We close the pipes in the toilet, bathroom and kitchen with plastic panels

A well-made and beautifully finished bathroom can be somewhat spoiled by the unsightly appearance of open water and sewer pipes. Useful information on how to sew up pipes in the bathroom, toilet or kitchen with plastic panels will help to give these rooms a finished and beautiful look. And the convenience of working with plastic will allow in the future, without large labor and material costs for dismantling the structure and restoring the design, to carry out the necessary repair work on communication networks.

Preparing to close pipes with plastic

Any construction and installation work must be preceded by preparatory work. The process of preparing for closing the pipes in the toilet and bathroom can be divided into several stages.

Pipeline revision

To avoid repeated repairs, with the dismantling of the completed bathroom or kitchen finishes, the first step is to conduct a detailed inspection of the pipelines for leaks.

In apartments where engineering networks, especially cast iron sewer pipes, have a long service life, it is recommended, even if they are in an outwardly satisfactory condition, to be replaced with plastic pipes.

Choosing a communication masking option

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At the second stage, it is necessary to decide on the option of masking pipes for a particular room.

There are two such options:

1. Creation of a false wall behind which all communications will be hidden.
2. The device of one or more boxes that hide only pipes.

The first option is simpler in execution and allows the construction of one solid wall to hide all the pipes.

The second one is technically more difficult, and depending on the location of the pipelines in the room, separate boxes for sewer and water pipes may be required. But this method is more preferable in terms of saving space in a bathroom or kitchen.

Preparing the tool for work

To perform the preparatory and basic work, you need to prepare the necessary materials and tools. These include:

• electric jigsaw or hacksaw with metal files;
• mounting knife;
• tape measure, pencil or marker;
• level and plumb;
• perforator and screwdriver;
• fasteners (self-tapping screws, dowel-nails, euro screws, kleimers for PVC panels);
• construction square;
• antiseptic or protective impregnation for wooden structures;
• metal galvanized profiles (types ud, cd);
• start profile for panels;
• decorative ceiling molding;
• floor plinth;
• silicone sealant.

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And of course, it is necessary to prepare the panels themselves, the choice of which is made based on the preferences of the owners, and taking into account the overall design of the bathroom or kitchen.

Drawing up a plan and marking

Having decided on the option of decorating pipes, it is necessary to draw up a large-scale plan of the room on paper with a sketch of the future design.

The distance between panels and pipes, primarily for hot water supply, must be at least 3 cm.

Important! When drawing up a sketch, it is necessary to design in the structure free access to valves, fittings and flow meters, by installing windows with doors or removable plugs.

Having made a plan, you need to:

• calculate the required material;
• apply markings on the walls, floor and ceiling.

To cover vertical pipes, drawing the contour of the box or wall must begin from the floor. Then, using a plumb line, project the markup onto the ceiling.

For the installation of jumpers on vertical guides, beacons are planned in increments of 40-50 cm and strictly parallel markings are made along the perimeter of the wall or box.

Construction of a frame for closing pipes

Before you start closing the pipes in the toilet with plastic panels, you need to build a frame that serves as the basis for attaching the panels to it. The frame can be made from the following materials:

1. Wooden beam.
2. PVC profile for plastic panels;
3. Galvanized metal profile.

Advice! Using wooden parts for the construction of the hull and battens, it is necessary to impregnate them with protective antiseptic compounds.

The technology for performing work in the above options for masking pipes (false wall or box) is similar. Most often in practice, to hide pipes in bathrooms and in the kitchen, a variant with a box is used, and the material used for this is a galvanized profile.

Considering this particular method, the construction of a frame for sheathing pipes in a bathroom, toilet or kitchen with plastic panels is as follows:

• fastening the guide ud profile to the walls;
• installation of outer corner racks by connecting two ud profiles directed at right angles in different directions;
• fastening of load-bearing jumpers from a cd profile to racks (with a frame height of more than 1 m and a width of less than 0.25 m).

Jumpers are inserted with one end into the guide profile, and with the other end into the edge of the outer corner, at a distance from each other — 40-50 cm.

The connection of structural elements is carried out using self-tapping screws or a cutter. Profile guides are attached to the walls with dowels or euro screws (confirmations).

Recommendation! Fastening between vertical and horizontal profiles is easiest to do with a cutter

The racks are fastened to the floor and ceiling by bending the profile or using hangers.

Installation of PVC panels

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After the bases of the boxes are mounted, you can proceed to the direct fastening of the panels. The execution sequence is as follows:

• fasten the starting molding to the ud profile (near the wall) with self-tapping screws;
• install a ceiling molding on the ceiling if a ceiling plinth will not be used;
• cut the panel to the desired size with a hacksaw or a mounting knife;
• insert the panel with a narrow shelf into the starting profile;
• fasten the panel through a wide shelf to the transverse profiles;
• subsequent panels are mounted in the same way.

Panels are fastened with clamps, staples or self-tapping screws.

Recommendation! For a tighter and tighter fit of the panel joints to each other, the side edges, before joining them, can be coated with a thin layer of silicone.

As a rule, when installing the final lamella, it becomes necessary to trim it in width. To do this, the panel is turned over, applied to the wall, and a cutting line is drawn along the edge of the already installed panel. Cutting off the excess width of the panel is easy with a hacksaw or jigsaw.

To give the structure that hides the pipe a monolithic appearance, it is necessary to install plastic moldings on all corner joints (external or universal corner).

After the pipes in the bathroom, toilet or kitchen are hidden under plastic panels, the places where they adjoin the floor and ceiling are decorated with plinth moldings. It remains to clean up after the work and experience satisfaction, looking at the results of their work.