A home graced with high ceilings creates a breathtakingly lofty atmosphere. This feature is certainly sought after by a great number of buyers. But is it truly practical?
Here we shed some light on the positive and negative aspects of cathedral ceilings. Read on!
Incredible Light
A room with a cathedral ceiling and tall windows will, of course, be bathed in far more natural light than a basement bathroom! If you want a home with a luminous, airy, and happy atmosphere, high ceilings are just the ticket.
Especially since, when the sun goes down, the extra ceiling height will diffuse the light generated by bulbs and other light sources over a larger surface area. No more dark, confined spaces!
A Lavish Decor Scheme (or Not)
If you want to hang the massive 19th-century paintings you’ve inherited from your grandfather in your home, high ceilings are exactly what you need. In fact, with walls over 10 feet in height, you can dare to go big with oversized mirrors, imposing artworks and ever-growing houseplants.
In other words, cathedral ceilings offer almost unlimited decorating and design opportunities. Satisfy your heart’s desire and, for example, buy that outrageously tall Christmas tree—like the ones displayed in department stores—or build Victorian bookshelves—the kind that require a ladder to reach the top volumes.
However, if home decor is not your thing and you have don’t have furnishings and accessories with which to adorn all those vast expanses of walls, opt for standard-sized ceilings. Indeed, nothing makes a home feel cold and lifeless like wide empty surfaces.
Cleaning and Maintenance
When one lives in a house with high ceilings, every ordinary chore that would usually take only a few minutes to complete—changing a lightbulb, dusting cobwebs, or cleaning the windows—suddenly turns into a day-long project.
For even the smallest issue, you will have to call on a professional service or use a ladder! Not to mention that high ceilings also mean a difficult to reach roof peak. If you prefer to live in a residence requiring minimal upkeep, cathedral ceilings may not be the right choice for you. Although, hiring a housekeeping and maintenance company to take care of all this for you is easy enough.
The Acoustics: A Non-Negligible Benefit
If you play a musical instrument, you may be pleasantly surprised by how well the sound travels when you install a piano (or organ) in a room with a cathedral ceiling. Just like in a church, the acoustics of high ceiling spaces are distinctly beautiful.
A Hefty Power Bill
The higher the ceiling, the greater the volume of air that needs to be heated or cooled! In fact, as a room’s square footage increases so will the time required to heat it. The same principle applies to a room’s height. Unless it only occupies a small surface area, expect big energy bills compared to what you would pay with a standard ceiling height.
Optimal Use of Space
Does a high ceiling automatically make for a more spacious home? It depends! A very high ceiling is just as likely to cut into your residence’s precious second storey (eating up potential bedroom square footage) as to offer the possibility of constructing vertical storage. Consider adding a mezzanine where you can set up a reading nook, home office or child’s bedroom! You know best what will suit your needs, desires, and projects to optimize the space created by this cathedral ceiling.
Because they bring an air of majesty and prestige to a residence, high ceilings are prized by home buyers. The trick is understanding how to best showcase this feature and not becoming discouraged when it comes to maintenance.