Steel Support Beams Vs Wood

Steel needs fabricator formed holes for bolts which means careful architectural pre planning.
Steel support beams vs wood. We are pushing back 15 feet to expand current kitchen and dining room and are putting in a 2nd floor addition directly above. It s approximately 27 from wall to wall. Beyond the cost savings the steel beams themselves can be narrower for the same reason allowing for more space in the room. Since steel is stronger you can use less of it to achieve the same level of support as wood.
Our steel framing is warranted for the life of your composite decking. Steel and wood will both last a long time though they each have different vulnerabilities. Overall steel beams make more sense in today s home building industry for the lack of worry with rot intrusive home insects and pests and less number of structural home beams and posts compared to wood framing. Longer allowable spans with steel generally translate into less vertical posts and footings.
Stairs work out better with steel as well. These factors all illustrate that a steel home beam is a cost effective and overall smarter choice than wood beams. I m getting ready to build a large room addition that needs a beam to support the floor joists. An 8 inch tall light gauge steel joist can typically cantilever 4 feet beyond its last support beam.
These special handling procedures definitely add to the cost of the building.