While painting my lanai, I spilled some latex paint on a portion of a screen, that is part of a much larger panel. The portion is about 5 feet by 6 feet. I used my finger nail several hours later to try and scrape paint off and created a hole. I think the screen is made of fibreglass. I patched it with some kind of scotch tape that looks like a screen. I do not like the look.
Can this screen be repaired without removing it, as the whole screen is too large (Panel) to lay on a floor? I have to reverse panel for repair as screen faces outward.
I am a novice at this.
Kindly outline steps in repairing or please refer me to some interactive tutorial on some web site.
Ace Hardware will usually do it for you, and they are VERY reasonable compared to the cost of you going out and buying some materials and the tool. But if you are going to have to do more than one, it is cost effective to go buy a roll of material and the little tool.
Do it yourself. Get a razor knife with a new blade. Remove the rubber bulb (the stringy thing that holds the screen in the channel. Remove the screen. Clean the channel. Cut an oversize replacement piece. Allow a little extra, but try not to waste too much. Lay it over the opening being sure to have the fibers running parallel with the outside of the screen. Start the bulb in the channel at a corner. Run the tool down one channel, forcing the bulb into the channel. Turn the corner. Pull the material SLIGHTLY towards the next corner, but don't PULL! it. Run another length of bulb, not cutting the original one. Turn screen. Align everything again.
Secrets: Don't worry too much about getting the first two in tight. They won't be. Just pay attention so that you don't have the weave going diagonally in the frame. The third and fourth run of bulb will give you the tension on the screen. If it is not tight enough after doing the third run, pull the bulb and do again, this time pulling a LITTLE! on the screen to add tension. You CAN get it too tight, and when the bulb pushes the screen into the channel it will either tear, or distort, and your frame will not be square when done, but pulled in at the centers of the outside pieces. On the fourth and last run of bulb, this is as good as it gets. Pay attention to the tension, but don't get it too tight. Check the bulb as you go along after each side to be sure it will tuck into the corner, or you will finish and have to pull it all out and do it again.
When finished, trim bulb and push the ends down into the channel. Go over the whole length of channels again with the tool to make sure all is seated. Take the razor knife and trim the bulb and the excess screen.
This is not hard stuff. You WILL screw up some screen, so plan on it. But the stuff is cheap. Save the pieces for smaller screens. After a few, you will get the hang of it. Or you will get lucky, and do it right the first time. Having the screen and bulb makes it easy to fix those screens as soon as they get messed up, and sometimes all it takes is to put the screen back in the track and reseat it.
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