THE SCREEN WINDOW PROJECT

Perhaps you've already heard the saga of the screen window project. Perhaps you haven't. Regardless, it's such a remarkable tale that I've recreated it here, with photographs.

The rear window of the apartment, which opens into a kind of air shaft, has a vertical orientation. It needs a screen, but it's hard to find an adjustable one that fits into such a tight horizontal space.
























In the past I've taken an adjustable screen, cut out the screen, put a cardboard "frame" around it using tape, and jammed it in the window. (The screen looks like it could easily fit in the window as is, but that's not the case.) This time, using only a screwdriver (even though no screwdriving was involved) I improvised a different fate for the adjustable screen. First, I separated one half from the other.
























Then I removed the sliding metal frames and the wood. This revealed a thin and somewhat flexible inner screen. Note the metal tabs sticking out from the "bottom" of the inner screen.
























So I put the flexible inner screen into the window. It just fit, but seemed to be on the verge of falling out. So I kept the metal tabs on the down side and realized I could keep the upper part of the screen in place using the piece of wood. So far it's working out great!
























This might not strike you as pretty or even impressive, but it's a definite improvement on the old cardboard/tape arrangement.
























Photos: David Marc Fischer