Magic Mesh screen door for A-Frame

[handbuilder]

Hi All

Thought I would share our solution for a fill length screen door for our Hard side.
This is a Magic Mesh screen door (cost $15-). I folded over and stitched the fold flat on each panel (each panel was narrowed to 10-1/4" to 10-1/2") to fit it to the narrow width of the door (20-1/2 ") and shortened to 72" in length.

A word of caution, the mesh panels straight out of the package are not exact cuts...it varies by 1/4" in spots...grrrr...making me adjust placing it on top of the velcro strips I attached to the doorway...maybe one day I will adjust the folded panels for a fit that is not so "tight"

It is velcroed on the top and sides of the interior doorframe. As you can see, the exterior door can still be closed without the need for removal. It pulls right off for take down at the end of a trip.

Hmmmm...sorry for sideway pic post..I have been trying to get them turned upright but no luck...sigh.

[DGrissom]

Originally Posted by handbuilder

Hi All
A word of caution, the mesh panels straight out of the package are not exact cuts...it varies by 1/4" in spots...grrrr...making me adjust placing it on top of the velcro strips I attached to the doorway...maybe one day I will adjust the folded panels for a fit that is not so "tight"

It looks great!

Recently, my wife and I added a Magic Mesh screen to our A128s. It more or less looks like your installation. (Except we put our curtain vertical vs sideways ) Sorry I couldn't resist.

While initial the installation was straight forward, every time I would go through the door I would manage to pull one or more of the Velcro strips off the door frame. I guess my shoulders (My wife says it is not my shoulders. ) are a bit too wide.

We tried every possible combination of tension on the frame sides of the curtain and could never get it to work quite correctly. It was very frustrating. (I think this sounds similar to what you described.)

My final workaround was simple. I used the supplied black tacks with some thin black bungee / elastic formed in to loops. I cut a couple of holes in the outside edge of the curtain and looped the elastic through the holes and tacked the other end of the loop next to the door frame with a small amount of downward tension. This makes the wall edge of the curtain lay flat against the frame. When I go through the door, the elastic stretches and pops back into position. After I am through the center magnets continue to work the nice Magic Mesh "click".

Note: I used 2 elastic loops per side - one just above the wall hinge and one at the bottom of the door.

Also, I use 3 Velcro loops on each side tacked to the wall as curtain pulls to keep the door out of the way when it is not needed.

Like you, my wife and I both felt this was a very worthwhile modification to keep the flying vermin out of our "Rocko".

[handbuilder]

Thats a good one! haha!

I like how you adjusted the panels with the bungee...I may have to do that if I find it gets pilled off. So far (knock on wood) it hasnt....I think DH thinks I am becoming extreme in trying to keep the bugs out. Nothing is more annoying than trying to sleep and hearing a mosquito flying around bapping the ceiling or buzzing my face.

Love to see a pic of your bungee attachment to the door frame?

[FarFromStock]

I've got my screen and magnetic tape materials to do my screen door! I think that'll be my first task in the morning!!!! (maybe the cats will take care of the laundry for me...haha!)

[handbuilder]

We'll look forward to seeing your finished project!

Cats doing laundry? Why not, heres a dog doing dishes...ewww yuk! haha

Ok - Seriously, we want pics when you're all done!

[thehamguy1]

What a great mod! I may just have to scrap my homebrew screen and get one of the Magic Mesh thingies. Yes, let's have pics of all varieties of installations!
Enthusiastic!

[FarFromStock]

Well, the cats didn't do the laundry, but I did manage to make my screen door for Carl (the camper) yesterday morning. As of tonight though, I need to do some more work...the duct tape doesn't want to stick to the screen (it's PVC material, but I thought duct tape sticks to everything!!). And my magnetic tape isn't grabbing the washers through the tape. Hmmm. So...I'll pick up some stronger magnets and see how that works.

Here is a pic of my creation:

[handbuilder]

Wow Deb! You didnt waste any time! Looks great! I initially bought mosquito netting and magnets but nixxed that when I saw Magic Mesh...Im not really very crafty all I make well is decorative handbuilt clay pieces and an occasional puppy litter LOL (see pics below) - But back to topic - your screen door looks super! I am betting stronger magnets (get at Lowes or Home Depot) will do the job! Duct tape comes in different degrees of stickiness...some super sticky and others (like the decorative prints) are not so sticky.

[DGrissom]

Originally Posted by handbuilder

Thats a good one! haha!

Love to see a pic of your bungee attachment to the door frame?

I've got some pictures somewhere of the first version. (I just can't find them.) Until, I can get into the unit to take some new pictures, I've cobbled together this diagram that I hope will help.



It is possible that an elastic "hair band" may work. My wife purchased some lightweight elastic (black bungee type) from a fabric shore. I actually doubled the cord because I was afraid that it would not hold up as a single strand.

There is a small amount of tension on the elastic to pull the taped edge of the screen back to the frame and down. This tension keeps the tape edge tight against the frame. Again, I used 2 bungees setups per side. (One above the wall hinge and one close to the floor.)

Remember, the elastic must be set to allow the magnets to continue to make contact in the center of of the door (I had enough overlap in my panels that it worked.)

The drawing shows how the edge of the door will pull away from the frame area to allow folks to go in and out without pulling the Velcro off the wall.

We removed all Velcro from the screen and door frame.

I hope this helps until I can find the pictures or make some new ones.

[handbuilder]

Yes, this helped to visualize quite a bit! What a great idea - extremely creative! Thanks for taking the time to put diagram up! So you removed velcro attachments and went with the supplied tacks - did you push straight into the wall? I considered that but got nervous... hoping velcro stays up for me otherwise I will be very glad that I stowed those tacks in a drawer 'just on case'.

[2Susan]

Screenings easy to sew on a machine, use some ripstop around the edges as binding.