Owned by Jerry and Jarmila Walek, TimberBuild makes the kind of hearty architectural millwork rarely seen since that found in old builder’s catalogs. The list of products is enormous—from structural and decorative arches and trusses to brackets, rafter tails, corbels, knee braces, and screen doors, most of it in Western red cedar.
Born in the Czech Republic, Walek emigrated to the U.S. about 25 years ago. He started out in construction, ultimately working for large residential real-estate developers. Realizing the demand for exterior and interior trim outstripped what was being marketed, he launched a business to supply contractors directly.
Growth has been prolific, with the company doubling in size over 10 years. The driving force is TimberBuild’s customer base, which supplied most of the designs in the ever-growing online catalog. Many came as CAD or architectural drawings from developers, architects, and contractors; others arrived on notepaper from homeowners seeking to replicate missing corbels or brackets. The company is unique in offering more than 60 rafter profiles. Many components are in Arts & Crafts mode.
TimberBuild’s massive yet graceful gable trusses are shaped from as few pieces of solid cedar as possible, then glued and pinned. A truss may be supportive or essentially decorative, depending on its construction, fasteners, and attachment to the house. Given the size of some components—they’ve produced trusses more than 30' long—it’s good to know that TimberBuild delivers finished goods anywhere in the country. “If it’s cut from timber, we will make it,” Jerry Walek promises.
TimberBuild
Lilburn, Georgia
(800) 915-5110
timberbuild.com
Mary Ellen Polson is a creative content editor and technical writer with over 20 years experience producing heavily illustrated know how and service journalism articles, full-length books, product copy, tips, Q&As, etc., on home renovation, design, and outdoor spaces.
