Window screens can easily be repaired with only a few tools and supplies. Replacement screen mesh is not expensive. For small holes and tears, it is possible to use small patches of screen material instead of replacing the whole screen. Large rips or sagging screen mesh will need to be replaced. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
Repairing Small Holes in Screen
1. Trim out the hole or tear to make a neat square or rectangle with even edges to patch. Cut a square or rectangle patch of screen mesh about 2 inches larger than the area you need to repair. Unravel about 1/2 inch from the edges all around.
2. Fold the wires of the unraveled edges at a right angle to the patch. Insert these wires into the edges of the screen hole you trimmed and bend them back to secure the patch. Use your fingers to bend the wires, or use needle-nose pliers.
For nylon screen, allow longer strands around the edges and weave them into the screen to secure the patch.
3. Run a line of waterproof household cement around the perimeter of the patch for added strength.
4. Use a precut, snap-in screen patch as an alternative for small holes.
Replacing Window Screen
5. Remove the screen frame from the window. Lay it on a flat surface (the floor) with the spline side up. Loosen the spline with a screwdriver, if necessary, and pull out the spline. Remove the screen, and throw the old screen and spline away.
6. Use a stiff brush and clean out the spline groove that runs all the way around the screen frame.
7. Lay the new piece of screen over the frame. Line up the grain of the woven wire or nylon threads so the screen is square in the window frame. Leave at least 2 inches of screen overlapping each edge of the frame.
8. Start the spline on top of the screen. Use the spline roller to press the spline all the way into the groove. Roll the spline tool along the groove all the way around the frame, wedging the screen into the groove with the spline as you go. Keep the screen mesh flat and square, making sure it does not fold or sag.
9. Trim the excess screen from around the edges. Use snips, scissors, or a utility knife and trim close to the spline.
Tags: screen mesh, around edges, into groove, Remove screen, screen frame, screen spline