2 tips for those who are about to install security screen doors in their house

If you are planning to install security screen doors in your house soon, you may find the following advice to be useful.

1. Do not try to fix any damage the doors sustain without the help of a tradesperson 

If at any point after installing your security screen doors, one of them sustains damage (for example, if a hole forms in the screen mesh), you should not fix this damage on your own, even if you have the necessary tools to do so. Instead, you should get the damaged door repaired by a tradesperson.

There are a couple of reasons why it is not advisable to repair this type of security feature by yourself. Firstly, if you are not a tradesperson and if you have no experience with carrying out this particular type of repair work, you may end up doing it incorrectly.

Your poor workmanship could then render the screen door ineffective at keeping intruders out of your home. For example, if you try to patch up a hole in the screen with another type of mesh material that is not very robust, a burglar might be able to cut through it with a blade and then get into your home.

Secondly, if your screen doors are mentioned as a security feature in your home insurance policy and the policy stipulates that any repair work that needs to be done to them must be carried out by a tradesperson, your DIY approach could invalidate your home insurance policy. This could be financially devastating if your home is ever burglarised or severely vandalised.

2. Monitor the condition of the frame that the screen doors are attached to

Security screens of this type are usually made from very robust metals, that are designed to withstand the test of time. As such, you don't necessarily need to continually check the screen doors for signs of deterioration, as they will probably remain in good condition for many years.

However, it is important to regularly inspect the frames to which you attach these screen doors and to promptly fix any damage you find during these inspections.

The reason for this is as follows; if for example, one of the screen doors is attached to a wooden frame that has begun to rot, and you don't spot and replace this rotting frame, an intruder could get past this barrier quite easily, as the hinges of the screen will detach from the crumbling frame if they apply even a small amount force to the screen.

As such, it's sensible to examine the frames that you attach the screen doors to on a regular basis so that you can quickly replace them if they begin to deteriorate.