The Essential Guide for Privacy Screen Installation on your Screen Enclosure:

So, you want privacy in your pool enclosure? You're thinking of a motorized privacy screen. Indeed, it will create the seclusion and comfort you desire in your backyard oasis, right? Pump the breaks. Failure to understand surface air pressure is a great way to watch that whole screen enclosure collapse. This guide provides perspective and a few things to consider before installing motorized privacy screens on your pool enclosure.  

Why Reinforcement is Necessary:

It is all about engineering and surface air pressure. Understanding Service Air Pressure is easy to calculate: To calculate the wind pressure (P) exerted by a wind blowing at a certain speed, use the following formula derived from fluid dynamics principles:

where:

• P is the wind pressure in pounds per square foot (PSF).

• V is the wind speed in miles per hour (mph).

• The constant 0.00256 is derived from sea-level air density under standard conditions.

Calculation for 25 mph Wind Speed On a Screen Enclosure with 99% closed fabric

This calculation provides a simple estimation of wind pressure, which helps understand the impact of wind speeds on structures when motorized screens are in the fully deployed positions to screen enclosures. The answer is 1.6 PSF: 1.6 PSF seems insignificant; however, a small screen enclosure possesses 380 square feet. That is 608 pounds of surface air pressure when the screens are fully deployed.

Bottom line: Ignoring surface air pressure created by wind speed could be a recipe for disaster when that next Florida Afternoon storm rolls around. That is why reinforcement of the base structure is necessary to avoid costly repairs and potential safety hazards.

Reinforcing Structure:

Always start by consulting with a structural engineer or a pool cage specialist. They can assess your current structure and recommend how to reinforce the enclosure's structure. Understand that it is not just about surface pressure caused by wind loads. It also concerns how the units are secured to the screen enclosure.

The framework of most screen enclosures is less than 1/8" thick. Trying to secure a 120-pound unit to the framework will result in screw wallering and falling out when the screen deploys and retract back into the housing. So, creating more wall thickness will matter. More thickness means more surface for screws to grab. The thickness will depend on the structure and advice from engineering.

Whatever you do, even when the enclosure is reinforced, follow the following four steps to ensure a great experience.

1. Never leave the screens down in winds greater than 15 MPH.

2. Hook up a wind sensor to the screens. This way, the screens roll up automatically.

3. Make sure the screens possess remote access capabilities.

4. Understand privacy and obscurity. It is best to use a 99% blackout.

5. Pick a motorized screen manufactured whose products can function out of level and out square.

Remember, when in doubt, engineer it out.