A New Hood Fan And DIY Custom Cover – Week 7 of the One Room Challenge

It’s week seven of the One Room Challenge and I’m sharing my progress on our DIY custom hood fan cover. In this post, A New Hood Fan And DIY Custom Cover, I share the planning, materials, and construction stages. Next week, I will share the finishing details and the final reveal of the hood fan cover and our entire updated kitchen.

In case you missed my first six posts of the One Room Challenge (ORC), you can find them here:

A Modern Kitchen Update – Week 1 of the One Room Challenge

My New Favourite White Paint – Week 2 of the One Room Challenge

Step-By-Step Lined Roman Shades – Week 3 of the One Room Challenge

Modernizing Our Farmhouse Kitchen – Week 4 of the One Room Challenge

Bar Stool Slipcover Tutorial – Week 5 of the One Room Challenge

Adding Artwork To The Kitchen – Week 6 of the One Room Challenge

Before Photo

Previously, our hood fan was a builder grade unit that did nothing more than blow the air around a little. It was ineffective at removing cooking odours and (the occasional) smokiness resulting from burnt food. It also had little appeal from a decorative standpoint. I knew I wanted a higher power hood fan and a custom cover.

The Hood Fan Insert

The first step was to purchase and install a new hood fan. It was surprisingly simple to remove the old hood fan and doors that covered the hood fan workings. It was simply a matter of unscrewing every screw visible on the underside of the old hood fan. The new hood fan is a 3-speed hood fan insert with light. I chose the Faber INLX28SSV model in the 28″ size because of the good reviews and 600 CFM rating.

The CFM rating refers to the ventilation power of your range hood in cubic feet per minute. You need at least 100 CFM for every 10,000 BTUs of your stovetop. For electric stoves, you can calculate the required CFM value by multiplying the stove width by 10. So, our 30″ stove needs 300 CFM (our old one was only 200 CFM). However, there are many other considerations to take into account. We tend to cook a lot and I have allergies, asthma, and sensitivity to smoke, so we wanted something more powerful. The model we chose is also a lot quieter than our old hood fan. I can have the new hood fan running and still carry on a conversation.

Planning For The Hood Fan Cover

The inspiration for our hood fan cover came from Ten June Blog as seen in the image below. I adapted the design to work with our existing cabinet crown moulding, so I opted for an angled cover. In addition, rather than applying shiplap to the cover, I decided to apply simple shaker style moulding that is in keeping with the style of our cabinets. I did copy the idea of a white cover for the top part and a stained wood trim piece at the bottom.

I drew a simple 3D sketch of what I wanted the hood fan to look like and figured out the simplest way to achieve this look. My drawing was not pretty but it had all the dimensions of the pieces I needed for my hood fan cover.

Materials For The Hood Fan Cover

• 1 by 8 pine board (6′ long) to cut the quadrilateral shaped supports for the angled cover
• 30″ by 30″ sheet of 6mm Baltic Birch plywood
• 1 by 6 poplar board for the decorative wood base (6′ long)
• 1.5″ wide (1/4″ thick) poplar trim pieces (about 12′ long)
• Screws, brad nails, measuring tape, pencil, screwdriver, clamps
• Sandpaper (120, 220, and 320 grit)
• No More Nails adhesive
• Paintable wood filler
• Paintable caulking
• Primer for use on bare wood
• Cabinet paint (I used Benjamin Moore Advance)
• Roller tray, mini roller, 2″ paintbrush and mini paintbrush
• Stain for the wood trim pieces (I used Homestead House Stain and Finishing Oil in a 50/50 mix of Cappuccino and Driftwood)

I was able to complete the work using the following tools: a compound mitre saw, a hand saw, and a brad nailer with compressor. I don’t have a table saw so I had to get creative with some of the cuts I needed.

Construction Of The Hood Fan Cover

Install The New Hood Fan Insert

The first step was to remove the old unit and install the new unit. I created a small frame to support the hood fan and attached it to the cabinet sides with screws. The installation guide that came with our hood fan was very helpful and provided good guidance on the installation process.

Make The Hood Fan Supports

To make the custom hood fan cover, I first made the quadrilateral shaped supports for the cover piece from the pine board. I used my compound mitre saw for all the cuts and used my drawing as guidance for the dimensions. The base of the supports protrudes 2.5″ from the front of the cabinets. I set back the supports far enough to account for the thickness of the cover pieces as I didn’t want the cover to protrude past the crown moulding at the top.

It was about this point in the project where I needed a pick me up, and my chosen audio mood enhancer was the Jane Goodall Hopecast. I always listen to music, an audiobook, or a podcast while working because it makes a tedious job more enjoyable and enhances my patience. Anyways, thumbs up to this inspiring podcast.

Make The Decorative Wood Trim

Next, I cut the side pieces for the wood trim using the popular wood. I planned that the wood trim would extend slightly past where the angled hood fan cover would protrude. I needed to make a cut out for the hood fan unit so I marked the cutting lines and used my compound mitre saw to make the main cuts. Then I used my hand saw to finish the cuts. If you have a table saw, this can be done much quicker and easier.

These are the completed side pieces for the wood trim. I then stained them and will apply them after the main cover piece is installed. I’m waiting to cut the front piece of the wood trim until the side pieces are installed, so I can get a precise measurement.

Make The Main Hood Fan Cover Piece

Next, I assembled the main cover for the hood fan. I used the compound mitre saw to cut the Baltic Birch plywood 30″ wide by 25″ long. Then, I attached the trim pieces all the way around the birch piece and up the centre using No More Nails and many clamps.

After 24 hours, I removed the clamps and sanded all the edges and joints smooth using progressively finer sandpaper (120 to 320 grit).

Painting

Next came the step where the fates did not align in my favour. I purchased a colour-match paint for our cabinets and after applying the primer and the first coat of paint I realized that the paint I had purchased was not a good match with our cabinets (too dark and too grey). I’ve experienced this is in the past and have come to the conclusion that our cabinets are difficult to match by the automated machines that paint stores have (we’ve tried two different paint brands for matching).

I’m never one to give up, so I got out my paints and painstakingly adjusted the colour to salvage the paint. I ended up using about 75% (failed) cabinet paint, 25% Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee, and small amounts of yellow paint I had on hand. The failed paint was too dark and too grey, so the Swiss Coffee lightened it up and the yellow paint added the much needed creamy tone. After about an hour of work, I was satisfied with the new colour. I applied two coats of the corrected cabinet paint to the cover piece and side support pieces and allowed it to dry for 24 hours.

Finishing

Next, I attached the front piece to the supports using “No More Nails” and three brad nails on each side. I then filled these with wood filler and painted over the filled hole with a small dab of paint.

Then, I attached the stained wood trim pieces to the sides of the cabinets using several brad nails which will be hidden under the hood fan cover.

Then, I carefully measured and cut my front trim piece and stained it using my Fusion Stain and Finishing Oil blend. I was feeling a little impatient at this point so I put it out in the sun to dry and after about two hours it was dry enough to handle. I then attached it to the side supports with three brad nails per side. It wasn’t necessary to fill these tiny holes but did give the tips of the nails a tiny dab of craft paint I mixed to the same colour as the stain.

Summary

I hope you enjoyed my post, A New Hood Fan And DIY Custom Cover. Please come back next week for the final reveal! In the meantime, I hope you’ll check out all the other fabulous transformations happening with the One Room Challenge.