Glulam Beam Finishes and Color Options
Glulam is an eco-friendly building material with attractive aesthetic qualities that is both strong and resilient, capable of supporting long spans between support beams. Furthermore, its ecological-friendliness aligns perfectly with today’s trend toward green construction.
To preserve the integrity of a glued laminated timber (glulam) member, it is critical that notching or drilling occurs only as directed by the design engineer. Small penetrations should be filled in using wood putty.
Appearance Grades
No matter the design project at hand – vaulted ceiling or eye-catching arches in an entryway – custom structural glulam beams offer exceptional beauty and versatility. Engineered for performance, these wood beams come with clear finishes or custom stain colors to match any architectural aesthetic, providing builders with stunning open concept interiors that will remain inspirational for years to come.
Framing, Industrial, Architectural and Premium grades of glulam have four standard appearance grades to distinguish them: Framing, Industrial, Architectural and Premium. Each classification refers to a level of manufacturing characteristics visible on its surface that do not impact strength.
Due to wood’s unique properties, no two pieces of lumber are ever alike, defining each glulam member by its grain pattern and grain variations. As its most distinctive trait, glulam beams feature depth and dimension in every beam – an attribute which also makes glulam an excellent material choice for curvilinear structures as precise radii, profiles or tapered shapes can be manufactured quickly.
Although appearance grade requirements of glulam members can be lofty, certain standards must be met in order to satisfy them. In order to meet them successfully, members must be free of voids and splice holes as well as having smooth faces for finishing purposes.
At this appearance grade, splice holes and voids measuring over 3/4″ will be filled using wood-tone filler** (putty). Loose knots on exposed laminations that have wide faces will also be filled. Low laminations and wane will not generally require filling as their bottom edges will be eased instead.
American Laminators has pioneered an innovative solution for creating glulam wood flooring: using clear glue which virtually eliminates dark glue lines on its surfaces, while still offering durability comparable to other adhesives. This innovation provides for a more natural and beautiful appearance while maintaining strength levels comparable to conventional adhesives.
Smooth
Custom structural glulam beams add depth, warmth and dimension to ceilings with their distinctive architectural artistry and engineering excellence. Custom-crafted glulam can feature clear finishes or stain colors tailored specifically for any interior design scheme – perfect for creating depth in modern interiors or rustic farmhouse settings alike.
Comparing glulam (laminated veneer lumber) to other engineered wood products, its primary difference lies in its composition: dimension lumber from softwood species such as Douglas Fir or Larch is used to construct layers which are then adhered together using adhesives, creating an extremely versatile product which can meet project-specific specifications.
Appearance grades of glulam reflect various manufacturing and natural growth characteristics visible on its surfaces. While these classifications do not influence structural performance directly, they can serve as an invaluable way of narrowing down potential products that match your design requirements and visual expectations.
Although glulam can be utilized in almost all construction applications, its primary application lies with long-span roofs and floor framing projects where deflection control is vital. Therefore, before finalizing selection of a specific glulam type for any given project it is crucial to carefully assess structural and load requirements before selecting one type over another.
Many glulam beams feature an internal camber or curve along their length to counteract timber deflection. These members should generally be installed with the wide face facing upward to minimize deflection in service and spread load evenly over its width.
Glulam offers unmatched design flexibility; unlike sawn wood, its material properties allow milling to precise custom radii, profiles, and tapered shapes for unrivaled design possibilities. This makes possible organic architectural forms with curves such as cathedral-style roofs or organic forms impossible with other materials; plus its production process has a significantly lower carbon footprint compared to concrete or steel production processes contributing towards green building certifications like LEED.
Rough
Structural Glue Laminated Timber (glulam) is engineered and manufactured with specific structural properties in mind. Although these may not match up perfectly with visual expectations, there are specific procedures and specifications available that can alter its appearance to better align with aesthetic expectations. Glulam typically comes in various appearance classes such as industrial, framing, or architectural, each providing similar structural properties for given strength grades.
Architectural and premium grades of wood are designed for exposed applications, such as coffered ceilings or dramatic arches, where each species provides distinctive color tones and grain patterns that add warmth and dimension to any space.
Glulam is an ideal material for creating arched and curved structures, as its flexible properties enable precise custom radii and profiles without compromising strength. As such, glulam stands as an exemplary combination of engineering excellence and architectural artistry, often seen in cathedral-inspired vaulted ceilings or organic design features.
To optimize bending performance, glulam bending members are typically cambered. The amount of camber will vary depending on lumber species and stress combination used during beam layup; for instance, 24F-V4 beam layup with visually graded Douglas fir results in approximately 1.25 times its allowable design stress of cambering members.
All glulam structures must be designed by a licensed engineer and adhere to relevant building codes. While glulam is often chosen as the material for residential and commercial projects, architects and designers often incorporate it in bridges, stadiums, arenas and other projects which require long spans and structural strength.
Wood bending members can be designed to reduce deflection through careful consideration of camber; glulam is particularly suitable for this due to its ability to be cambered. The degree of camber is determined by design team based on desired load-bearing capacity and aesthetics of structure.
Textured
Structural glulam is one of the original engineered wood products and has been utilized in construction projects since its debut in the early 1900s. Produced by stacking and gluing multiple layers of dimension lumber together using structural adhesives, glulam beams come in all lengths and widths depending on project requirements; softwood species like Douglas Fir and Larch may be used while Alaskan Yellow Cedar might also be employed for outdoor uses. Like laminated veneer lumber (LVL), structural glulam members can be made strong by increasing tension/compression zones by increasing/reducing amounts and grades of higher grade lumber in tension zones than compression zones within members.
Glulam offers architects more design flexibility than sawn timber by being easily customized into precise custom radii and profiles for greater design flexibility. This allows architects to craft visually arresting architectural forms such as organic ceilings and archways while remaining structurally sound. Clear finishes, custom stains and surface treatments help designers craft beams that align perfectly with their project visions.
Glulam wood products offer both design flexibility and structural performance benefits in North America. Based on load requirements of structures, glulam members may be manufactured to have various appearance classifications (Premium, Architectural or Industrial), depending on how visible they will be within finished buildings. Different appearance classifications indicate natural growth characteristics and manufacturing features which might be visible on its surfaces but do not impact structural performance.
As with most wood bending members, glulam columns feature a slight camber that results from their natural deflection when supporting loads. To minimize its visual impact and maintain structural integrity, roof beams should be cambered up to 1-1/2 times the calculated dead load deflection for optimal visual results.