Questions, answered.

The work

What does The Beam Shop actually make?

Our core craft is custom box beams, built from real timber to your drawings. Around them we handle five more: doors and hardware, architectural millwork, flooring and treads, ceilings and cladding, and specialty woodwork such as mantels, floating shelves, and corbels. The point is one source and one finish decision for all the wood in a project.

What is a box beam?

A skin of real timber, three quarters of an inch thick, wrapped around a hollow core, its corners joined with a miter-lock joint so the grain carries around the edge and the corner seam disappears. It comes as a full wrap, three-sided, or two-sided, depending on what the drawing needs. The Journal has a full explainer: The box beam, explained.

Is a box beam the same as a beam wrap?

Mostly, yes. Beam wrap is the builder’s word for the same construction: real timber wrapped around a structural member or a hollow core. Ours are built with the miter-lock joint system, so the wrap reads as one solid piece of timber.

Are your beams structural?

Our beams are architectural: they wrap and conceal structure rather than replace it. The hollow core can swallow steel, blocking, and wiring, and we regularly build around the structure your engineer specifies.

Do you build post and beam?

Not as framing. Post and beam is a structural system where the timbers hold the building up; our box beams are architectural, wrapping or standing in for structure to give a room the look of exposed timber without the weight or the engineering. If you want the post and beam look in a conventionally framed house, or in a remodel where the structure already exists, that is exactly what we build.

What species do you build in?

Cedar, white oak, Douglas fir, poplar, ash, and white pine, chosen board by board for the job. White oak alone runs from plain and quarter sawn to thermally modified and hand hewn, and poplar comes two ways: green for paint-grade work, white when it will be stained. Cedar is the species we stain; the rest ship unstained. More in the Journal: Where the wood comes from.

Do you sell doors, hardware, and flooring directly?

We source doors through our door partners and hardware through the lines we carry, including Emtek and Deltana, then deliver them as coordinated packages with finishes matched to the rest of the order. You get one specification and one delivery instead of three vendors.

Ordering and process

How do I get a price?

Send whatever you have: a drawing set, a sketch, a photo of the look you are after. We quote against your set and return each beam specified side by side, A to D, for your approval. There is no catalog and no price list, because everything is built to the project.

What if I do not have drawings yet?

A sketch, a dimension, or a phone call is enough to start. Bringing us in early usually saves a redesign later, especially where beams meet ceilings and floors.

How long does an order take?

It depends on the scope, so we would rather give you a real date than a range on a website. A schedule comes back with every quote, and delivery is coordinated with the rest of your project.

Can you match an existing finish?

For cedar, choose from our eight standard finishes. For anything beyond them, or any other species, the beam ships unstained and your finisher sets the color on site, where the light and the surrounding wood are real. The match stays in the hands of the person who can see it.

Do you deliver and install?

We don’t install. Everything arrives labeled face by face and ready for your builder’s crew, with concealed-cleat details in the spec, and we schedule delivery with your site.

Trade and visits

Do you work with designers, architects, and builders?

They are most of our work. Trade clients get drawing-set pricing, side-by-side beam specs, and one point of contact across all six crafts. Details are on the For Trade page.

Do you work with homeowners?

Yes. Most of our work comes through builders, architects, and designers, but homeowners are welcome to start with us directly. Bring a sketch, a photo of the look you are after, or your drawings, and we will help you work out what the room needs. If you already have a builder, we are glad to work alongside them. Start on our Start a Project page.

Can I see the work in person?

Yes. Our Brevard showroom at 1540 Greenville Hwy has full-size beams, mantels, and doors to see in person, not chips. We’re open Monday to Thursday 8 to 4 and Friday 8 to noon; call or send a note to book a visit.

Where do you work?

We are based in Brevard, and the day-to-day work runs from Asheville down through Lake Toxaway and Sapphire to Highlands, Cashiers, and the rest of the Cashiers-Highlands Plateau, and over to Greenville. We’re about 25 minutes from Lake Toxaway. Projects have taken us to Charlotte, Georgia, and Florida, and solid beam material up to 33 feet long rides our own truck. If yours is farther afield, ask.