Back in June of last year, an article ran in the Chapel Hill News regarding some ceiling tiles at Chapel Hill High School that had been painted by the science classes to memorialize what they have learned.

Fire bell tolls for CHHS ceiling tiles
Aaron Rogoff Correspondent
Published: June 24, 2007

CHAPEL HILL – Fourteen years ago, Chapel Hill High School A.P. biology teacher Bert Wartski began having students paint murals on the walls of his classroom at the end of each school year.

Four years later those murals spread from the walls to the ceiling tiles. Since then, other teachers have adopted this tradition so that today the walls and ceilings of the science wings are full of art displaying scientific concepts learned in class.

Recently, the CHHS administration learned the tiles may pose a fire hazard.

“What we've asked them to do is take the ceiling tiles down because they don't meet the initial design qualifications of the building,” said Assistant Fire Marshal Doug Kelly.

The North Carolina Fire Code was modified in January and requires ceiling tiles that have been modified to be retested by Underwriters Laboratories to make sure they are flame retardant. Retesting the tiles would cost more than buying new tiles, so the old ones are coming down.

Knowing their science, several teachers decided to conduct a controlled experiment.

In a brief video that they are distributing as part of a campaign to save the tiles, Wartski set fire to three tiles using a propane torch. The first was unpainted; the second was coated in yellow latex acrylic paint; and the third, in latex enamel paint.

In all three cases a small flame appeared but went out on its own without spreading.

Wartski then lit flammable material on top of all three tiles and again found they did not catch.

In a final demonstration, he lit a piece of paper, half coated in the latex enamel paint. The unpainted portion of the paper burned while the painted portion remained intact.

This experiment does not, however, meet state requirements.

Students and parents have launched a letter-writing campaign directed at the school district and fire department, emphasizing the value of the tiles to the school's environment and urging them to rethink their decision.

“It's a celebration of education,” Wartski said. “When people come through the halls and look at the murals, they think of what a wonderful science wing this must be because there's so much art and so much creativity, which is part of the thinking process. It would truly be a tragedy for all this art work to be thrown away.”

The fire department has given the school permission to display the tiles on the walls, where there is less risk for spreading fire, but much of the science wing's wall space is occupied.

Wartski said he would support removing the tiles if he thought they were hazardous.

No deadline has yet been set for replacement. New tiles have been ordered, and the fire department is hoping they will be installed before the new school year

It seems the Chapel Hill fire marshall considered these tiles a hazard and wanted them removed.

A brief review of the State Fire Code showed that in fact, there is an exception for coatings of several mils thickness as regards fire resistant assemblies. In English, that means it is okay to paint surfaces even if it is part of a fire rated wall. So, if it is okay to paint e.g. wallboard, why not ceiling tiles?

A review of the installation instructions from several ceiling tile manufacturer’s websites include a disclaimer about painting the tiles- and then has 3 paragraphs about how to prepare and paint them!

A review of several gypsum wallboard manufacturers’ sites found no mention of painting, either way.

I shared all of this information with the Fire Marshall, to no avail. I also pointed out that several businesses have painted tiles. This did not seem to matter.

Now there is an effort underway by the school to test the existing tiles. A third party manufacturer has been found, it is over $500 per tile to test them. Here is a letter to the editor with a plea for donations:

Funding needed to test painted tiles

As you may or may not know, the painted ceiling tiles at Chapel Hill High School are controversial. To review a bit, we will have to go back 14 years. I was a relative newcomer to CHHS when my students first started painting ceiling tiles. As part of the end-of-year AP projects, a student wanted to paint a ceiling tile. I saw no harm in painting a nonflammable paint on a nonflammable tile, so I agreed. Each subsequent year, more and more students wanted to paint tiles. Other teachers joined in this celebration of education.

Last year, the fire department found us in violation of the flammable finish section of the fire code. We were told to take down and replace the ceiling tiles. A battle ensued.

There was a compromise: The fire department would be gracious enough to allow the ceiling tiles to be tested by an independent lab (Commercial Testing Company). There would be three different tiles tested: two blank tiles, two tiles painted with latex paint and two painted tiles with a flame-retardant finish. The fire department states that if the tiles pass muster, we can keep the tiles.

Here's the problem: The tests cost money – big money. It will cost $550 per tile. That can be anywhere from $2,200 to $3,300, depending on if the company needs to test the final two tiles. The school district says that it has $1,500 to spend on the test, leaving us with a range of $700 to $1,800 to raise. We would accept direct contributions to save the tiles and will be looking at other ways to raise money.

If you are a painted tile “alum” or if you would like to help us with our plight, you can send a contribution to “Smile for Tiles” at CHHS (High School Road, Chapel Hill, N.C. 27516).
Bert Wartski Chapel Hill

This whole thing seems really silly to me. A discussion with other counties’ Fire Marshalls confirmed this sentiment.

Now we know why CHCCS cannot afford to get rid of vermin in the schools. They are BURNING it on ceiling tiles. Unbelievable.