A Summer Beam has also been defined as ‘a major and usually massive horizontal timber which spans the girts or plate’. It is the epitome of ‘load-bearing’ and is derived from the word ‘sommier’, which is French for “beast of burden”.

A bressummer, breastsummer, summer beam (somier, sommier, sommer, somer, cross-somer, summer, summier, [1] summer-tree, [2] or dorman, dormant tree) is a load-bearing beam in a timber-framed building.

SUMMER BEAM. Sometimes referred to as a center girt, this beam is typically used to span large open areas and support the weight of other beams, such as joists at the center of a floor. Because it is required to bear considerable weight, it is often the single largest wood component in a timber-frame structure. TIE BEAM.

A summer beam is a load-bearing beam in a timber-framed building that acts as a principal framing member supporting the floor joists and the floor itself. With a room as long as the New Room, summer beams are necessary to break the span of the floor joists and support the load.

Dec 13, 2021 · In barn terms, a Summer Beam is a heavy horizontal timber in the stables holding up the sleepers (joists) and the floor boards where the threshing floor and mow are.

What is a summer beam? Sometimes referred to as a center girt, it spans large open areas and supports the weight of other beams. A summer beam is often the single largest wood component in a timber structure and plays an integral part in the home's structural integrity.

Large horizontal beam that supports beams of a lesser size; a summer beam. 2. Sleeper (q.v.). DORMER Aperture or window of variable shape rising upright from the surface of a roof and having its own roof. According to its extent and form, a dormer may be termed eyebrow, doghouse, roundhead, shed or running.

Apr 8, 2024 · Bressummer refers to a specific type of support beam in construction, while a beam is a general structural element used to bear loads. A bressummer is a specialized beam in architecture and construction, specifically designed to support a significant load, often found above a window or door or at the top of a wall.

A massive horizontal beam in the ceiling of an early timber-framed house; usually joined at their ends to girts and supporting the floor above, or acting as a binding beam running in a transverse direction, connecting one post to another.

summer beam – Major timber that spans between girts or plates. – T – tenon (or tennon) – A projection cut on a piece of wood and inserted into a mortise; a shaped, protruding end of a timber inserted into a mortise.