for some reason some of the fixtures just had plastic diffusers with 3 fluorescent tubes. It seemed the ones over the shelving were those type. They also replaced the speakers and sprinklers as they went.
But gradually they replaced the ceiling until just the last part still had the old ceiling and vents, and then it was all redone.
