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Hi - I am looking for some help. We have a metal gate that we would like to install a flyscreen to. We previously removed the old damaged fly screen which was help in place with metal wires and rivets. There are two gates that open, two side panels and a top panel. Any suggestions will be greatly received. Many thanks!
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @viv2. It's brilliant to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about installing flyscreens.
The main challenge with this style of metal gate is the material itself. If the frame is wrought iron, it can be quite unforgiving to work with. Drilling into it is difficult, and unless holes are drilled very accurately, screws can shear or snap rather than bite properly. The metal is too hard for threads to really tap in the way they would with timber, which limits your fixing options.
Because of that, there isn’t a truly “standard” flyscreen solution for gates like this. The fact that there was previously a flyscreen installed using wires and rivets is actually a big clue, it suggests that the original installer worked around these same limitations rather than trying to screw conventional flyscreen frames into the gate.
My first question, purely as a thought exercise, is why the old screen was removed rather than repaired. Even though it was damaged, the way it was retained is probably the best reference for how to reinstate something similar. Reusing the same fixing method often ends up being the least painful path.
If you want to redo it properly, you’d be looking at making separate flyscreen frames sized to suit each opening, the two gates, the side panels and the top panel. Standard aluminium flyscreen frame sections and mesh would work fine for that. The hard part is fixing them to the gate. Your best option is to reuse the existing rivet holes wherever possible. Pop rivets are well suited to thin metal and are far more reliable here than screws.
If the gate frame is hollow metal tube, self-drilling metal screws might work in some areas, but they can be hit-and-miss and you’d want to pre-drill accurately to avoid snapping them. Drilling through the flyscreen frame and then riveting or screwing directly into the gate is likely to be more successful than trying to mount clips or channels.
In short, this is a bit of a custom job rather than a plug-and-play flyscreen install. Reusing the existing holes, building simple aluminium frames to suit each panel, and fixing them with rivets is likely to be the most reliable and least frustrating approach.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
CC: @viv2,
I have been here but kept quiet because I was trying to think of the name of the paper I have in stock because is very useful for all sorts of DIY.
Poster paper AKA Easel paper, Bulletin Board paper, Craft or Kraft paper, Display paper... phew.
My suggestion is the same as @MitchellMc's make flyscreens for all the sections and for each section cut poster paper to size and sticky tape to transfer the hole locations to not the flyscreen...
but flyscreen clips which will allow some margin for errors.
Cheers
