You can build out the soffit so that it is flush or just slightly inset of the upper cabinets. That is what I did. Here is a picture of my old kitchen. It will illustrate that I am talking about.

This will allow a void for the ventilation pipe to run wherever you need it to go and hide it at the same time. It has the added benefit of getting rid of all that space above your cabinets where dust and cobwebs live. Any competent carpenter can do this for you. If you are at all handy, you can do it yourself.

Some people put a second layer of cabinets above the other cabinets. But, your cabinets are already installed. It would be difficult to retrofit a second line of cabinets at this point, not to mention the added cost.

If you don't want a soffit, it might be fun to spray paint it a color that suits your planned decor.

Run the pipe inside the cabinets.

Joseph, OP said his cabinet is not on an outside wall and they do not go to the ceiling. The pipe will go up through the ceiling. So how does he hide it?

It's probably too late in the game, but it looks like you have a cabinet above the vent hood. So, instead of venting straight up through the cabinet and into the ceiling, vent it out the back of the hood into the wall and up the inside of the wall to the ceiling and across to an outside wall. This is fairly common.

How did your KD and Contractor plan to deal with it? I don't understand why they didn't plan it this way in the first place.

Are you saying that the vent will go up through the cabinet and then straight up through the roof? Idk, but I think I'd just box it in around the duct, then sheetrock, and paint it the wall color so it sort of blends in. Then do a nice tall crown to hide it a little more???

I'm expecting to run into this issue as well so am looking forward to hearing what others have to say. I'm thinking of doing something like this pic, which I think is what rebunky is recommending. I think it would be even less conspicuous when you have the cabinet above.

a house in a garden · More Info

"Joseph, OP said his cabinet is not on an outside wall and they do not go to the ceiling. The pipe will go up through the ceiling. So how does he hide it?"

Yes, I knew the cabinets weren't on an outside wall, that's why you run the pipe through the cabinets to an adjacent outside wall.

Thanks you for all the suggestions. I am trying to avoid having just a sheet rocked box above the cabinet above the vent. I think I am leaning towards having just a decor type vent cover. Something like this:

So Just getting rid of the cabinet above the vent altogether. We will have no crown molding on the cabinets or the ceiling. With having something like this being the only thing going all the way to the ceiling

Would it look odd?

Buehl: we had originally picked out a vent that looks like this:

So there wasn't an issue with it venting to the ceiling. I just didn't want to deal with where does the backsplash end situation so we changed it and it was just mistakingly forgotten about.

I think changing back to a stainless hood would solve the problem nicely. I think it also breaks up that row of upper cabinets and all the white.

Funkycamper: if I did change back to the stainless hood where would my backsplash end? Bottom of hood or all the way to the ceiling? I am using a light gray 3x6 crackle tile.

The island will be painted a light teal color.

personal preference, but I much prefer all the way to the ceiling.

I like tile to the ceiling as well. It could be a wonderful focal point. I don't see a focal point in your photo and I think your kitchen could use one.