Box Beams Make For Awesome Ceilings – Add Some Charm To Your Home!

Wood beams are another great looking wood furnishing for any home, and similar to the storage bed, a box beam is able to hide unsightly items from sight. Some examples would be wires running across the ceiling, or an exposed plumbing or sprinkler system, even create recesses for hidden cameras!

Many homes suffer from a lack of personality. Drywall beams, at best, are clean and provide dimension. They do not provide true charm, or really come close to assisting in making a space feel like home. This coziness is a much sought after and seldom achieved home style.

Situations Where You Need A Box Beam

Wood Beams Won’t Work

Wood Beams are heavy, and for many remodels the ceiling is simply not designed to withstand the enormous weight. Even structures that appear to be doing the job are at risk for sagging trusses and ceilings. Hollow 3 sided wood box beams, by contrast, are incredibly lightweight.
Can’t find Enough Cedar, Alder Or Other Wood For Your Ceiling Beams

Ceilings come in many varied spans, ranging from small to enormous. Often, beams can only be found in smaller sizes. For instance, good luck getting a 24′ x 12″ x 12″ cedar beam, free of heart center. Box beams can be made to fit any size.

This is particularly great for those who love Alder. As and Alder wood lover knows, the trees grow small. In fact, the largest size of Alder beam available is a 10′ – you might find a 12′ or 14′ if you look, but the supply of tall alder is limited. So, short of genetic engineering, it would seem that box beams are the best option for making Alder beams work in larger spans or custom sizes.
Long Term Preservation – Prevent Cracking, Twisting, Warping

Wood beams are large, dense pieces of lumber. Unlike the kiln dried stock used to make most box beams, Wood beam are moist, and they continue to lose moisture every year. As that moisture is sucked out, the wood warps, twists, commonly splitting in places with small to very larger cracks throughout the beam. Properly constructed wood box beams contain bird blocking and the low density needed to prevent these events from ever taking place. This also will be a relief when you do not need to summon a painter every few years to refinishing your cracking beams!