Why are curtain rods and their accompanying hardware so stinking expensive? If you dress your windows with items bought at a mid-priced store like Target, you could end up paying more for the curtain rods than for the curtains! I came up with a solution that looks great and saves so much money. Keep reading to see how to make your own PVC conduit curtain rods!
PVC Conduit Curtain Rods and DIY Rod Hardware
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE YOUR OWN CURTAIN RODS
My made-over sunroom has 8 windows because a sunroom kind of fails at its job if it doesn’t let in the sun. I wanted to hang sheers in the room to have some privacy and because I think window treatments just make a room look finished. There was no way I was going to shell out the $50+ PER WINDOW that it would have cost to buy everything from the store.
I prevented one considerable expense by sewing the curtains myself and created another huge saving by DIYing the rods and hardware. I did some internet research and my dad and I were able to put up curtains all the way around the room for far less than the cost of store-bought with a simple trip to the hardware store!
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- 1 inch galvanized steel pipe straps
- nuts and bolts
- corner brace
- screwdriver
- pliers
- 1-inch PVC conduit
- spray paint
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HOW TO MAKE CHEAP DIY CURTAIN RODS
You can save a fortune by making your own curtain rods, especially if your room calls for extra long curtain rods. Measure the width of your window well, and cut the PVC pipe slightly longer than that to have enough room to hang the rods on the anchors.
Instructions for DIY Curtain Rods and Hardware
- Assemble the curtain rod brackets.
Use a pair of pliers to bend the outside edge of the pipe strap back toward itself in a small loop. Attach the pipe strap to the corner bracket with a bolt and a nut. Spray the new brackets with a few coats of white spray paint and let them dry.
- Create the correct lengths of the conduit curtain rod.
Use a hacksaw to cut the conduit to size. If you are making a long curtain rod, you will want to piece together sections with a wooden dowel wrapped in duct tape to prevent them from slipping.
- Spray paint the conduit.
Tip: I jammed some dowels down into our lawn and put a section of PVC conduit over each so I could spray paint the pipe in the round.
- Installing the curtain rods.
The DIY hardware screws to the wall like any other curtain rod hardware. The PVC sits down in the DIY rod hardware, then you can pinch the pipe strap tight to secure the new curtain rods in place.
CONDUIT CURTAIN RODS IN OUR SUNROOM
For our sunroom, I gave the PVC a few coats of Krylon ColorMaster in metallic gold. It’s a very warm gold color that looks quite a bit like brass.
You can save a bucketful of money by making your own curtain rods and hardware if you are willing to put in the time.
You might like these other sunroom DIYs:
Really great idea!! Conduit is a much cheaper alternative to regular curtain rods and in my opinion, BETTER, because it can be painted any color you choose! Thanks for sharing!
So very smart! I'm sure your neighbors laughed (like mine would) about the sticks sticking out of the ground. 😉
Genius way to spray paint them! Exactly the help I was looking for to make it easier to spray them without spinning them and getting it all ove my fingers and smudging up the ends. I’m using the galvanized conduit but I think I can follow the same steps.
Thank you so much for sharing this! Saved me a lot of pennies 🙂
I have been searching Pinterest all night for diy rods and hooks and I like this idea best because it’s so simple! Can you tell me what size of bolt and nut you used? I see that there isn’t a big long piece of bolt or screw hanging down! Thank you so much!
I think it was just a 1/2 in. x 1/2 in. bolt. Hope that helps!
how strong is this? I’m tired of my curtain rods getting bent up from my toddlers pulling at them. Do you think your brackets would hold up to little people running to the window and pulling open the curtains? The rods themselves seem like they would be nice and sturdy. Great idea!
Thanks for the kind comment. I don’t think these brackets are any sturdier than store-bought brackets, unfortunately. They would likely bend if your kids yanked on the curtains too hard.
Thanks for the great tutorial on the curtain rods and hardware. I have been trying to make the swing arm curtain rods and would appreciate any ideals on the hardware to mount the rods.
This is just what I wanted. Thank you for the easy instructions. Now I can show my husband how it’s done ♥
Genius! I am using your idea for the rod brackets. Thanks so much for sharing…
Great idea. Just have one question. How do you prevent the curtains from coming off the end?
I have had some issues with the conduit rods slipping out of the hardware. If you really pinch the hardware tight around the conduit, it shouldn’t move much.