Instructions for re-screening your windows, screen door, or patio door
You will need:
Replacement screen wire or mesh
Replacement screen spline
A regular, flat-head screwdriver or an awl
Screen roller tool
Order your screen repair materials from our store
After removing the screen, lie the screen on a flat surface. The side showing the edges of the screen and screen spline should be facing up.
Locate a corner where the spline as been cut, or find one of the ends of the spline. Using a flat screwdriver or an awl, pry the end of the spline loose and pull it out of the frame. Remove all of the spline including broken pieces. You may be able to re-use your old spline if it is continuous and not brittle when you remove it.
From underneath the frame, press upward with your hand to free the old screen from the frame.
Prepare the replacement screen wire. Cut or trim the new screen wire to a size that will overlap the screen frame by two inches on all four sides. The screen wire can be cut with a utility knife. Position the new screen material uniformly over the screen frame. Beginning at one corner, start an end of the spline by holding the screen wire in place and pressing the spline into the corner of the groove. Using the grooved end of a screen roller, work the spline from the corner, down the channel feeding new spline as you go. If you're using a metal or aluminum screen material, you may "start" the screen before pressing the spline into place. Do this by gently creating a groove in the screen wire within the spline channel or groove. This will help in keeping the screen squarely aligned with the frame while you insert the screening spline. Start out easy, but get the spline securely started into the groove.
If you're not using aluminum wire screening, you will not be able to pre-roll the screen into the channel before rolling in the spline. Work slowly with nylon or fiberglass screening to prevent shifting of the material while you install it. With fiberglass screen and other lightweight screen materials, you will have the best luck at preventing the screen material from shifting if you install one side, then switch to the opposite side, top then bottom, etc.
Place your free hand about eight inches from the frame inside the screen area and hold the screen in place while you continue rolling the spline. Pay attention to make sure that the screen does not shift and pull away from the opposite side by more than 1/2 inch while you roll in the spline. When you reach the corner, you can bend the spline to turn the corner and continue. After you have gone halfway around the screen, it will become more and more tight as you go. Keep your hand pressed along the frame parallel to your hand as you move along. This will keep enough slack in the screen to prevent twisting the frame as you progress.
