How to Repair a Hole in a Pool Screen

Gluing Metal Screening

• 1

  Cut a piece of metal screen 1/2 inch larger than the hole in all directions with metal snips to create a patch.

• 2

  Lay the patch on a sheet of wax paper. Cover a board or other stiff surface with wax paper. Have a helper hold the wax paper-covered board over the hole from the inside or outside of the pool screen enclosure.

• 3

  Paint a light coat of epoxy adhesive over the patch.

• 4

  Place the patch on the screen with the hole aligned to the center of the patch.

• 5

  Hold a piece of wax paper over the patch. Rub the wax paper with your hand to bond the patch firmly to the existing screen.

• 6

  Dip a small brush into the epoxy adhesive and coat the edges of the patch. Let the adhesive dry for one to two hours and apply a second coat of adhesive.

Sewing Metal Screening

• 7

  Cut a patch from metal screening 1/2-inch larger than the hole in all directions with metal snips.

• 8

  Grip a piece of the metal screening that you cut the patch from with pliers and strip off a thread of metal screening.

• 9

  Place the metal screening thread through the eye of a needle. Position the screen patch over the hole.

• 10

  Poke the needle through the patch and the existing screen 1/4 inch from the edge of the patch. Pull the metal thread through the screen until all but 1 inch of the thread is through the screen. Poke the needle back through the screen and pull the metal thread tight to the patch and existing screen. Continue to poke the needle through the edge of the patch and screen until you sew the entire patch to the existing screen. Finish sewing the patch at the point at which you started sewing. Snip the metal thread 1 inch above the screen.

• 11

  Grip the two loose metal thread ends with pliers and twist them together tightly.

Fiberglass Screens

• 12

  Measure the size of the hole in the pool screen.

• 13

  Fit a patch that is 1/2 inch larger than the hole over the hole in the pool screen.

• 14

  Wrap a board in a cotton cloth. Have a helper hold the board against the screen.

• 15

  Peel the backing off the fiberglass patch and center the patch over the hole.

• 16

  Heat an iron to the temperature as specified by the fiberglass patch manufacturer. Place the iron over the patch, pressing onto the cotton-covered board until the patch securely covers the hole in the screen. Typically, a fiberglass patch requires a minute or less of heat to bond to the existing fiberglass screen.