How to Clean a Window Screen: Try These Time-saving Tips!

When you hear about cleaning screens, the first thought that comes to your mind is how inconvenient and hard work it is. As the surface of the window screen is not solid and removing the dirt from it is not as simple as from the ceiling or the stove. You may feel nervous about how to clean a window screen and postpone the tricky job. That’s only because you are unaware of the ways and the steps needed to accomplish this task. Knowing that the problem needs a little more special approach, we’ve prepared for you some easy, homemade and time-saving solutions. And we wanted to make sure that your window screens look like new again!

Do you know how to clean a dirty window screen?

The window screens are exposed to harsh weather conditions – this could be rain, wind, dirt, dust, and, in addition to this, bugs. All this layers up on their surface, and they turn into dirty screens in a short time. If you try to apply the right approach of cleaning the window screens, you’ll have the key to how they may look good. Regular maintenance will also extend the life of the window screens. Fortunately, if you are aware of the proper methods on how to clean a dirty window screen, the process becomes easy. And it doesn’t involve a lot of materials and tools.

Careful removal of the screen from the window

Before you get down to cleaning window screens, you should gather the appropriate tools and materials.

Start with removing the screen from the window frame. This action will ease the process of cleaning the screen. Be careful when removing it from the window to ensure you do not accidentally rip it. In order to facilitate the removal, some windows have small tabs that are pulled out when releasing the screen from the frame.

How to clean a window screen with a garden hose

Remove surface dirt from the window screen using the water stream of your garden hose. Before doing this, don’t forget to attach the spray nozzle to the hose. Make sure that the washing stream of the hose is with the lowest pressure, in order not to damage the screen. Start with washing the upper part of the screen and continue to work downwards. Then flip the screen over and continue to rinse with the hose, till you see that the entire surface is clean of dirt.

What is a homemade solution for easy screen cleaning?

This stage of the cleaning requires using rubber gloves, protecting your hands. You’ll also need to take a bucket and a microfiber cloth. There are three options, according to the type of washing solution.

• Dish soap for light cleaning. Pour ¼ cup (60 ml) of dish soap to 1 gallon (4 L) of water in a bucket.
• Distilled white vinegar for clean and deodorized screens. Pour 1/2 cup (120 ml) of distilled white vinegar to 1 gallon (4 L) of water.
• Ammonia for removing filthy screens. Pour 1/8 cup (30 ml) of distilled white vinegar to 1 gallon (4 L) of water.

How to clean a window screen with deep methods

Choose one of the above described cleaning solutions with dish soap, distilled white vinegar or ammonia. Take a brush with soft bristles, dip it in the solution and slightly scrub the screen until you remove the grime and the dirt. Do not force, but gently clean in circular motions. At the end, rinse the screen with the hose.

Drying and reinstalling the screen to the window

Prop up the screen against a wall out in the sun and leave it for 2–3 hours to dry in the air. Then vacuum it with the vacuum cleaner to pick up any possible residue of dirt and dust.

Now, it’s time to reinstall the already tidy screen to the window frame. In order to replace the screen back to the frame, you have to reverse the steps you’ve taken when removing it from the window.

How to clean a window screen without removing it

Give a light clean of your window screens once a week, without taking them off the frame. This will significantly reduce the number of heavy cleanings. Just remove the dust regularly, with the help of a lint roller.

If you see that stains appear on the screen surface, you may prepare mild soap or white vinegar solution to clean them gently. Wash the surface with a sponge, washcloth or brush. At last, dry the wet places with a towel.

Knowing how to clean a window screen without taking it off from the window frame, is quite useful. Because with regular removal of dust and stains from screens, there will be no need to do full cleaning more than once a year!