How to Install a French Door Screen

Installing a french screen door sounds like a daunting task but in reality, it isn't hard at all. Here are a few steps that can guide you through the process with ease.

Measure the Door

The first thing that you need to do is measure the door opening as well as the french doors. You will want to find screen doors that can fit the opening, so you will divide the size of the opening by 2 if you want to have both doors. If you want to have only one screen door, then you can measure the opening and then find a door that fits that size. When continuing through the steps, be sure to complete each one but with only one door instead of two.

Screw-in Hinges

Next, you will need to screw in the hinges using the screwdriver on both sides of the door frame so that you can later attach the door. Many times your door frame will not have pre-drilled holes in it on both sides, just on the side that the door is typically screwed into. If there are no pre-drilled holes for the hinges, then you will want to do it yourself before you begin with the hinges. When you are drilling the pilot holes, make sure that everything is lining up properly on both sides so that you will only have to drill the number of holes that you need.

This is important because if you mess up, you may end up having to fix or replace the frame. Then, once the holes are drilled you can screw in the hinges and make sure that everything is secure and in place. Any hardware that came with the screen can now be installed with the screwdriver. If you are only installing one door then you can screw in hinges to the side that the door belongs on.

Install the Screen Door

Once everything is prepared, you will want to ask a partner to help you install the screen door. You can lift it into place and have someone hold it up for you to easily put it in. Line it up and then use a screwdriver to attach the hinges to the door as well. Be sure that everything is secure and have the other person gently let go and test it out. Once this is finished, you can go through and install any of the closers that came with the door to keep it from slamming. Do this on each of the doors unless you are only installing one.

Now that you are finished you will want to test out the doors to make sure that they are installed straight and work properly. Continue to monitor for a few days to be sure that everything is opening straight so you can fix it immediately if necessary.