Sliding Screen Doors – Repairing and Saving Money

Sliding screen doors have became extremely popular in many modern homes. Not only does it add a unique design to the house, it also prevents insects from getting into your home. On a nice cool day, you want to ventilate the house by opening windows in front and back of the house. This way inside your home doesn’t feel warm, which many people will turn on the fan or air conditioner. Why waste money on electricity bill when you can let in the cool breeze?

Since most houses are equipped with screening protection, you don’t have to worry about any forbidden things like bugs getting into your home. In this article you will learn about how to properly repair a screen door, ways to save money, and which parts to focus on while repairing sliding screen doors.

When dealing with a sliding screen door, there are a few ways you can save money. One easy way would be to actually utilizing the screen by opening the sliding glass door screen. This will allow you to control the cool or hot air going into your home. By not having to use the air conditioner or heater, you can save a lot of money. Another way to save money on these sliding screen doors is to repair it yourself if there are any damage on it. Whether the mesh (the screen part) is damaged by pets or children, it will need to be replaced.

 Depending on your sliding screen doors, most doors should contain two tensions on them. You will need a Phillips screwdriver to loosen them up a bit. The two tensions should be located at the bottom of the screen door, in front and on the back of the door. The sliding door screens near the bottom should have tracks and wheels on them. You will need a Flathead screwdriver or anything to place under the screen door. At this point you can pretty much tug and pull the bottom part out and place it at an angle. Now you can easily pull the top part of the screen door and easily remove it off.

The mesh is the inside part of the sliding screen door that keeps the insects from going into your home. To remove the mesh you have to remove the spline. The spline is a long piece of string like material that holds the mesh down in place. You may need to unscrew the door handles to completely remove the spline to take the mesh out.

When you have the sliding screen doors out, you want to thoroughly inspect the screen door. Things you should inspect includes: door handles, wheels, mesh and two tensions. Anything that looks damaged should be replace to save time from taking off the door again. All parts are inexpensive and easily replaced.

You want to first measure the door frame’s width and length. Then you want to add on a few more inches, so you don’t fall short on mesh when placing it on. It’s safer to have extra mesh than fall short and not fit the door frame. The last thing you want to do is waste time and go back to the store and buy more. Another thing you might want to pay attention to is the fabric that is used. You want the UV inhibitor type so you can avoid any type of decay or fading.

You are going to first need to purchase a roller tool that is used to push the spline into the groove of the sliding screen doors. The safest way to buy a spline is to bring the old spline into your local home improvement store and see if it’s the right diameter. Since the spline comes in different diameter, you don’t want to get the wrong size. Once you have the proper sliding screen door parts like the: roller, spline and mesh, you are ready to install it.

You need to place the screen door on a flat surface on the ground. Then you need to lay the mesh on it evenly, covering the whole door. Starting at one corner of the screen door, push the spline into the groove with a roller. Slowly work your way through the whole circumference of the door and end up where you started. Any excess mesh from this point can be cut off using a razor blade. From this point on, all you need to do is screw everything back into place and place the sliding door back onto the track.

Although replacing your sliding screen doors is an easy task, you don’t want to waste time repairing it all the time. You can avoid damage by watching out for things like twigs and rocks, keeping pets and kids away, and not aggressively opening and closing it. If properly cared for, you shouldn’t need any repairs on it for at least five years or so. There are also online videos available to help guide you to fix a sliding screen door. Repairing your own screen door goes in hand with saving money. Bottom line is that if you repair your own doors, you are going to save money.

There are other types of screening mesh that you can walk through and also serve the same purpose of keeping insects out available.