All About Vaulted Ceilings

Fratantoni Design • October 14, 2020

This article will discuss the benefits and styles of vaulted ceilings in residential homes.

All About Vaulted Ceilings

Whether you’re remolding or building a new home having a vaulted ceiling may be a feature you want to consider. Many of the custom homes we have designed for our clients have included unique ceiling designs that bring more flair to the space. Vaulted ceilings have been around for centuries not only for style but function. If you’re looking to include a vaulted ceiling in your home this article will discuss the different styles and benefits of including a vaulted ceiling in your home.

All About Ceilings That Are Vaulted

What are the different types of vaulted ceilings?

Barrel Vault – A Barrel vault is a curved half-pipe shape that connects the two walls. This is a simple design feature that you can use to open up space by bringing in height into space. Barrel ceilings are a common design for hallways.

Cathedral Vault– A Cathedral vault is the most common where the ceiling follows the sloping sides of the roof. The cathedral ceiling allows more room on the adjacent walls for large windows that bring natural lighting.

Cathedral vaulted ceiling with large table

Groin Vault– The Groin Vault consists of two perpendicular barrel vaults that meet in the middle to create a center point. This type of ceiling is also most common in hallways

Why should you consider having vaulted ceilings?

Having vaulted ceilings in your home can be controversial for some homeowners. Some people may argue that high ceilings lead to a high air conditioning bill. However, if you love the style of a vaulted ceiling there are benefits to having them in your home. This way your home can benefit from having vaulted ceilings.

Higher ceilings create more wall space for windows that let in natural light. Natural light and high ceilings also mean you will be using less artificial lighting. Another benefit of this is the natural lighting can be used to heat and cool your space during the day. This is a great feature for homes in more temperate climates. The reason is during the day the natural light can help moderately warm up your space during the day. At night the high air that escapes to the ceiling will have cooled and be brought down to cool your space. This is a sustainability technique that has been used in architecture for centuries before air conditioning existed.

We suggest you speak with your architect about the best space in your house to utilize a vaulted ceiling that will benefit from the natural environment to heat and cool the space. If you’re looking to start a custom home project, feel free to contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.

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