Freestanding Jack Matrix Privacy screen/trellis

[kt777blue]

Hi, 

I’m hoping to create a privacy screen using initially 3 Jack Matrix Screens. (I may extend it down the track). In the longer term I’d like to train Jasmine to cover the screen using the screens as a trellis. In the shorter term, the screens can provide privacy until the plants grow. There is a lower fence about 30cm back from where I would install the screens.

I can’t find the posts to install the screens in ground into concrete. I can pour concrete and install above if required though concreted in ground was preferable for stability.

is the slimline frame included with the screens? Will it be strong enough to support the screen? Or do I need to purchase additional C support frames? I’m look at using the Tangled or similar.

Thanks for any help you can offer.

[MitchellMc]

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @kt777blue. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about screening panels.

If you’re planning to grow a vine like Jasmine on your Jack Matrix screens, the frames that come with the screens aren’t strong enough for that purpose. They’re really just designed to hold the panels upright and support their own weight, not additional plant weight or wind load. For a long-term, vine-supporting structure, you’ll want to build a proper independent frame.

That would involve concreting vertical posts into the ground, such as 90mm H3 treated pine posts, and then attaching horizontal rails (90mm x 45mm H3 treated timber) between the posts, at the top, middle, and bottom. You can then screw the matrix panels directly to those rails. This gives the whole assembly the strength and stability to handle the extra weight of the vine and any wind movement, effectively creating a sturdy trellis structure that will last.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell
 

[kt777blue]

Thanks so much for your reply. Are there any other options to achieve a 3m x 1.8m privacy screen in the short term while the jasmine grows? It would be built in the back of a garden bed so there is flexibility around exact width and height. Would the aluminium protector screens be more appropriate? Thanks again for your advice.

[MitchellMc]

Whatever screens you use @kt777blue, they do need some form of support. Jack Matrix panels, or even aluminium protector screens, aren’t really freestanding on their own. You either need to build the timber frame and posts now, or later, to connect the screens to a solid base. For a short-term solution while your Jasmine grows, you could drive star pickets or similar into the ground and attach the screens to those. This would hold them upright and stable temporarily. But ultimately, if you plan to grow a vine, a more permanent post system is essential. When the vine is small it won’t weigh much, but as it grows it can quickly add significant load that freestanding screens alone aren’t designed to handle.

Mitchell

[kt777blue]

Thanks again. We will definitely build a frame. I just wasn't sure whether the products P0361875 and P3041120 would be a robust enough frame for my purpose. (Sorry, the post won't publish when I put links). Sounds like I'd be better off with treated pine or hardwood. Thanks again. Really appreciate all your advice. 

[MitchellMc]

The Jack screen support itself is actually robust enough for this application, @kt777blue, but it does need to be fixed down to something solid. On its own, it can’t act as a truly freestanding solution unless it is bolted to concrete or another rigid substrate.

The C-channel frame kit is really just designed to hold the sheet upright and support its own weight. It doesn’t provide any ground fixing or lateral stability by itself, and it isn’t intended to take wind load. In practice, you would use the C-channel frame kit to hold the panel, then locate that assembly inside the Jack screen support post. The important part is that the post itself must be securely fixed to the ground.

If you’re installing onto an existing concrete slab, bolting the Jack supports straight down is perfectly fine and will give you a solid result. If the area is soil, which it sounds like it might be given you were thinking about concreting posts in, then pouring concrete footings is a good approach. Once those footings are in, you can bolt the Jack supports into the concrete and achieve a strong, neat-looking installation without needing a full timber frame.

Mitchell