The basics of Windows Screen Repair

Window screen repair is a fair bit easier than patio door screen repair. For one thing most window screens are small enough that you can lay them down on a good size work table. Thats great for saving your back and knees.

To make the job easier still, nail 2 nice straight wooden cleats along 2 perpendicular sides of your table. The cleats should be thin enough that you can use inexpensive spring clamps to hold the window screen to be repaired in place against the cleats.

Putting the window screen against the cleats will reveal if the frame is bent, which is often the case in window screen repair. Clamping the frame to the table will make it easier to dig out the spline and pull it out of its channel.

With the spline out, the screen cloth should be easy to remove. Sometimes, if you have white vinyl spline, the spline is so brittle with age that you just have to scrape and cut through it with a utility knife. You will have to get all the tiny pieces out of the spline channel before you put new cloth in.

Before you put the cloth in, go around the frame checking for bent rails. The screen bar is easy to bend straight if you use your work table as a bending tool/aid. Light hand pressure is all thats needed.

Lay the cloth over the screen and use the spring clamps to hold it down all around the frame. Adjust the cloth so its perfectly square on the frame. Select the right size spline, and roll it in. Trim the edges with a utility knife.