Facing off Steel Beams

Ayla

We have a number of internal horizontal & vertical steel RSJs that we want to face off with timber to create the appearance that they're log beams.

A few different ideas for doing this are floating around, but the latest I've been wondering about is using old railway sleepers, cut down to 1" timbers? Would anyone be able to confirm if that would work...in other words, would the sleeper be well enough seasoned so the cut timber wouldn't warp, and how much splitting would be in a standard Grade A sleeper (so that cutting it to timbers would make it useless)?

The whole point is to create a rustic, log cabin type appearance, so we don't really want a polished look, but would sleepers work? We'll need timbers ranging in width from 6-11," and need around 400 feet of length (multiple sides per beam), so any suggestions would be welcome.

Ayla

We have a number of internal horizontal & vertical steel RSJs that we want to face off with timber to create the appearance that they're log beams.

A few different ideas for doing this are floating around, but the latest I've been wondering about is using old railway sleepers, cut down to 1" timbers? Would anyone be able to confirm if that would work...in other words, would the sleeper be well enough seasoned so the cut timber wouldn't warp, and how much splitting would be in a standard Grade A sleeper (so that cutting it to timbers would make it useless)?

The whole point is to create a rustic, log cabin type appearance, so we don't really want a polished look, but would sleepers work? We'll need timbers ranging in width from 6-11," and need around 400 hundred feet of length (multiple sides per beam), so any suggestions would be welcome.

North West

Hi AYLA
Cresote on railway sleepers can be very dangerous and omit toxins. They can be poisonous and harmful see tas from medical reports, Use some other timber like pitch Pine, oregan pine, redwood etc
creosote
[krē′əsōt]
a flammable oily liquid with a smoky odor that is used primarily as a wood preservative. It can cause a wide variety of health problems, ranging from cancer and corneal damage to convulsions, dermatitis, and vertigo. Persons who work with treated wood are usually at the greatest risk of exposure. See also phenol poisoning.

Mosby's Medical Dictionary, 8th edition. © 2009, Elsevier.
NW

galwaydude18

Why not use rough sawn pine that is sanded to take the real roughness off but still be rough stained with a dark stain?

I can do this for you if you would like?

Ayla

North West wrote: »

Hi AYLA
Cresote on railway sleepers can be very dangerous and omit toxins. They can be poisonous and harmful see tas from medical reports, Use some other timber like pitch Pine, oregan pine, redwood etc

Thanks for that - I agree, cresote is to be avoided at all costs - the sleepers I've seen on sale aren't treated w/ cresote, which is why I was considering it.

recipio

Why would you go to the trouble of sawing railway sleepers down to the required depth. ?They would emit a constant reek of creosote although you can buy non treated beams in pine and oak. Have you a saw big enough for this ?
Why not settle on a timber you like the look of and buy the required thickness.
Pitch pine or southern yellow pine sound ok but personally I'd try for green oak which will mellow and mature over time.Splits and checking are inevietable and all part of the character of the wood.

cheers.

Ayla

recipio wrote: »

Why would you go to the trouble of sawing railway sleepers down to the required depth. ?They would emit a constant reek of creosote although you can buy non treated beams in pine and oak. Have you a saw big enough for this ?

As mentioned above we would not have any timbers that have been treated in creosote. Any cutting down to thickness could be done by a local timber yard.

Why not settle on a timber you like the look of and buy the required thickness.

Any timbers we've found through the lumber yards/merchants don't go to the width that we need (up to 11") or are prohibitively expensive for the quantity we'd need. That's why we've been looking into alternatives.

Pitch pine or southern yellow pine sound ok but personally I'd try for green oak which will mellow and mature over time.Splits and checking are inevietable and all part of the character of the wood.

Nope, won't do a green timber of any sort - we're alright with cosmetic splitting, etc, but warping is something we absolutely can't have, and over the timber lengths we're talking about all green wood will warp.

We've gone to some reclaimed architectural lots and may yet get timbers from them, but still just keeping our options open. Thanks everyone.

galwayrush

The beams are usually lined with some plaster board first to help protect structural elements in case of a fire.
Yes, 1 " pieces could be used, best with a mitred lock corner joint which gives a very strong joint which is almost invisible thus creating what looks like one solid piece of wood. After that, it's down to finishing effects, eg. roughing the wood with a strong wire brush, hacking random notches from the corners , using a blowtorch to give a charred effect...

kadman

I would be extremely surprised if you could find any timber yard that would rip, a piece of timber , that started life as a railway sleeper. Its too risky for their machinery, if they hit something buried deep within it. If its unused, and untreated, they wouldn,t have a problem with it.

kadman

zebrano.96

no to sleepers for previous reasons.
i have done a few of these i find solid faced box section the best way to cover beams .once u have delt with fire regs . i usually make them up from selectled oak to get appearance i want ,generally thinner sections of oak are less prone to large cracks, allthough i have made them from 1" up to 13.5" three people are needed to lift into position for horizontal beams they are heavy.usually rest them on oak corbels.saw one being held by a carved human figure once looked cool:cool: a lot of the joints are high up and hidden by distressing and knotching edges with drawknife and type of finish used.
made two lightweight hollow oak ceiling beams last year with carved lettering in beams and lights shining down from them.if they were solid the roof would not take the weight. did a beautiful kitchen in same house.

you can see the beams at www.johwoodcraft.com

ash or beech would be cheaper, pine cheaper again:)

zebrano.96

no to sleepers for previous reasons.
i have done a few of these i find solid faced box section the best way to cover beams .once u have delt with fire regs . i usually make them up from selectled oak to get appearance i want ,generally thinner sections of oak are less prone to large cracks, allthough i have made them from 1" up to 13.5" three people are needed to lift into position for horizontal beams they are heavy.usually rest them on oak corbels.saw one being held by a carved human figure once looked cool:cool: a lot of the joints are high up and hidden by distressing and knotching edges with drawknife and type of finish used.
made two lightweight hollow oak ceiling beams last year with carved lettering in beams and lights shining down from them.if they were solid the roof would not take the weight. did a beautiful kitchen in same house.

you can see the beams at www.johwoodcraft.com

ash or beech would be cheaper, pine cheaper again:)

1chippy

email me a cutting list if you want. i have a good quatity of relaimed yellow and pitch pine beams with all the dints and holes they should have.