How I Hid That Ugly Pipe Through The Wall

My Basement Bathroom CoverUp

Our first home was an old home built in the 50’s. It had been updated along the way but there were quite a few quirky things about it. One of those things was a sewage pipe that stuck out of the wall in the downstairs bathroom. I’m not kidding! Did we really buy this home? Well, I found a way to hide the ugly pipe through the wall.

The home had some great things going for it and the downstairs bathroom was not that prominent. But it still bugged me, as you can imagine. The bathroom was already small and the pipe was situated in a narrow walkway to the sink so it wasn’t easy to just stick something in front of the ugly mess.

I begged my handy-man husband to make a door for it or SOMETHING. He didn’t see any feasible way to cover it up. And it had to stay … in case there were ever problems and we had to access it? I don’t know, but it was up to me to do something to cover it up.

The Light Bulb Moment To Hide That Ugly Pipe Through Wall

I thought about and thought about it for months and months until finally a light bulb came on. I needed a half vase, but one that I could cut so it would stick over the sewage pipe. It needed to be tall and skinny as well. I went to the store, a second-hand store no less, and found a tall, dark flower vase made out of some type of extra thin sheet metal. Perfect!

Now I needed to cut it. The edges where the metal was doubled over was thicker. It looked a bit hard for metal cutters and I didn’t have that exact tool anyway. But have no fear, I have my dremel here! Haha … but seriously.

Using The Dremel

If you haven’t heard about my dremel, it has been one of my favorite Christmas presents to date. I have used it for many projects. It’s a versatile tool that comes with several different bits that you can screw on. Each bit is used for a different job. There are many, many more bit pieces that you can purchase separately for just about any job. Many people use it for woodworking or jewelry making. I have used it for sanding in tough crevices and even routing detail into a dresser makeover. Read more about other projects the dremel has saved me on.

I used two metal cutting bits to make it through the whole tin metal vase. It took about 15 or 20 minutes. Then I spray painted it an oil-rubbed bronze color to look a little more sleek and to fit my bathroom colors.

Putting It Together To Hide That Ugly Pipe Through Wall

I fit the half vase against the wall once it was cut in half. It wasn’t an exact fit so I placed dark poster board, which I cut in strips, behind the sides of the vase and taped into place. Then when I placed it against the wall there was a straight edge meeting the wall and the vase.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

I applied glue on the back side of the vase/poster edge and against the wall to secure it in place. I used hot glue because hot glue can be removed from the wall without tearing off the paint or leaving marks. It’s also quick and easy. I don’t have to leave pressure on it for a long time to dry.

However, If I had to do it over again I would use a stronger, more permanent glue. If I ever have to move the vase for some emergency reason to get to the sewage pipe, I’m not going to worry about how the vase comes off the wall. Meanwhile, my kids occasionally play with the flowers or run into the vase and it falls off. Although there aren’t any tears in the paint on the wall, I’m tired of re-gluing the project back up.

Then I added bright silk flowers to liven up the space and wool-ah! It made a huge difference. My bathroom went from kinda creepy-ish to just a small but homey space by hiding that ugly pipe through the wall.

---