How to Plan a Structural Beam Installation for Your Renovation

A structural beam installation is not a weekend project. I know YouTube makes it look like you can do this with a friend and a rental jack. You can't. Not if you want your ceiling to stay where it is.

Here's how you actually plan one of these, from someone who's done over 12,000 of them.

Start with the Engineering — Before Anything Else

The beam has to be sized for the specific span, load, and conditions of YOUR house. Not a generic table. Not what your neighbor used. YOUR house. That means an engineer needs to look at it — span distance, tributary load area, what's above it (another floor? roof?), what type of foundation you're on.

We have an in-house Professional Engineer on staff. This is not something we outsource and hope for the best. Our PE calculates the beam, stamps the drawings, and submits for permit. That's the professional way to do this.

Beam Type Matters

For most projects, we reach for W12x30 steel — wide flange, 12 inches deep, 30 pounds per linear foot. Serious steel. Handles most residential spans with room to spare. For shorter spans or when you want that wood look, LVL (laminated veneer lumber) is the move. Engineered lumber, multiple plies glued under pressure, very predictable load characteristics.

Occasionally you'll see glulam — glued laminated timber — especially in spaces where the beam is exposed and you want something that looks beautiful. All three options work. Which one is right depends on your span, your load, and your aesthetic goals.

The Permit Process

Structural beam installation requires a permit. Full stop. I know some people try to skip this. They think it saves money or time. It doesn't — when it comes time to sell, an unpermitted structural change is a nightmare. Inspectors catch it. Buyers back out. Our in-house PE produces the stamped engineering drawings required for permit applications. It's built into our process.

In DFW, Houston, and Austin we know the local building departments. We know what they want to see on the drawings. We're not figuring this out for the first time on your job.

Temporary Support: Non-Negotiable

Before the old wall comes down, we install temporary support. Walls and posts that carry the load while we do the swap. This step is NOT optional. The load doesn't disappear when you remove the wall — it needs somewhere to go. Temp walls give it a place to go while we install the permanent beam.

Every demo-without-temp-support horror story you've seen on the internet skipped this step. Don't be that story.

The Installation Itself

Beam goes in, posts carry it down to the foundation or existing structure below. Joist hangers connect the ceiling joists to the new beam. Structure is restored. Load path is continuous from roof to slab. Then the inspection is completed and you're done with the structural phase.

Start to finish on a typical residential beam install? One day. We show up in the morning, we're done before dinner.

What Comes Next

Drywall, texture, paint — that's your contractor's domain, or yours. We do the structural work. We leave you a clean, inspected, structurally sound opening. You take it from there.

Ready to plan yours? Get a free estimate or call us: DFW 214.624.5200 | Houston 713.322.3908 | Austin 512.641.9555.