5 Creative Uses for PVC Pipe in the Kitchen

There’s nothing more frustrating than a messy kitchen when you’re in the middle of cooking dinner for your friends or trying to get the kids out the door quickly in the mornings. If your spices, measuring cups, and utensils are all mixed together without their own dedicated space, you could end up searching for them for several minutes — while your eggs are burning no less!

It was so easy to toss everything into a drawer as you quickly emptied the dishwasher and “tidied up” the kitchen between work and running your kids to their after-school activities. Now, the chaos of your kitchen is giving you a headache. Thankfully, you can keep your kitchen organized with PVC pipe. You’ll be able to say goodbye to the days of frantically searching for the garlic powder or your spatula. Plus, PVC pipe is an inexpensive way to bring order to your kitchen so you can save your money for more important things, like family outings or vacations. Below, you’ll find five creative ways to use PVC piping in the kitchen.

What Exactly is PVC Piping?

PVC pipe is a white plastic pipe that is commonly used for household plumbing. It stands for polyvinyl chloride and is strong, durable, and versatile. Besides plumbing, it has so many other uses. For example, it can help you organize your home, including your kitchen and bathrooms, and it can be used for crafting decorations. The best part of all, PVC pipe is so cheap that DIY projects can fit any budget!

For ideas on using PVC pipe to organize a kitchen, check out the following DIY projects.

Project 1: DIY Wine Rack

Keeping your wine bottles lined up along your counter isn’t aesthetically pleasing, not to mention it takes up a lot of valuable space you could use for decorations or making your grandma’s famous lasagna recipe. Free up your countertop with a modern-looking PVC wine rack. Best wine racks are those that you can customize according to your wishes. It can be customized to fit your space and your wine bottles. It’s a great alternative to buying an expensive pre-made wine rack. Find out how to make your own DIY PVC wine rack here.

Project 2: PVC Plate Drying Rack

It’s quite an eye-sore to have a pile of plates air-drying on a kitchen towel on the counter. A simple solution to tidying up the wet dishes is to make a PVC pipe dish rack. You only need a 6-inch diameter PVC pipe, a marker, and a miter saw. To make the drying rack, cut the PVC pipe to your desired length. Then, cut this piece in half so you have two half circles. On one of the PVC pieces, draw a centerline down the middle of the pipe. Then, using this center line as a guide, trace crescent shapes on the pipe. These will be the slots for holding your plates. Make these slots about 2 ½ inches apart. You’ll want to have the plate holding places be 7/8 inches wide at their widest part. Once you have your slots traced, cut them out using the miter saw. File away any rough edges. Now, you have a plate drying rack to keep your dishes organized!

Project 3: Utensil Holder Made of PVC Pipe

Are your kitchen drawers a big mess with forks, spoons, spatulas, and other cooking utensils haphazardly tossed everywhere? If the lack of organization gives you a headache, consider making a utensil holder out of PVC pipe. You can customize the holder to fit your drawers. For your forks, spoons, and butter knives, you can take a PVC pipe of at least 2 inches in diameter and cut it into three pieces of the same length (the length varies on your kitchen drawer). Next, cut these three pieces in half, and then glue three halves together, side-by-side. You can choose to leave the holder white or spray paint it any color you like. Now, you can use the three slots to store your forks, spoons, and knives.

If you have big cooking utensils, you can clear up drawer space even more by using 4-inch PVC pipe and PVC pipe caps. First, cut the pipe to 8 inches in length. Next, add the cap to one end, turn it over, and you now have a holder for your big utensils. Spray paint it any way you want to make it fit your kitchen décor.

Project 4: PVC Piping Spice Rack

If there’s something disorganized in your kitchen, it’s probably your spices. It’s an age-old problem: how to keep your spices at hand while looking nice. The solution? Designing your own PVC piping spice rack! Simply take a length of PVC pipe and cut it into several smaller pieces. These small pieces will be holding your spices, so make sure they are slightly shorter than your spice bottles so you can easily pull the spice bottle out of the rack. Next, glue these small PVC pieces into a stack (however you would like – perhaps similar to the PVC wine rack) and then paint them for an aesthetically pleasing appearance. Once the paint is dry, you’re ready to store your spices.

Project 5: PVC Organizer for Kitchen Measuring Tools

Your measuring cups and spoons need a little love, too. Keep them organized with PVC pipe holders mounted onto your cabinet doors. You’ll need 1 ¼ inch diameter pipe for the cups and ¾ inch diameter for the spoons. Cut the pipe for the cups to 5 ¾ inches in length and the pipe for the spoons to 4 5/8 inches in length. Make sure to cut the ends of all the pipes at a 45-degree angle for a more pleasing look. Next, secure the pipe pieces to your cabinet doors using foam-backed mounting tape. Finally, place your measuring cups and spoons in their new holders.

Non-Plumbing Uses for PVC Piping in the Kitchen

Life is stressful enough on its own that we don’t need to add any more headache by having a messy kitchen. Keep your kitchen organized with these five creative uses for PVC piping. Remember, you can always paint and decorate the pipes to match your kitchen décor. When spray painting, use tape to create designs or stripes. With PVC pipe, the options are truly endless for kitchen organization and decoration!

Author Bio

This article is provided by Mark Ligon who is the Marketing Manager at PVC Fittings Online, a leading supplier of consumer-based plumbing supplies, including piping, fittings, valves, plumbing supplies, and accessories. Mark is a DIYer and provides advice to individuals on DIY projects utilizing a range of PVC type products.