Re-screening an existing frame, or building a new one
A torn or sagging screen almost always falls into one of two repairs, and telling them apart takes about thirty seconds at the window. If the aluminum or fiberglass frame around the mesh is still straight and the corners are still tight, that's a re-screen: the old mesh comes out, new mesh gets stretched across the same frame and locked in with a fresh spline, and the frame goes back into the same track it came out of. If the frame itself is bent, a corner joint has pulled apart, or it no longer sits flat in the track, new mesh in a damaged frame just tears again or leaves a gap for insects to get through around the edge, so that gets a new frame built rather than re-screened. We check the frame first, not just the mesh, because re-screening a frame that won't hold its shape is a repair that doesn't last the season.
Mesh options, honestly explained
Standard fiberglass mesh is the default for a reason: inexpensive, easy to work with, and it does the basic job of keeping insects out without noticeably affecting the view or airflow. It's also the least durable option, and it will tear again eventually from a pet, a stray branch, or years of sun exposure making it brittle. Aluminum mesh holds its shape better and resists denting and puncturing more than fiberglass, at the cost of being stiffer to work with and showing corrosion over time in a way fiberglass never will. Pet-resistant mesh, a thicker vinyl-coated polyester, genuinely holds up to a determined cat or dog far better than fiberglass, but it's heavier, slightly reduces airflow and visibility, and needs a frame in good condition to support the added weight without sagging. Solar or shade mesh is a darker, tightly woven mesh that cuts glare and heat, genuinely useful on a west-facing opening that gets hammered by afternoon sun, but it also darkens the view from inside more than any of the other options and isn't something most people want on every window in the house. None of these is the universally correct choice. Each one trades something away for what it's good at, and we would rather explain the trade than default to whatever is fastest to install.
Spline and corner key repair
Spline is the thin rubber cord that presses mesh into a groove running around the inside of the frame, and it does as much of the actual holding as the frame itself. Old spline dries out, cracks, and loses its grip long before the mesh above it looks worn, which is why every re-screen includes fresh spline rather than reusing what is already there. Corner keys are the small plastic or metal connectors that join the frame rails at each corner, and when one cracks or works loose, that corner of the frame loosens even if the mesh and spline are both fine, letting the whole frame twist slightly out of its rectangle. A cracked corner key gets replaced on its own where the aluminum extrusion itself is still straight. Where the extrusion has bent along with the failed corner, that points back to a new frame rather than a single-part fix.
Custom sizing for older homes
Plenty of homes around Lancaster County predate the standard window sizes that hardware-store screen kits are built around, and on those houses a generic kit usually doesn't fit the track at all, or gets forced in and pops back out within a season. When that's the situation, the screen frame gets custom cut to the actual opening rather than the nearest stock size, the same way the window itself was likely never a size you would find on a shelf either. This comes up often enough on older homes with original openings that we keep raw aluminum stock on hand specifically for it, rather than treating every custom size as a special order.
Spring is the busy season for a reason
Screens get put back in around the same few weeks every year, right as people start opening windows again after winter, and that means spring is consistently our busiest stretch for this particular repair. It's worth knowing going in that lead times on custom frames run a little longer in April and May than they do in October, simply because more of them are in the queue at once. None of that changes what the job involves, and we take screen calls year round, but anyone thinking ahead about a known tear or a bent frame saves themselves a longer wait by calling before the first warm week rather than during it.
We take these on purpose. A screen repair is a small job, sometimes barely worth the drive on its own, and plenty of companies built around full replacement sales quietly don't answer this kind of call at all, or quote it high enough that it stops making sense to the person asking. We would rather be the company that shows up for the small stuff, because someone whose screen we fixed for not much money is exactly the person who calls us, or tells a neighbor to call us, when a real window job comes along later.
For a longer look at why this kind of small repair gets skipped by a lot of companies and what else falls into that same category, our piece on screens, casings, and the jobs bigger companies skip covers that in more depth.
Frequently asked questions
Do you re-screen existing frames or only sell new ones?
Both, depending on the frame. If the existing frame is still straight and the corners are tight, we re-screen it with fresh mesh and spline. A new frame only gets built when the old one is bent, cracked at a corner, or no longer sits flat in the track.
What mesh should I choose if I have pets or a lot of afternoon sun?
For pets, a pet-resistant vinyl-coated mesh holds up to claws far better than standard fiberglass, though it's heavier and slightly reduces visibility. For a window that takes a lot of direct afternoon sun, solar or shade mesh cuts glare and heat but darkens the view more than a standard screen. We can put either on just the windows that need it rather than the whole house.
Can you build a screen for an older home with a non-standard window size?
Yes, and it comes up regularly. Older homes frequently have openings that predate standardized window sizing, so a hardware-store screen kit doesn't fit correctly. We cut the frame to your actual opening instead of the nearest stock size.
Is spring really the busiest time for screen repair?
Generally, yes, since most people notice a torn or missing screen right as they start opening windows again for the season. We take these calls year round, but custom frames take a little longer to turn around in spring than they do in fall simply because more are in the queue at once.