The chimney in your home is responsible for distributing the smoke and heat that comes from your fireplace to the rest of your house. The position of the chimney is not a major concern, as long as it is accessible in case repairs need to be made on it. However, if you want to style your kitchen and make it look more modern, you may want to consider hiding the chimney pipe.
Apart from the clutter and mess, a dark spot on the ceiling makes it look hideous. It is an obvious eyesore spoiling the beauty of your kitchen. Many homeowners have found that this problem can be solved by placing the chimney pipe inside a tall cabinet.
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Hiding Chimney Pipe in a Kitchen
This article is designed to offer advice and guidance on how to hide chimney pipe in a kitchen. Hiding chimney pipes are important because it can be an eyesore in your home. If you have bought a home with an old chimney then you probably won’t want to leave it in view.
- Figure out where you will place the vent hood. You need to make sure that the vent hood will not block any windows or the path of anyone walking into the kitchen.
- Measure the area where you are going to install the vent hood and write down all of these measurements. You then need to measure the length and width of the vent hood that you purchased as well as its height from the floor to its top.
- Cut out a hole in the side of one of your cabinets that is large enough for your vent hood.
- Install the vent hood in place by securing it with screws
Materials for Hiding Chimney Pipe
There are many materials that can be used to hide a chimney pipe.
- The first step in choosing the right material is to determine how much of the chimney pipe needs to be hidden.
- After determining this, it’s important to consider the type of material you want to use and whether or not it will match well with your decor.Some of the most popular types of materials for hiding chimney pipes include:
- Wood is often used as a natural material for hiding a chimney pipe. You can either use wood planks or buy an entire piece of wood furniture, such as a hutch or buffet table, that covers up the pipe and stores your dining room accessories at the same time.
- Mirrors/Glass. Another common material for covering up chimney pipes is glass or mirrors. You can either purchase large glass shelves, cupboards or mirrors that cover up the entire section of wall where the pipe extends out from.
- Curtains/Drapes/Blinds/Shades/Upholstery Fabric: If you want something more decorative than plain old wooden shelves
Supplies for the End cap
- Tin snips
- Sheet metal screws
- Drill
- Self tapping sheet metal screws
- Tape measure
- Pencil or marker
Take apart the pipe
- Remove the pipe from the inside of the stove and disconnect the pipe from the outside of the house.Take apart the pipe. Depending on how your chimney was installed, you may have a few sections of pipe. Each section should have a seam that can be unscrewed or pried apart.
- Take each piece apart until you have access to the inside of each section.
- Scrape any remaining soot, dirt and grime from the inside of each pipe section with a putty knife or wire brush.
- Wipe them clean with a damp rag. Let them dry completely before moving on to the next step.
Paint the pipe section
- Paint the pipe section and end cap with a rust-resistant paint in a color that will blend in with your home’s exterior.
- Secure the end cap to the chimney pipe section using sheet metal screws.
- Place the chimney pipe extension on the roof along the roof line and slide it up under the roof shingles so it is hidden from view.
- Install flashing around the pipe extension at the edge of the roof to keep water from leaking under the shingles.
- Secure flashing with nails or screws to ensure it stays in place.
Putting it together
- When you need to hide the chimney pipe in your kitchen, use a panel on either side of the pipe that is made out of the same material as your upper cabinets.
- Measure from the top of the countertop to where you want the bottom of the panel to be and cut it to size with a chop saw.
- Cut a piece of 1×3 or other lumber that is as wide as your panel.
- Attach it to the wall at the point where you want your panel to start and nail a scrap piece of wood on top of it to support it while you attach the panel.
- Position your panel against the scrap board, making sure it is level, and screw it into place.
- Measure from one end of your chimney pipe to where you want the panel to stop and cut it using a chop saw.
- Attach this second section using scraps from other areas as necessary.
Conclusion
Chimney pipes can be placed outside of a kitchen through the walls, above the ceiling and sometimes even completely inside of a wall. This can be quite unsightly and therefore it is better to try and hide these after you have fitted the kitchen.
Trying to figure out how to hide your chimney pipe can be challenging, especially if you do not want to pay the high cost of a professional contractor. This is why you need to have a basic understanding of chimneys in order to be able to sort through any available options.