Articles: What people are writing about wood box beams!

Beam Me Up!
Add architectural flair to your home with wood box beams

by Heidi Doerfert

If you’ve ever looked up at a ceiling and said, ‘Oooh!’ chances are it had wood box beams.  There is something utterly grand about them.  With many homeowners choosing to stay put in this economic climate, adding custom touches to your house can make it feel new and luxurious.

Steve Jackel of Jackel Enterprises, Inc. in Watsonville says his company specializes in creating faux wood box beams to enhance any décor.  “Faux timber has many advantages over real wood.  It weighs much less, decreases labor time and can be fabricated into any length or size you need.  Once installed, you can’t tell the difference between faux and the real thing,” he explains.

You may think that wood beams only lend themselves to a rustic look but that’s not the case.  Jackel’s Box Beams can add drama to any space, including contemporary.  “You can use a beam with a non-textured finish and a vertical grain in a light wood such as fir.  It gives a clean, linear look,” says Steve.

From a contractor standpoint, box beams are a practical and beautiful design application for a client.  The hollow wood frames can beinstalled after walls are finished; can hide unsightly steel members; and provide a channel for electrical wiring, lighting and plumbing. New construction often has residential fire sprinklers in the ceiling, which box beams can conceal.  “Contractors utilize our beams to achieve design goals for their homeowners.  It’s a quick install, has high impact and the client loves that their house isn’t torn apart!” says Steve.

The style options are extensive.  If you crave an Old World feeling Steve recommends a beam with a textured finish in a darker stain like Tudor Brown.  You can pattern the beams to showcase high ceilings or cover them completely to bring incredible warmth to a space.  A non-textured beam with straight lines dressed with molding would lend itself to a more classic look.  “Coffered ceilings, which are beams arranged in a grid pattern, are a stunning effect in a traditional home, “ Steve notes.  He encourages clients to visit his 20,000 square foot warehouse and mill so they can custom treat beams to your specifications. Jackel Box Beams proudly serves the Bay Area and ships its products all over California and beyond.

“If you desire to add character and depth to a room and make a big statement, but don’t want the stress of messy construction, our affordable and high quality faux box beams are the answer,” says Steve.

To find out how you can add the dramatic beauty of Box Beams to your space, call Jackel Enterprises, Inc. at  (800) 711-WOOD (9663), visit their Showroom at 347 Locust Street, Watsonville or visit the Website at www.jackelenterprises.com

Today's Home Magazine
March 18, 2008

Design is often about creative solutions for practical concerns. Using stylish solutions that camouflage from sight necessary structural members or create channels for unsightly wiring or plumbing while enhancing a room’s look is simply good design.

Developed specifically for such tasks, Jackel’s Box Beams offer custom options that transform these design challenges into appealing architectural elements. Tailor-made for interior spaces, Box Beams have hollow-wood frames that encase existing beams, adding an architectural element that readily disguises functional problems.

Box Beams can also be used solely as a design element or as a way to hide wiring, speakers, or plumbing. “We had a few projects where they hid fire sprinklers,” notes Steve Jackel, president and founder of Jackel Enterprises in Watsonville. Once in place, Jackel’s Box Beams give the appearance of solid timbers.

Exclusive to Jackel, Box Beams are made of kiln-dried knotty Douglas fir primarily sourced from the Pacific Northwest, and they are FSC certified, adds Steve. Jackel’s original FSC certification occurred in 1995 due to management’s strong belief in forest stewardship and renewal.

The beams are available in a variety of textures and stains to complement and create an aesthetic element in any style of home. The standard styles include those that blend with Tudor, Mission, and Mediterranean interiors. The drawknife surface texture particularly helps to create a Tudor feel or a natural Mediterranean villa, while a clean, vertical-grain wood gives a contemporary look. Clients can also choose paint-grade options to match more classic interiors.

Regardless of which style is selected, Jackel’s Box Beams are distinctive in how they address functionality and design alike. They enhance a well-appointed interior by blending architectural and design elements, and creating a space that blends aesthetic appeal with functional solutions.

To learn more about Box Beams and Jackel Enterprises, call (800) 711-WOOD (9663) or visit one of the company’s Web sites at www.woodboxbeams.com or www.jackelenterprises.com.

_________________________________________________

Antique Appeal
By Gabrielle Saveri

If you’re stepping into the Green home building or remodeling arena, you’ll probably need to know about FSC-certified lumber and Green products. One local expert is Jackel Enterprises, Inc., a specialty lumberyard in Watsonville that has been providing high-quality lumber materials and milling services to craftsmen, builders, and homeowners for over 17 years.

The company—which sells high-grade softwoods from California and the northwest, and exotic woods from all over the world—was recently certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) for the second time and acknowledged by the SmartWood Program of the Rainforest Alliance as a chain-of-custody company, making Jackel Enterprises one of the most environmentally friendly lumber companies in California.

Jackel Enterprises is well-known for its Box Beams—faux timber beams manufactured primarily with Douglas fir or other wood species. “The Box Beam is a fabricated three-sided mill product that’s meant to clad an ugly steel member or to visually enhance a room’s particular style,” says company president Steve Jackel. “It’s especially great for a Spanish- or Mediterranean-style home where the work simulates antique timbers.”

In addition to covering up unsightly steel members or an exposed structural timber, the unique Box Beams also provide a channel for lighting, wiring, and sprinklers, and they’re available in a wide selection of textures and finishes. “Each Box Beam is custom-made to your specifications, so you can get them the exact size you want,” explains Steve, noting that the Box Beams can be made up to 50 feet long, and 20 x 30 inches wide. “Plus the beams are relatively easy to install.” In 2008, Jackel Enterprises will be offering lumber in high-grade cedar from a special certified resource on Vancouver Island. The company deals primarily with contractors, but homeowners are also welcome shoppers, as are architects and designers. All Box Beams are made to order and take two to six weeks for production.

The best part about Box Beams, however, is that they’re eco friendly. Because they’re a three-sided box rather than a solid beam, they use less wood to achieve the desired effect. Soon wood used for the Box Beams will be FSC certified, meaning there is a chain of accountability that allows the consumer to trace the wood all of the way back to the sustainable forest from which it came.

Jackel Enterprises first got into the box beam business over five years ago when Steve was doing solid timberwork using recycled wood for various projects. A client came in one day with a problem covering up a steel beam and asked what could be done. Jackel’s millshop brainstormed and came up with the Box Beam. Then another client came in asking for the same thing but with a faux hand-hewn finish on it. “We retrofitted his whole house, and soon discovered there was a market for this,” recalls Steve.

For Steve, who began his woodworking career making musical instruments, the focus has always been on interesting and high-quality materials. “While the model has changed considerably since I first started, I have always believed sustainability is something that should be successful in lasting for generations. By using good wood products, you can achieve that level of sustainability.”

Steve truly appreciates nature and says it’s the obligation of the craftsman to transform each tree into an object that’s going to be a special part of someone’s life. “We’re different from other lumber companies,” he says. “The Japanese temple builders had the theory—take a thousand-year-old tree, cut it down, build a temple that will last a thousand years, and plant a new tree. That’s sustainability. That’s the energy we want to put into our work.”

To learn more about Box Beams and Jackel Enterprises, call (800) 711-WOOD (9663) or visit one of the company’s Web sites at www.woodboxbeams.com or www.jackelenterprises.com.