Sometimes, just paint does the trick

Q. I'm a single woman and I enjoy reading your column. It has been helpful in the past but now I need some more help. I have a small room in the basement of my home. I'm trying to fix up the room to create a nice sewing room. There are radiator pipes running through the room that look rather nasty. What can I do to make them appear more pleasing? The ceiling is a type of thin wood or something, but the pipes hang below it. If I put in a hanging ceiling it would be too low. Do you have any other options? D.L. Aurora

A. You can just paint the pipes. You will need to clean the pipe with a mild cleaner and then use a quality primer/sealer that is recommended for metal. You can …