How to Hide a Mini Split Masked As Wall Art
Do you dislike the look of a mini split but love the convenience of a ductless heat pump and air conditioner? Our mini split in the guest house has been my nemesis for two years, but no longer! Learn how to hide your mini split to make it appear as wall art!
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One Room Challenge Week 4
It’s hard to believe we are already on week four of the One Room Challenge! You can catch up with the guest house remodel project via the links below. Make sure to also visit the ORC Blog for hundreds of inspiring projects!
- Week 1: Guest House Before Photos
- Week 2: Guest House Design Plans
- Week 3: Mantel and Fireplace Refresh
How to Hide a Mini Split Wall Heater
I’m so excited for how this week’s project turned out! Let’s take a look at my design dilemma.
Ignore all the other horrible design elements of this ramshackle room. That wall heater takes the cake for unsightly, in my opinion. However, having a ductless air conditioner and combo mini split heat pump is a very economical way to heat and cool our guest house.
So that meant that I needed to design around it! There were a few challenges I had to work around.
- Proper ventilation
- Easy to remove when in use
- Must wrap around the sides to fully cover the mini split
- Double as wall art or other design feature
Mini Split Heat Pump Turned Wall Art
As you can see above, the mini split is centered on the main focal wall of the guest house. That meant that whatever I did to cover it up also needed to double as a design element.
I contemplated building a box around it and then doing a faux built in below to create shelving, but that didn’t allow for full ventilation.
With that in mind, I armed myself with spray paint, a blanket, a wooden dowel and shelving brackets and my “tapestry” wall art was born!
Creating Wall Art to Cover a Mini Split Tutorial
I tried to find a tapestry that I loved, but when it came down to it I really just enjoyed the simplicity of this blanket. It is a heavy weight and has the look of canvas so that it will fully mask the mini split.
First, I spray painted a 1 inch dowel black with my favorite spray paint to make it appear more like a curtain rod. A 48″ dowel was the perfect length to cover the mini split.
Next, I mounted steel shelving brackets that I had previously used when I built the open shelving in our kitchen. These were the exact length I needed at 12″ to provide the depth to go around the mini split.
You might notice that I mounted the brackets off-center. However, the wall unit isn’t centered on the wall. So I just accommodated for that and now my “wall art” will be centered appropriately.
It sits 11″ deep off the wall so it gave me just enough wiggle room that the blanket is not touching the unit.
Finally, I used these simple curtain clips to attach the blanket (ahem…tapestry) to the dowel. I wanted to make this wall art movable so that I could easily open and close off the unit.
No More Wall Heater: Only Wall Art!
And that’s it! This was the perfect solution to the dilemmas I started with. The way this is hung allows for free air flow on the top of the unit, as well as the ability to completely open it up to use unimpeded.
The length of the blanket allows me to slide the curtain rings down the length of the brackets so that the unit is completely enclosed when not in use. No matter the angle, it only looks like wall art!
Guest House Furnishings Sneak Peek
And, I am so excited to give a sneak peek this week into some of the furnishings! I received my Loloi area rug and Article sofas and cannot wait to get them styled in this space!
Shop Decor
I honestly only put them out for this photo because more great design elements are coming to this space! So for now they are tucked away and I can’t wait to show you more in the coming weeks!
Stay Connected
Thank you so much for stopping by the blog today! What do you think of how this little magic trick worked to hide that ugly wall heater? I’m pretty happy with it.
Plus, this is a great solution for my kiddos to also be able to open and shut the access to the mini split. I wanted them to be able to give it the proper ventilation when they come out here alone too. All they will have to do is hop on the couch and slide it over!
One Room Challenge Update
The project is complete! If you missed the 8 week process, catch up with the links below!
- Week 1: Guest House Before Photos
- Week 2: Guest House Design Plans
- Week 3: Mantel Update
- Week 4: How to Hide a Mini Split
- Week 5: Bathroom Remodel for $300
- Weeks 6 & 7: DIY Ceiling Beams
- Week 8: The Big Reveal
I love this idea. We are finishing up a new build and are having mini splits used as the heat and air unit. I have been searching for something that doesn’t cost so much. However, we will more than likely run ours 24/7. With that being said, do you think it would work if we used something shorter (like just an inch or two below the unit) and would be able to leave it covered at all times? (Basically it would only cover the unit itself.)
It’s possible that it would work but I would read your manufacturer’s manual to see what clearance is needed for ventilation of the unit. You want to make sure that completely covering it while in use doesn’t burn it out or even cause it to operate inefficiently.
Love it! We have a mini
Split that we just had installed above our bed and I want to hide it! What did you use to attach the rod to the shelf brackets to keep it from moving? ☺️
Mine is just free floating! However, if you want to secure it more you could use construction glue or screws.
I’m not sure I understand this post, particularly as it appears so many times online. It’s curiously misleading as the goal is to hide something unpleasant while still using it. Most people have them on all the time intermittently. Seems like a code issue in case you forget to open it and a liability issue if people don’t understand your post.
Have you come up with better solutions since this post? A gentle rule of design, form follows function. I’d love to see an update if have found a functional solution.
I think this is a great cost effective solution. There are likely many more expensive options that don’t require moving a curtain aside a few inches.
Thank you!! I’ve been searching online and not liking the cost of some projects and/or impracticability of them. This looks doable and beautiful! Our mini split is right behind my husband’s desk so when he is on video calls it is so visible.
Yay! I’m so glad you found this tutorial then. I hope it will be a great solution for him.
Do you run the A/C while you have the curtains draped or do you open it each time?
We open it for proper ventilation. 🙂
It’s been so fun following along on this space !
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed it!
It’s been so fun following along on this space ! I can’t wait for next weeks !
Yay! So glad you’ve enjoyed it!
I loved that tapestry before I new it was hiding anything — now I’m obsessed with it!
Thank you so much!
What a clever idea! I love it and it looks awesome!
Thank you my friend!
get out!! It looks amazing and I had no idea the AC is right behind it. You’ve made it looking fantastic and practical!!
Thank you Tim!
Genius! The guest house is coming together sooo beautifully. I can’t wait to see the full reveal.
Thank you so much!