Add Charm To A Kitchen With A DIY Range Hood That's Easy On The Budget

If you've been upgrading your kitchen over the past few years, you may have already renovated your cabinetry and selected a new backsplash. Maybe you've even swapped out the hardware or updated the lighting. But one kitchen detail you've been overlooking that can have a major impact is the range hood. If this is something you're considering doing yourself, with so many design choices out there, the hardest part is choosing one. One idea we found on TikTok from creator @leahhomeandgarden is as easy to love as it is budget-friendly. She transforms a coffee crate into a DIY range hood, and the result perfectly complements her copper farmhouse-style backsplash.

Some DIY range hood installations are complicated, but this one keeps it simple with slight modifications to a coffee crate, such as a slanted roof and taller sides in the back. Vintage coffee crates are lightweight, making it easier to build this one on the ground and install it in one piece with the help of another person. With the crate front attached to a frame that mounts to a 2-by-4 secured to wall studs, you can lift the range hood into place and prop it up while driving in the mounting screws. Then, you can install the insert and duct after you have the hood mounted on the wall.

To DIY a range hood like this in your own home, you'll want to gather everything before installation and plan from the start. Choose either a ducted or ductless range hood insert, which you can find at online retailers and big box stores. Two of the most common range hood sizes are 30 and 36 inches, so you'll need to find an insert and coffee crate that fits your frame. Once you know your dimensions and have a plan, take a tape measure when you're shopping at flea markets and antique malls for vintage wooden crates. Then, before you build, using cardboard for a template is your secret weapon to avoid mistakes. 

The beauty of a DIY is that you get to make the final choices about details, and it can be what really makes this idea your own. One idea is to use a piece of painted plywood trim underneath to frame the insert. You can also put finishing touches on this project by adding a little stain to raw edges so they don't detract from the natural weathering, nail holes, and branded fonts that make an old coffee crate so unique. You could also pair this idea with salvaged pallet wood or work it into a design that makes a stylish vent hood from cedar picket fence posts.