Would a hanging mesh screen work on french doors?

I put one of those magnetic mesh curtains across a set of French doors two summers ago and it's still going. It can work, but the width and the swing direction are the two things that decide whether you'll like it or hate it.

On width, most of the common walk-thru ones are sized for a single 36 inch door. A double opening is usually around 60 to 72 inches, so you'll want either the extra-wide versions sold for patio sliders or two panels overlapped. I went the overlap route with two regular ones and it's fine, but the overlap seam in the middle is a weak spot. The magnets don't always find each other across a doubled-up edge, so you end up with a gap at knee height some days. If you can find a true double-width panel with a full magnetic strip down the split, that seals way better than two singles mashed together. The pinch question is the bigger deal, honestly. The mesh hangs from a velcro or thumbtack strip on the face of the frame, and it just hangs there in the doorway. If your doors swing out toward the patio, mount the curtain on the inside and the doors swing away from it, no problem. If they swing inward, the doors will sweep right through the mesh every time and either yank the velcro loose or shove the curtain aside so it never reseats. You can't really fix that with mounting position because there's no spare face to hang it on. So figure out your swing direction before you buy anything.

Also check the height. These are cut for 80 to 82 inch openings and mine needed the hem let out to reach the sill, otherwise wasps walk right under the gap. A row of weights or a sewn hem in the bottom edge helps it close faster in a breeze too, which matters a lot when the whole point is leaving the doors open for airflow.

Before all these magnetic things existed we just hung proper hinged screen doors on french openings, wooden frames with fiberglass mesh stapled in. My old man did ours back in the 80s and they outlasted the house. More work to hang, sure, but nothing gets swept through the middle and the seam problem disappears entirely.

If you go the curtain route anyway, keep a roll of that self adhesive hook and loop tape on hand. The stuff they ship with these curtains is junk and you'll be re-sticking it by August.

One thing I'd ask is wheather you get real wind on that patio. A loose curtain on a wide double opening turns into a sail.

This is helpful, thanks. Our doors swing inward so it sounds like the curtain thing might be a lost cause for us anyway, wich is a bummer. One thing I keep wondering though, does that mesh stuff actually let a decent breeze through? Our whole point is airflow and I'd be annoyed if we traded wasps for a stuffy room.

Update: went with the hinged screen doors like the second poster suggested. Built simple wooden frames with mesh, hung them on the outside so the inward swing isn't an issue at all. Breeze comes through fine and nothing gets swept through a middle seam. Wish I'd done it the first summer instead of messing around with curtain ideas.