Protect the Interior of your Home with Bug Screen

Bugs and pests interfere with outdoor enjoyment.  If you live in the mild climate area, you might consider hiring a local builder to add a screened porch to your home.  Determine what your priority’s are such as keeping out the bugs, concerning about excessive exposure to the sun, intruder problems, the surrounding elements (salty air or high wind) and the attractiveness of the addition.  Nowadays, bug screens are available in a variety of colors, materials, and finishes from galvanized steel screening (now considered outdated) to fiberglass, bronze, and aluminum. Here is some information about bug screens for homeowner to select from in order to optimize your outdoor living experience.

• For the screen material, you can choose from aluminum, plastic, fiberglass, copper, or bronze.  Aluminum is inconspicuous, but it is subject to staining.  Fiberglass and plastic won’t stain, but their filaments are thicker which affect some visibility.  Copper and bronze must be coated with vanish periodically to prevent staining.

• Screen mesh is categorized by its weave density.  Standard mesh screen is commonly refers to as “18 by 16”.  This simply means it has 18 openings across and 16 openings down per square inch.  The mesh with more openings per square inch means more tightly the weave.

• For severe sunlight area, consider sun shading screens.  All screens stop some sunshine, but solar screens are woven so tightly they offer significant shading for anyone near the windows.  Typical solar screens stop up to 65 % of sunlight for less than $ 1.00 per square foot.  Aluminum and bronze screens are capable of blocking out as much as 85% of sunlight at cost up to $15.00 per square foot.  Solar screens are available in 100-foot by 36-inch rolls and will cost you $175 to $200.  Buy the sun shading screens that are 18/14 mesh or finer.  

• If you are only concerned about mosquitoes, light aluminum or fiberglass screens should work.  These inexpensive screens come in colors and they can be installed easily.  Look for a mesh count of 20 by 20 to keep out mosquitoes and other pesky insects.  Basic aluminum or fiberglass screens come in 100-foot-long by 30-inch-wide rolls and cost $78 to $85 per roll.

• Heavy mesh steel screening can be installed as a security measure.  Security screens don’t look much different than other screens, but they are made of heavy mesh steel (trade name Kevlar) that is mounted in tough frames.  They won’t stop the most determined criminal, but they can’t be kicked or punched out and are very difficult to cut.  Contact your local home security company for availability of the product.

• If you have a small dog, you can install dog proof screening on lower panels of your screened area only.  Durable weave such as vinyl coated polyester “pet screens” can be seven times stronger than standard insect screening. 

• For coastal regions, fiberglass and bronze are better choice of screens.  Aluminum will anodized and break down in salt air if the rust proof coating chips or cracks.  Bronze screening, really a combination of copper and zinc is extremely durable and will withstand severe coastal weather.  It comes with a bright gold finish that fades to a patina of dark brown overtime.  Bronze screens cost about $ 1.20 per square foot.  Fiberglass, on the other hand, costs about 14 cent per square foot.  It won’t corrode in the salt air and require little maintenance.  Fiberglass is less rigid and easier to work with than bronze screens and aluminum, but it can ripple if not stretched correctly during installation.

• If you want to savior the unobstructed view or you are concerned about severe storms in your area, consider a retractable screening.  They are about 15 % more to install than a permanent screened porch.  They keep the bugs out in the summer but fully retracted away on mild days or during the most severe storms (you will save money on screening replacement cost in the long run).

Screened in area keeps out pests, increases privacy, and lets you enjoy the outdoors.  Before you rush out to hire the dream building expert, take sometime to carefully plan your screened area, and pretty soon, you will have an extra light, airy, and casual living space you would love for years to come.