Baseboard water heater cover replacement?

Question

We have a house with a ridiculous amount of baseboard water heaters. They cover the wall of every single outer wall inside the house. They are in horrible condition, bent, and the previous owner drilled little holes unevenly across all of the bottoms (weirdo left messages in red marker behind all of the wood paneling we are removing too?!), for some reason.

SO, we want to replace the covers (not the whole heater) We are going to need about 150 ft of covers. Everywhere I look, the cheapest is about $10 a foot!? We cannot afford to really go over $400 on this one! Is there anything WAY cheaper out there, and why is it so expensive in the first place?

Please don't direct me to Menards, Lowes, Home Depot... etc! They don't have anything cheap for covers!

Answer 1

You might check with a sheet metal shop & have some made.  Then paint with high-heat paint.