Soffits (Bulkheads) Contain Pipes, Electric Wiring, Duct Work, and more…
A bulkhead is a blocked area of a ceiling that is lower than the rest of the ceiling, usually by about 4-12 inches. Bulkheads can be decorative (for instance, when used over kitchen cabinets), or functional (when used to cover structural elements, electric, plumbing, or HVAC components). In some cases, bulkheads are both decorative and functional. For instance, a bulkhead over kitchen cabinets may be hiding drain plumbing from the bathrooms above, or romex wiring running to an over-range microwave. Bulkheads are usually made of the same material as the ceiling or wall (most commonly drywall). Below is a list of the most popular items bulkheads are covering in today’s homes.
Common Items in Soffits
- Structural elements, like steel I-beams or wood headers.
- Plumbing, including pressurized (copper pipes), and sewer (PVC).
- Natural Gas / Propane Plumbing.
- Electric wiring (Romex).
- HVAC Duct Work.
- Central Vacuum Plumbing.
Identifying Soffit Contents
As modern design has moved toward open floor plans and taller cabinets, bulkheads have become less desirable, and many owners want to remove them from existing homes. The first step in removing an unwanted bulkhead is to determine if it is hiding any of the items from the list above. Here’s a few practical steps you can take to determine if the bulkhead is hiding something.
- Look at the location of the bulkhead and consider what it might contain. For instance, if you know that the joists run from the front of your house to the back, and there’s a bulkhead in the middle of the home, chances are it contains a steel I-beam or wooden header.
- Think about where your plumbing enters the house, where your sewer leaves. Each bathroom and the kitchen are connected to both of these. Remember that large pipes usually do not run through joists (cutting a 3″ hole would weaken the joist). So, if a bulkhead is nearby, the plumbing is likely running inside.
- Consider the same for your HVAC and electric. For HVAC, fairly large ducts must be hidden somewhere in the floor, walls, or bulkheads. A large bulkhead may be used to get around joists or other obstacles to get ventilation to an upper floor.
- Use a special stud finder that checks for studs, pipes and electrical current (available from Amazon at that link). Run that stud finder over the bulkhead to get a better idea of what’s inside. Beware that the metal detector can return a false positive, most notably when the drywall contains metal reinforcements on the corners.
- Cut a hole in the bulkhead large enough to fit a digital camera inside, then take pictures facing both ends. While it will require you to do a drywall patch to fix it, its better than beginning a removal only to find that a large pipe is in the way.
Removing a Bulkhead
Once you’ve determined that a bulkhead is not functional (or you’ve mitigated the issue by moving the hidden obstacle), removing a bulkhead is easy, just tear off the drywall, remove the studs (usually easy because they are often nailed into joists above), drywall over the gap, and patch the drywall. Sound too simple? It actually is simple, particularly if you have some experience in drywall repair.
What do you think? Have you removed any bulkheads from your own home? What did you find inside?
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4 Responses to Soffits (Bulkheads) Contain Pipes, Electric Wiring, Duct Work, and more…
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October 27th, 2008 7:17 am
Great post Fred. Around this part of the Country we refer to them as “soffits”. We try very hard to keep utilities out of soffits over kitchen cabinets. This allows the homeowner to remove the soffit in the future if they choose to change the cabinet layout.
Another tip in determining what might be inside is to get above and below it. Check in the attic and basement for clues to what’s running in the walls. Sometimes you can see the plumbing or electrical from these locations.
October 27th, 2008 10:20 am
Great info!
As I was working on my kitchen update, part of the process was making a channel for the wiring of the overhead sink light. When the previous owners added a drop tiled ceiling, they put the wiring on the outside of the bulkhead but it was hidden since the ceiling was lowered.
I used my dremel and cut a channel for the wiring so it was flush with the bulkhead. I’d never done anything like that before. Amazing what one can do when remodeling!
October 27th, 2008 1:34 pm
What Todd said. We call ‘em soffits in Brooklyn too.
Here, one of the tyromaniac POs had converted the soffit to a kitchen vent fan duct. Unfortunately, he neglected to install any actual ducting inside the soffit. Of course, that’s a fire violation but, maybe just as bad, there was a mini-rain forest growing in there. The back of the drywall was coated with old cooking grease, black mold and several different species of insect colonies. I literally had to wear a hazmat suit to demolish it. I was still killing centipedes two years later.
October 27th, 2008 8:16 pm
Todd, BRH, Soffit has been added to my vernacular. Thanks. Its probably the more correct word, although I hear them called bulkheads frequently. (I did a little search and found people calling them both things online).
Todd, I wish our builder was so kind. We have a bulkhead over our cabinets that runs perpendicular to the joists. The plumbing from the upstairs bathroom uses it because going down the exterior wall was blocked by a window in that location. We were able to remove one bulkhead (soffit).
BRH, This is a homeowner education problem at its finest. I’m sure whoever installed that thought they were pretty clever indeed.
Carol-It is amazing what one can do in remodeling.