Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Decorative Air Grilles

How many of you have one these unsightly air grilles in your home? Just about everyone I imagine. These are always an issue in interiors because they are so visually intrusive in a space, especially when a dark color or finish is used on a wall. In new homes, architects and builders can locate supply and return air grilles in less conspicuous places as the home is designed (if they are sensitive to that), but in remodeling there's not much you can do with existing locations.

I'm so excited to be using these wonderful air grilles on a project now. From Patterncut, they come in a multitude of sizes and patterns. You can get them in oak, maple, or cherry, sanded ready to paint or stain, complete with screws. The patterns are laser cut and start at $30 a grille. They have louvers in a separate plate behind the grille, so you can adjust the direction of your air flow.















There are many more patterns to choose from, even round ones. Here's the adjustable louver plate that fits behind the grille.

The product below is from Worth Home Products. They make these lovely wood return air louvered grilles that are paintable so that they just disappear into the wall.
The typical ugly return air grille as seen in many of our homes.



Viola!


Here's how the filter fits behind the return air grille in the Patterncut product. Worth also has a place for a standard filter behind their louvers.
I love finding unique ways to solve problems on a job. I think these products are wonderful. No one wants to see an ugly plastic air grille right above a beautiful piece of art hanging on the wall.


If you have a design related question or need some advice on any aspect of interior design, e-mail me HERE. I might feature your question in a special Q and A blog post!














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