Have you ever wanted to replace your ugly air vents? We had just the basic white metal vents that had definitely seen better days. So I decided to replace them with this easy DIY.
I started by measuring my vents and then ordered some decorative sheet metal off Amazon. I decided on a brushed gold. The sheet was 12 x 24 inches and was right around $20.
I used snips to cut the piece of sheet metal in half lengthwise. This worked perfectly for one of my vents but the other one is bigger. So I had to improvise and cut one of these pieces in half.
Next I built my frames. I used 1 inch x 2 inch pieces of pine. Then glued them together with wood glue and clamped them. I let these sit for a few hours for the glue to dry.
For the second frame I had to add a piece of wood in the middle since the opening for this vent is 29 inches and the sheets are only 24. I glued it in the same as the other pieces.
Before adding the sheet metal I painted the frames. I used Antique White by Glidden. It's the same color I have throughout my house. I wanted the frames to match my walls.
To fasten the sheet metal to the back of the frame, I used DAP Rapid Fuse. This stuff is amazing. I got mine at Home Depot but you can also get it on Amazon. Because, what can't you get on Amazon?
I used clamps to hold the sheet metal in place while the glue dried. I place a rag on the front side under the clamp to protect the front of my frame from getting an indent from the clamp.
Once the glue dried, I removed the clamps and installed the frames on the wall. For this particular frame I didn't even need to fasten it to the wall. The wainscoting holds it in pretty tight.
For the other vent (not shown) I used two small screws on opposite corners to fasten it to the wall. I love how they turned out and it only cost about $40 total for both vent covers.