As an architect or home designer, clients may ask you to come up with something special and unique for them, and a good place to start is with ceiling beams. Whether you're involved in the original building process or doing a remodel, use these beams to your architectural advantage.

If you're designing plans for a remodel, exposing existing beams or adding decorative beams can drastically transform a room. As a new home builder, using beams as an aesthetic feature can fit anyone's budget, so you're able to give all your clients what they want. From one large ceiling beam to a complex octagonal system of wood beams, you can use these items to dress up your designs. To get started:

1. Figure out what you're working with. If you're not designing new construction, you'll have to locate blueprints to find out what the home already has to offer in the way of hidden structural beams.

2. Pick a style: from wood beams to steel beams, there's something available to fit your client's desires.

3. Look for eco-friendly options, like polyurethane decorative beams. This cuts down on forests being destroyed for the sake of aesthetics.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Use construction beams to your advantage

I-beam construction is one of the most commonly used methods in building today. These beams, usually made from steel, are very strong and can support more weight than wood or concrete alone. Depending on the style the client is going for, a construction beam can be left exposed and even painted for aesthetic purposes. These beams add a modern twist to loft homes in particular.

I recommend: Choose from I-beams as well as other types of structured steel at MSK Enterprises. Saginaw Pipe Co. has steel beams ranging from three inch junior beams to 40 inch wide flanges.

Feel the charm and antiquity of wood beams

A wood ceiling beam can add a rustic look to a client's home. You can leave one of the major structural beams exposed or you can use smaller beams to create an interlocking decorative network on a client's ceiling.

I recommend: Enjoy the beauty of antique rough-sawn beams from Elmwood Reclaimed Timber. Give your clients a wide selection of choices at AIC Millworks, which carries only unfinished box beams for architectural use.

Go green: save trees by using faux wood beams

Faux wood beams are made from polyurethane foam and are actually better products than real wood beams. Wood has the potential to split and crack and can be very costly to repair. Installation of faux wood is much simpler just for the fact that these beams are lightweight; shipping costs are also lower because of the weight. In addition, electric wiring can be run through the beams to allow for an array of different lighting options.

I recommend: Customize your client's home by selecting from among the PCF Group's beam styles, wood grains and finishes. They also offer vega beams and vega logs. Buy some samples from Arizona Faux Beams to entice your clients into going with this eco-friendly option.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Fiberglass beams are lightweight and can be painted to suit your client's taste. These can be installed on virtually any type of existing ceiling without reinforcing the structure.