Age and exposure to wind and rain can cause a window screen to become weathered, torn, and damaged. Window screens are fairly simple to remove.
If you need to remove or replace a window screen in your home, you first need to figure out if it is an interior or exterior screen. An interior screen is installed in the grooves of the millwork around the window and stays in place through tension. An exterior screen is secured in place with a plunger-pin system and is hung on the outside of the window. Both interior and exterior window screens can be removed from inside a house.
Removing an Interior Window Screen
- Open the window glass and find the finger lifts, or lift tabs, at the bottom of the screen. (They are generally made of metal or plastic
- Use your index and middle fingers to pull up on the lift tab until the screen lifts slightly.
- Use your fingers to apply pressure and compress the tension-spring mounts at the top of the screen.
- Hold the fingers on your left hand on the lift tab.
- Grab the bottom of the screen with your right hand and lift the bottom out of the groove in the millwork.
- Pull the screen out of the window toward you with both hands.
- Slide the bottom through the opening first. The rest of the screen will follow. You might need to tip the screen to one side to pull it through the window.
Removing an Exterior Window Screen
If you have a modern double-hung window and the sash is easy to detach, remove it.
- Locate the plunger pins on the inside of the screen. They are usually near the bottom.
- Pull the plunger pins inward and release the window screen.
- Grasp the frame around the screen and push the screen outward. Make sure no one is standing below the window and pull down a bit to detach the screen. Keep your feet firmly on the floor and do not lean out the window.
- Turn the screen at an angle to fit it through the window.
- Pull the screen toward you and bend it slightly if necessary.
