Concealing Pipework

cubegame

We've just finished redecorating our hallway and want to cover up the central heating pipes which run behind the door.

I need to have a fairly slimline solution to cover two parallel 15mm pipes as the maximum it can come out from the wall is about 28 mm. There are also a couple of 90 degree bends around a door lintel.

My initial thought was a get a white PVC boxing setup and I bought one of these. However the problem with this was that the bends were too curved for the corners.

My next plan of action was to box the pipes in. The plan was to fix a batten of planed timber down the side of the pipes away from the door and then fix ply or mdf to cover the pipes. Has anyone done this and how neat a finish can you get? I appreciate this setup would also allow me to paint the boxing the same as the wall.

The third way was to get hold of a preformed plywood or mdf casing but these seem hard to come by. Any idea of a good system given the restriction on size I have?

Cheers.

Steve_Groves

Depending upon how far the pipes protrude from the wall and whether you have access to a router, I would have bought a sheet of 1" MDF, cut it into lengths (the width of the boxing you require) and then routed out a groove where the piping would sit.

You could then simply lay it over the pipes and fix it to the wall. At the corners you could then simply cut a mitre joint at 45 degrees.

Regardless of whether you do this or your suggestion of two battens beside the pipes and thin MDF covering the pipes then make sure you build the box away from the wall so that you can sand it, fill it etc to ensure it looks really neat and tidy. Then screw it into the wall and put filler over the screws.

For filling have a look at the new lightweight fillers that are available. I found them fantastic for creating invisible joins between 2 pieces of MDF

cliffe

I have boxed in pipes in quite a few locations in our house by using planed timber for the sides and plywood for the top.

I think I have ususally selected wood of approx 45mmx20mm for the sides (it is a standard size, but I can't remember what it is, it might have been 1"x2" before planing). I usually attach these to the wall by drillingg through them and countersinking a screw. It is also possible to attach them with a small bracket.

I have always made the top pieces myself out of plywood - cut in a table saw. If these are cut well and accurately aligned, the boxing can look really neat. A little wood filler also helps.

I have found this job fairly easy, but it does depend on having a table saw or getting accurately cut strips. It is the kind of job where extra care leads to much better results!

moonrakerz

Use lengths of MDF skirting board, with any fancy trim inside.
It is straight and nice and rigid with a good finish when painted, the only slight problem is - it shows how uneven your walls are ! But a bit of bathroom sealer fixes that.

markie1980

A couple of good sugestions above and the beauty of working with wood is that you can fill, sand and paint to make it blend in.

In the past, i have used a bit of white, square downpipe, cut it in half down it's length, scribed it to the wall and stuck that over pipework.