Exposed Beam vs Exposed Joist Ceilings

Stately, attractive, and expansive: an open ceiling beam look is one that many owners of conventional, flat ceilings would love to have. Exposed beam ceilings conjure up images of past ages. Farmhouse, country, and rustic-styled kitchens tend to have open ceilings. Exposed joists are very similar.

Ceilings in conventional homes have similar structural members: joists. To create an exposed beam look, you can remove the ceiling drywall and expose the joists. Learn about beams and joists, what the project would look like, and understand the pros and cons of removing ceiling drywall to expose joists.

What Beams and Joists Are

Beams

Traditional building techniques used beams for ceilings and floors, which relied on sheer size for strength. Span lengths could always be increased by increasing the width and height of the beam. At a time when old-growth forests were prevalent, supplying massive beams for construction was not a problem.

Exposed Beams

Exposed beams in residential buildings were not standard. When possible, post-and-beam ceilings were closed to help hide the roughly hewn beams and the floorboards supported by the beams. Ceilings allowed owners to heat homes far more efficiently by shrinking the volume of the home.

Joists

Like beams, joists are structural members that hold up floors and roofs. Unlike beams, joists rely on multiplicity, height, and improved wood quality for their strength.

Joists are spaced every 16 inches, far closer to each other than beams. Joists can be tall, too: up to 12 inches and sometimes more. More importantly, improved manufacturing techniques allow joists to be lean and compact while safely carrying weight.

Exposed Joists

Exposed joists are ceiling structural members made visible by removing the ceiling drywall or plaster. Sometimes, ceiling drywall is removed, and the ceiling joists are substituted with other structural elements to create a completely open ceiling. Exposed joists are different: the joists stay in place to duplicate the look of beams.

Why Exposed Beams and Joists Look Different

The post-and-beam, or post-and-lintel, construction style does not apply to most modern homes. After removing the ceiling drywall, the exposed joists will not look the same as the beams.

Joists and Beams Have Different Dimensions

A joist is sized differently from a beam. You may find two-by-ten or two-by-twelve inches joists, but not the thick, square six-by-six or greater dimensions one might expect with the beam style.

The visual difference is highlighted even more when the joists are I-beam joists: a vertical section of pressed chipboard (OSB) or plywood with horizontal pieces of laminated veneer lumber (LVL) or solid wood at the top and bottom. These types of joists are not meant to be exposed.

Joists Are Spaced Closer Than Beams

Because they are smaller and weaker on a one-for-one basis, joists are spaced more frequently than beams. Joists may be spaced up to 16 inches apart from each other. It's a look that doesn't immediately register to the eye as beams since beams are thicker and farther apart.

Joist Ceilings Have Wires and Vents

Closed ceilings have wires and ducts snaking through holes drilled through the joists or running between the joists. If a joist-based ceiling is opened to create the exposed beam look, all of these wires and ducts are exposed, too.

Exposing Joists Pros and Cons

2 Alternatives to Exposed Joists

Achieving an exposed beam style by removing ceiling drywall is usually not worthwhile. The first project is to remove the drywall. The second project is to clear out and clean up the attic. Several alternatives give you a similar look for substantially less effort: DIY faux beams or polyurethane faux beams.

DIY Faux Beams

For a timber-beam look in your house without using real beams, build your own faux beams out of clear, light pine. The beams are easy to make, simple to attach to the existing ceiling, and can even be disassembled with little effort.

Faux beams are essentially three-sided boxes attached to cleats attached to the ceiling. Screws driven in from the side attach the faux beams to the cleats.

Polyurethane Faux Beams

For a pricier but easier-to-install alternative, purchase faux beams made of high-density polyurethane. The beams look remarkably like the real thing. Since beams are up on the ceiling and cannot be examined close-up, they usually will pass for the real thing.

Polyurethane faux beams are lightweight and easy to install. The downside is that they tend to be extremely expensive.