--- title: "Decorative Columns and Column Wraps in Jacksonville, FL" canonical: "https://kleincarpentryjax.com/services/carpentry/decorative-columns/" description: "Decorative columns in Jacksonville, FL: wrap bare structural posts, match historic porch columns, and choose wood, PVC or fiberglass for inside or out." --- # Decorative Interior Columns and Column Wraps in Jacksonville, FL 1. [Home](/) 2. › 3. [Services](/services/) 4. › 5. [Carpentry](/services/carpentry/) 6. › 7. Decorative Interior Columns and Column Wraps in Jacksonville, FL Almost every open-concept house has one: a bare white post standing in the middle of a room, holding up a beam, looking like the builder ran out of budget. Decorative columns in Jacksonville, FL fix that post, and they are one of the more overlooked [interior carpentry projects](/services/carpentry/) available to a homeowner. Nobody local really sells this as a service, so people assume they are stuck with the post they have. You are not. A post doing structural work can be wrapped in finished millwork without touching what it carries. ![Craftsman tapered white columns on stained oak paneled pedestals framing the opening to a dining room](/_astro/craftsman-tapered-white-columns-on-stained-oak-paneled-pedestals.OocxWj2o_Z1WEw63.webp) ## Interior Columns and What They Are Actually Doing Before anything gets built, we sort out which of two situations you have. The first is a structural post carrying load from a beam down to a footing or slab. In a house where a wall came out for an open kitchen, that post cannot move, so we leave it alone and build finished millwork around it. The second is purely decorative. Interior columns in this category define a dining area, frame an entry, or break up a long great room without closing it off, and with no load on them we have complete freedom on placement and size. A quick test at home: if the post sits under a beam or a dropped soffit, assume it is structural. We confirm on site, and if there is any doubt we tell you to bring in an engineer rather than guessing. ## Column Wraps for Existing Structural Posts Column wraps are our most common request here. We build a four-sided sleeve from finished material, slip it around the post, fasten it back with cleats, and trim the top and bottom. We size the wrap so the finished dimension is what the room wants, not whatever the post happens to be. A 3-1/2-inch post looks spindly alone; wrapped out to 8 or 10 inches square, it reads as architecture. Corners get mitered and glued rather than butted, so no end grain seam shows. The cap and base sell it. A plain box with no cap looks like a duct chase, so we build a plinth at the floor and a capital at the top that dies cleanly into the ceiling. If the room has [crown molding](/services/carpentry/crown-molding/), the capital gets a related profile. ![White fluted round columns with molded bases and capitals between a foyer and a formal dining room](/_astro/white-fluted-round-columns-with-molded-bases-and-capitals.C9P7C8AB_Z1LGV5d.webp) ## Tapered Columns and Other Interior Column Profiles Indoors we build a handful of shapes: square paneled wraps, square tapered columns, smooth or fluted round columns, and half columns or pilasters flat against a wall. Tapered columns for interior spaces are worth calling out, because most people only associate taper with a front porch. Indoors, a tapered column on a short pedestal is the best way to divide a living room from a dining room without building a wall, and it echoes the front of the house if your porch already has taper. As a rule of thumb, a column looks correct at roughly one tenth to one eighth as wide as it is tall, so keep it slim under 8-foot ceilings and go heavier in a 12-foot room. Pilasters usually run 5 to 8 inches wide and pair well with wide [door and window casing](/services/carpentry/door-window-casing/). ![Square column wrapped in vertical white oak slats beside a floating staircase with a glass railing](/_astro/square-column-wrapped-in-vertical-white-oak-slats-beside.CWXrY4t0_26Afgj.webp) ## Wood Column Wraps vs. PVC, Fiberglass and Foam Material Interior Exterior Notes Poplar or pine Excellent Poor Best paint finish, lowest cost Cellular PVC Good Excellent Will not rot, our exterior default Fiberglass Good Excellent Strongest, some rated load bearing Indoors, a wood column wrap in poplar is hard to beat. It takes paint flat and smooth and costs less than the synthetics. Oak is the pick for stained work, especially alongside [decorative ceiling beams](/services/carpentry/ceiling-beams/). Outdoors in Jacksonville, wood is a losing bet. Sun and rain get into end grain at the base and [the bottom six inches rot out](https://research.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/37440), so we use PVC or fiberglass outside and set the base on standoffs so water drains. Near the water in Atlantic Beach and Ponte Vedra, the metal matters as much as the column. Salt air eats ordinary fasteners, and a rusting screw head bleeds a brown stain down a white column within a year, so we specify 316 stainless fasteners and galvanized hardware close to the ocean. ![Wide interior opening framed by two fluted white columns](/_astro/decorative-columns-1.CV1v6buF_Z19Hub4.webp) ## Matching Historic Columns in Riverside, Avondale and San Marco Craftsman bungalows use a short, heavily tapered square column on a masonry pedestal, often two-thirds pedestal to one-third column. Get that proportion wrong and the porch looks off even if the column is perfect, so we measure the survivors on the same house or a neighbor of the same period. Colonial Revival homes in Avondale and San Marco lean on round columns, smooth or fluted, with a proper cap and base. Those have a slight swell in the shaft that a plain straight tube does not, and a stock square wrap in front of one looks wrong immediately. On a historic match we [replicate the profile](https://www.nps.gov/subjects/taxincentives/secretarys-standards-rehabilitation.htm) in a rot-proof material instead of the original wood, so you keep the look and stop the rot. In a [local historic district](https://www.jacksonville.gov/departments/planning-department/community-planning-division/historic-preservation-section), exterior changes may also need review. ![Dining room with square wood column wraps flanking the entry](/_astro/decorative-columns-2.CerbTmuz_2jBJwx.webp) ## HOA Approval for Exterior Column Changes If you live in Nocatee, Bartram Park, Julington Creek, Fleming Island or most planned communities in St. Johns County, changing an exterior column almost certainly needs architectural review board approval before work starts. Boards usually want a description of the change, the material, the color, the dimensions and a photo of the finished appearance. Approval commonly takes two to six weeks depending on how often the committee meets, which is the part that surprises people. We will give you dimensions, material and finish in writing so you have something to attach. Interior columns almost never require approval. ## Decorative Column Installation, Start to Finish Our decorative column installation process is short, and most jobs are done in a day or two. It starts with a site visit. We determine whether the column is structural, measure the height at several points, check whether the floor and ceiling are level, and look at your existing trim. Then you get a written quote, plus a [3D rendering](/services/carpentry/3d-design-consultation-architectural-renderings/) if the design is unusual. On install day we cut the components, test fit, and scribe the base to the floor if it slopes, which it does in most older homes. Pieces get glued and fastened to cleats on the post, then cap, base and panel detail go on, and every joint gets filled, sanded and caulked. ## What Decorative Columns Cost in Jacksonville These are typical installed ranges, unpainted, and an exact number takes seeing the column and the ceiling height. Scope Typical installed range Simple square wrap over a post, 8 ft $650 to $1,300 each Paneled or fluted wrap with cap and base $1,100 to $2,400 each Tapered column on a built pedestal $1,600 to $3,500 each Exterior PVC or fiberglass column $1,400 to $3,800 each Height moves the price most, since anything over about 10 feet means staging. Detail level is next, because a flat wrap is fast and a fluted shaft with a built-up capital is a lot of small parts. Material is third, with PVC and fiberglass running above poplar. ## Turning a Bare Post Into Real Architecture Zero Load ### Wraps That Leave the Structure Alone The first thing we settle on site is whether your post is holding anything up. If it sits under a beam or dropped soffit, we treat it as structural and build a four-sided sleeve around it, fastened to cleats so the finish work carries no weight. We never cut or alter a load-bearing post, and if there is any question about what it supports, we will tell you to call an engineer before we go further. 1/10 Width ### Proportions That Read as Intentional A column looks right when its width is roughly a tenth to an eighth of its height, so a skinny 3-1/2 inch post often gets wrapped out to 8 or 10 inches square. A plinth at the floor and a capital at the ceiling keep it from looking like a boxed-in duct. On historic bungalows, we measure surviving originals on the house or a neighbor of the same period to match the taper, pedestal ratio and cap. 316 Stainless ### Porch Columns Built for Salt and Rain Outdoors, wood columns tend to rot from the base up, so exterior work goes in PVC or fiberglass set on standoffs that let water drain. Near the ocean, ordinary screws rust and streak brown down a white shaft, which is why we use 316 stainless fasteners and galvanized hardware there. If your HOA requires architectural review, we put the dimensions, material and finish in writing for your application. ## What Jacksonville Homeowners Say 4.8from [51 Google reviews](https://maps.google.com/?cid=7803379908473648836&g_mp=CiVnb29nbGUubWFwcy5wbGFjZXMudjEuUGxhY2VzLkdldFBsYWNlEAIYBCAA) - > Very happy with the professional work done by Klein Carpentry. We had wood accents done for the entrance way, great room and master bedroom. Fantastic craftsmanship and took the time to make it look perfect. Also had ceiling beams placed in the great room and master bedroom. They really complete both rooms. Lastly had wood accents for the half bath in the living area. Made a noticeable difference. Would highly recommend Klein Carpentry, highly detailed and professional. [Mike C](https://www.google.com/maps/contrib/113480878755715617097/reviews) · a month ago on Google - > The level of quality Klein Carpentry has is next level. Their service is incredible and are very responsive and knowledgeable. They do all kinds of work. Highly recommend them for any projects you may have coming up! [Vladimir Orgunov](https://www.google.com/maps/contrib/102932875100955090697/reviews) · 4 months ago on Google - > Very professional and high quality work. Done a wonderful job with the mantle, floating shelves, ship lap, crown and base board! Totally recommend if you’re looking to finish up a home project. [Alec Lambert](https://www.google.com/maps/contrib/101053006708383748872/reviews) · 11 months ago on Google Reviews from Google ## Frequently Asked Questions Can you wrap a structural post without affecting the structure? Yes. A column wrap is finish carpentry built around the post and fastened to cleats on it, so it carries no load. We never cut or modify a load-bearing post. Do I need HOA approval to change my porch columns? In most Jacksonville-area planned communities, yes: any visible exterior change needs architectural review approval first. Interior columns generally need no approval. Can a decorative column divide my open-concept living room? Yes, and it is one of the better uses for one. A pair of tapered columns on half-height pedestals separates a dining area from a living area while keeping sight lines and light. Will wood columns rot on a Florida porch? Wood columns on an exposed porch in Jacksonville usually fail at the base within several years, especially where water pools. That is why we use PVC or fiberglass outside and set the base on standoffs so it drains. Indoors, wood is fine. Can you match the tapered columns on my Riverside bungalow? Usually yes. We measure an original column on your house, or a period-matched house nearby, then reproduce the taper, pedestal proportion and cap profile in a rot-proof material so it outlasts the original. ## Related Carpentry Services - ### [Decorative ceiling beams](/services/carpentry/ceiling-beams/) To carry the same finish overhead. - ### [Door and window casing](/services/carpentry/door-window-casing/) So pilasters and openings match. - ### [Crown molding installation](/services/carpentry/crown-molding/) For tying capitals into the ceiling. - ### [Coffered ceilings](/services/carpentry/coffered-ceilings/) When columns and ceiling framing are designed together. - ### [All carpentry services](/services/carpentry/) From Klein Carpentry in Jacksonville. Get a Free Quote Tell us about your decorative interior columns and column wraps project. 4.8[51 Google reviews](https://maps.google.com/?cid=7803379908473648836&g_mp=CiVnb29nbGUubWFwcy5wbGFjZXMudjEuUGxhY2VzLkdldFBsYWNlEAIYBCAA) ## Tell Us About the Post Send a photo of the column and the room it stands in, and we can usually tell you the options before we visit. Call Klein Carpentry at [(904) 759-4988](tel:9047594988) for a walkthrough anywhere in Jacksonville. Get A Free Quote Today