Home Staging an eye sore. Hide it, Disguise it, or Keep it? What would you do?

What about a small table wit an arangment at the top of bottom of the stairs to pull the eye away from the red swith

Hi Sharon,

Interesting, I'm guessing it's required to have this switch remain red?

Sort of along with Eric's comment, maybe make something else the focus.  I'd love to stay tuned to hear what others say about your situation.

Hi Sharon. What an awful choice of location on the part of the builder.

Hide it? No.

Disguise it? Maybe neutral colours could help. It would be worth checking out but I have never heard that a oil burner switch has to be a certain colour. Usually they are downstairs, and not always easy to find.

I think using neutral colours and then drawing the eye away with something more interesting - as Eric suggested - would be a good idea.

Depending on the width of the stairs there might also be options for putting a more attractive front on the vent, maybe a couple of inches out from the existing one

What a headache. Good luck!

Hi Sharon~ I have a feeling if the right people see this, that you will get lots of ideas so that this is not so obvious! I will check back and see what some of the other suggestions are.

Sharon,

What was the builder thinking?  I thought the side porch of one home that had the gas meter, electrical meter showing for all to see as they entered the home was bad.

What I did there was have a frame built around them and used shutters I picked up at a garage sale as the doors.  That way the meter readers had easy access but the eye sore was gone.

What about using a shadow box or two (I would use more than one so the hiding isn't obvious) and placing a vase in one to hide the red switch.  Some of the stylish new vases are flat and would fit the bill fine.  If you use black shadow boxes they meet the "each room should have some black in it" rule and the vase and ? you use in the shadow boxes can be accent colours from furniture or drapes in the area.

First option would be to have it moved.

If that's too expensive, maybe two red framed pics in an arrangement?

If this is a new home, talk to the builder or architect. I would be wondering what other screwy things they did when building the home.

I too think you should just a pic to cove the plate...

Paint it all is you can - what was that builder thinking anyway? All the best.

As a professional stager, my advice is that you first check with city code to determine if the switch must be red in color.  If not, spray paint the cover to match the wall color, as you're planning to do with the vent cover.

If local code does not allow it to be painted another color, DO NOT HIDE it or paint it.  Professional stagers would not agree to disguise or hide anything that could hinder a sale.  The photo of this space doesn't show enough of the wall to determine how much space there is below this eyesore and to the right, but if space allows I'd add a console table with approprate art above it and some greenery on the table itself.  Good luck and let us know what you find out from the city's code department.

I will add my thought.  I like most here do not know the codes for your area, that being said I would paint the vent to match the wall and then put up a small shelf with a vase of flowers that would add a nice feel to the rise and not hide the switch, but demonstrate a way to disguise an obvious builder error.  Thanks for the share.

I wouldn't hide the switch or change the color. It is meant for an emergancy switch in case you ever need it especially the fire department. Since I've never seen the house I don't know if that was the best place for it but you need to know where it is at if you would ever need it. Also You can paint the vent the same color as the wall but it won't change the fact that a vent is there. If the rest of the home is beautiful I would hope this isn't a deal breaker for a buyer. Good Luck :)

Good morning.  I did research on this switch situation and her is what I discovered.  It was a brilliant electrician that placed these here.  The switch should be by the basement door.  The switch is to shut the system should it malfunction and say, the basement was filling with smoke.  This is a rare occurrence, but the switch is code.  The placement of it is asinine at best and I would beg to know what other ingenious wiring this person did...Anyways...As a homeowner I would disguise it without hesitation and or possibly have an electrician come in and move the ugly thing to its correct location.  From a staggers point of view, it would be your call, but I surely would give these choices to the buyer if they make comment of its placement.  I hope this was helpful.  A friend in NH.