Suanne
Well-known member
For me, good air flow is just as important as AC for climate control with the warm weather, maybe more so. For that I've installed window screens made of noseeum mesh. I installed them on my '04 Prius' back passenger windows and loved them, but wasn't as happy with the Velcro with Gorilla Glue installation. After several years of use, I had to reinforce with Gorilla Tape. Also, the Gorilla Glue couldn't be completely removed and left a messy look.
I thought I'd share my new install in case it is helpful to others pondering how to do something similar.
I had enough noseeum mesh yardage left over from my '04 Prius install to do my "new" '15 windows. But this time I wanted to attach with magnet strips to avoid the glue failure and mess that I had in my '04. After installing the screens during the first few days of this month, I really like how they look. Only time will tell how they hold up in the heat and cold over the next months and years of travel and boondocking.
Here are some pics that show how the screens are attached. Please excuse the dust as I've been on lots of graveled backroads lately.
Supplies used -- .5" magnetic tape (from Michaels Crafts, one side is pre-glued), Gorilla Glue Duct Tape (to provide a better bonding surface than the textured plastic), .5" bias tape (not yet applied, will be used to trim it out), and brush-on Super Glue (nail polish type of brush). They are all sitting on a square sample of the noseeum mesh I used (from www.SeattleFabrics.com). It's a very fine mesh which keeps out the smallest of biting insects, yet still allows plenty of air flow.
This next photo is of the screen on the back window on the driver's side. It's installed from the inside. First, the strips of magnetic tape were cut to length for full coverage across the four sides of the window, then the screen was cut to size and glued to the magnetic strips.
For my 2015 Prius, the top strip needed to be trimmed to a little less than it's .5" width to fit, as did the bottom 3" on the strip on the window's left side. The sides and the top of the window are metal, so the tape simply adheres magnetically (the pre-glued side facing out). The bottom of the window (inside of the door) is made of textured plastic so the magnetic tape won't stick to it. Instead, I used two strips of magnetic tape, one glued down to the bottom of the window (pre-glued side down), and the other to holds the screen material (pre-glued side up). Because the door's interior is textured plastic, the pre-glued magnetic strip wouldn't stick to it very well. So, I first laid down a strip of Duct Tape (Gorilla Glue brand) which does adhere fine to the textured plastic, and also provide a good bonding surface for the pre-glued side of the magnetic tape. (Note: Surfaces were first degreased (Simple Green and vinegar) prior to application of tape and pre-glued magnetic strip for good adherence.)
I first tried to simply use the pre-glued side of the magnetic strip to hold the screen. Although it's stickiness was good enough for placing and fitting the screen, it wasn't strong enough to hold long term. So, I tried Super Glue (Gorilla Glue brand) that came in a bottle with a small brush (like finger nail polish). I tacked the screen material to the magnetic tape by brushing on a small spot of the Super Glue. If you look closely in the pic below, you can see the small Super Glue patch (middle of photo) used to tack the screen material to the top of the window.
At first, I wasn't sure the Super Glue would work. On the photo below (upper left corner of window) are two Super Glue patches. The one of at the top is only partially adhered because I tried to peel it off a few minutes after applying the Super Glue. But now, the patch at the top of the left-side won't peel off after it's cured for the recommended 24 hours.
This pic is of the bottom left side of the window. It shows the Gorilla Tape. On top of that is one strip of the magnetic tape (using it's pre-glued side to adhere to the Gorilla Tape). On top of the first magnetic strip is a second strip of the magnetic tape that's holding the screen (tacked down with Super Glue).
Note: I can only attach 5 photos. So, will add the last one to a second post.
I thought I'd share my new install in case it is helpful to others pondering how to do something similar.
I had enough noseeum mesh yardage left over from my '04 Prius install to do my "new" '15 windows. But this time I wanted to attach with magnet strips to avoid the glue failure and mess that I had in my '04. After installing the screens during the first few days of this month, I really like how they look. Only time will tell how they hold up in the heat and cold over the next months and years of travel and boondocking.
Here are some pics that show how the screens are attached. Please excuse the dust as I've been on lots of graveled backroads lately.
Supplies used -- .5" magnetic tape (from Michaels Crafts, one side is pre-glued), Gorilla Glue Duct Tape (to provide a better bonding surface than the textured plastic), .5" bias tape (not yet applied, will be used to trim it out), and brush-on Super Glue (nail polish type of brush). They are all sitting on a square sample of the noseeum mesh I used (from www.SeattleFabrics.com). It's a very fine mesh which keeps out the smallest of biting insects, yet still allows plenty of air flow.
This next photo is of the screen on the back window on the driver's side. It's installed from the inside. First, the strips of magnetic tape were cut to length for full coverage across the four sides of the window, then the screen was cut to size and glued to the magnetic strips.
For my 2015 Prius, the top strip needed to be trimmed to a little less than it's .5" width to fit, as did the bottom 3" on the strip on the window's left side. The sides and the top of the window are metal, so the tape simply adheres magnetically (the pre-glued side facing out). The bottom of the window (inside of the door) is made of textured plastic so the magnetic tape won't stick to it. Instead, I used two strips of magnetic tape, one glued down to the bottom of the window (pre-glued side down), and the other to holds the screen material (pre-glued side up). Because the door's interior is textured plastic, the pre-glued magnetic strip wouldn't stick to it very well. So, I first laid down a strip of Duct Tape (Gorilla Glue brand) which does adhere fine to the textured plastic, and also provide a good bonding surface for the pre-glued side of the magnetic tape. (Note: Surfaces were first degreased (Simple Green and vinegar) prior to application of tape and pre-glued magnetic strip for good adherence.)
I first tried to simply use the pre-glued side of the magnetic strip to hold the screen. Although it's stickiness was good enough for placing and fitting the screen, it wasn't strong enough to hold long term. So, I tried Super Glue (Gorilla Glue brand) that came in a bottle with a small brush (like finger nail polish). I tacked the screen material to the magnetic tape by brushing on a small spot of the Super Glue. If you look closely in the pic below, you can see the small Super Glue patch (middle of photo) used to tack the screen material to the top of the window.
At first, I wasn't sure the Super Glue would work. On the photo below (upper left corner of window) are two Super Glue patches. The one of at the top is only partially adhered because I tried to peel it off a few minutes after applying the Super Glue. But now, the patch at the top of the left-side won't peel off after it's cured for the recommended 24 hours.
This pic is of the bottom left side of the window. It shows the Gorilla Tape. On top of that is one strip of the magnetic tape (using it's pre-glued side to adhere to the Gorilla Tape). On top of the first magnetic strip is a second strip of the magnetic tape that's holding the screen (tacked down with Super Glue).
Note: I can only attach 5 photos. So, will add the last one to a second post.
