How to fix your sliding door screen

Just Kidding !

I have put many years of my own experience into these online instructions, so you should be able to tackle just about any sliding screen repair problem.

And even if you still run into trouble, theres a great help resource at the bottom of this page where I give specific answers on plenty of screen repair problems.

Enjoy !

Getting ready to repair your screen

First of all remove your sliding door screen. If you are having difficulty with that, the screen door installation and removal pages will help you remove just about any type of screen door.

lay the sliding screen down on a flat surface with lots of room around you. Screen repair shops use a 4' x 8' table covered with carpeting to protect the screen doors painted finish.

A couple of collapsible work table work tables will work for just about any size screen. If you have no suitable table, lay the screen door on the ground on top of sheets of cardboard to prevent getting the screen door frame scratched or marked.

If you have purchased your screen material, make sure you have enough before you pull out the old screen cloth from the sliding screen door.

Removing the old screen cloth

Take a strong sharp pointed pin, (I use an awl), and poke around in each corner of the door to find the end of the spline. Then lever the spline out of the channel, and grab it it with your fingers and pull it all the way out. If you have not already got your screen cloth here are some links for the various types available. Click this link for fiberglass screening.

Its the most commonly used screen material and the easiest to work with. Its biggest benefit is that if you roll it in too tight, you can often pull it out and start again.

Click this link for aluminum screen cloth. Aluminum is a bit more difficult to work with, you only have one chance to roll it in square and smooth. But if you have done a few aluminum screens you get used to it.

There is also petscreen pet proof screen cloth. Its a very strong polyester material that can stand up to pets scratching very well.

Its not that hard to install but you will need to get the spline size right.

You need at least 84 inches of cloth to repair the average sliding screen door with a height between 76 and 81 inches. That's the length you get in most pre-cut rolls from the hardware store.

Some screen doors are taller though so you may need to get the material cut off the 100 foot roll. The width of the cloth should be a few inches wider than your door. Common widths are 30, 36 and 48 inches.

The video below shows a sliding door screen being repaired. Notice how the clamps are used to hold the new screen cloth flat across the whole frame. Keeping the material flat is half the battle.

Having trouble getting the spline out ?

Sometimes you wont be able to pull the spline out in one continuous length. It will keep breaking, especially if its white vinyl !. Exposure to the sun leaves plastic spline brittle and inflexible.

In those circumstances, you may have to use a utility knife to cut through the spline all around the spline channel until the spline disintegrates or comes free in small pieces.

An Older sliding door screen may have aluminum or even steel spline. Aluminum spline can be pried out easily enough but it cannot be reused, so be sure you have the right diameter plastic spline on hand to replace it.

Steel spline can be reused but its probably easier to consider having new modern sliding door screen frames made to replace the old steel spline frames.

See this link for more information about screen spline, and all the shapes an sizes it is available in.

Getting the new screen material installed

You can now remove the screen cloth which should come out in one piece. Once you have removed the cloth, use a flat blade screwdriver to clean out the spline channel so that when you roll in new spline there will be no obstructions.

Sliding door screen frames have a tendency to cave in a little when the material is rolled in. Especially if the material is too tight. Window screen frames may need to have the sides bowed out by perhaps one quarter inch to compensate for the tension of the material.

Once in while you will find a sliding door screen that was already bowed or cambered in the factory. Part of the skill required in screen repair is to know how much tension to put on the cloth as you roll it in, so as not to bow in the frame.

To tell if the your screen door has a "camber" to it. Hold the frame up to your face with the screen cloth removed and sight along one of the long rails. It should be obvious if you have rails that bow outward.

If you are using fiberglass cloth, you can usually pull out the spline and start over until you get it right. More practice is required to get aluminum cloth in properly as you cant pull it out and start over. You can clamp the door sides to a repair table to prevent them from being cambered in.

Some screen repair shops use a temporary metal bar across the center of the frame to stop the frame bowing in.

Check your rollers before installing the screen cloth !

The time before you roll the screen is also a good time to check the frame and the screen door rollers or glides. Check to see if they adjust up and down when the screws are tightened or released.

Many rollers can only be serviced by disassembling the frame. So repair them now before spending any time re-screening.

Also check the frame to see if the rails fit tightly together and that there no broken corners. If you find the frame is beyond repair you may want to buy a new screen door kit and build your own sliding screen door.

Rolling in the new screen cloth

If the rollers are working well, lay the new cloth across the frame and use spring clamps to attach the cloth to the frame at each of its four corners.

On one long side, attach a spring clamp at the center point of the sliding door screen frame. Release the clamp on the lower left corner and use a flat bladed screwdriver to push new spline into the spline channel on top of the new cloth.

Then switch to a screen roller, first rolling the new cloth into the spline channel and then rolling in the new spline. If the screen cloth is aluminum wire you will have to roll it in using gentle pressure to avoid tearing the screen cloth.

Keep the cloth slightly taught ahead of the roller with one hand while rolling with the other. Not too tight or the tension in the cloth will bend the screen frame.

When you come to a corner you will need to remove the clamp at that corner just before rolling the material in. Then use the flat blade screwdriver to push in the cloth and spline in the area of the corner. As soon as you have enough room, start using the roller again. Continue in this manner until you have rolled the cloth in all the way around.

Take a tape measure now and check to see if the frame width in the center is the same as on either end. If it is narrower, and you have used fiberglass screen, you can pull out the spline on the long side and re roll with less tension.If you have used aluminum screen, big problem, you will need to redo with a new piece of screen cloth.

If you are satisfied with the job, take a utility knife and cut away the excess screen material being extremely careful not to nick the good material !!!

Congratulations

What if you need to cut your screen door to length ?

There are times when your screen door just wont fit. Perhaps your patio door frame is sagging or you have found a screen door thats "almost" the right size to fit your patio door.

My frame cutting and screen door repair page gives you help when you need to make your screen door smaller. Making it bigger well thats one area that I'm still working on but you can of course get one of my new screen door kits.

Online Help Form

Questions and answers appear on this website after you fill in the form. You might even find the answer to your problem in the questions and answers that are already there.

Show me your screen door problem !

Need advice on replacing rollers or just want to know how to get consarned screen door off ?

Here's a chance for you to show me a picture of your problem door and I will get the answers you need.

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