Screens are intended to keep bugs out while allowing breezes into living spaces. When they don't work as intended, you can fix them with simple tools, easy-to-find materials, and just a little time. Here's how.

How Does It Work?

A screen is a woven mesh stretched and attached to a frame at a window or door opening to keep pests out of the house and small children and household pets in the house. The most common screening materials are vinyl-coated fiberglass and aluminum. Aluminum screens are less likely to tear or sag, but they dent easily and may corrode. Fiberglass won't dent or corrode, is less expensive than aluminum, and is available in a variety of mesh types, including very fine solar-screening mesh that reduces ultraviolet radiation.

What Can Go Wrong?

Screen fabric can tear and sometimes develop holes. Fabric can pull away from the screen frame.