Quick answer
The no-drill fly screens that hold up best are pressure-fit extendable screens with an aluminium frame for sliding and hinged windows, and sliding screens mounted in the roller shutter track without screws. Magnetic curtain screens suit terrace doors with little traffic and Velcro screens suit small hinged windows. None of them holds like a screwed-in screen: measure carefully, choose an aluminium frame and avoid stick-on mesh on windy facades.
What you need
- Tape measure
- Scissors and a Stanley knife
- Small spirit level
- Isopropyl alcohol and a cloth
- Small screwdriver for the tension adjusters on extendable screens
- Pressure-fit extendable fly screen with aluminium frame (Leroy Merlin, Bricodepot, 15-35 euros)
- Magnetic curtain fly screen for a door (Tesa, Leroy Merlin, 15-30 euros)
- Velcro fly screen kit with fibreglass mesh (Tesa Insect Stop, 8-15 euros)
- Pressure-fit sliding fly screen for the roller shutter track (made to measure, 40-80 euros)
- Spare adhesive tape for the Velcro
Step by step
- 1
Identify how the window opens
Sliding (the sashes slide), hinged or tilt-and-turn (opens inwards), or a terrace door. Each type takes a different no-drill fly screen. Also check whether it has a roller shutter (persiana) with an external track: that track is the best place for a pressure-fit sliding fly screen.
- 2
Measure the opening
Measure the width and height of the inside of the frame where the screen will sit, at three points each, and note the smallest. On sliding windows, measure the free space between the sash and the outer frame; for pressure-fit extendable screens, the opening has to fall within the product's extension range (for example 70-130 cm wide).
- 3
Choose the type to suit the window
Sliding window with a shutter track: pressure-fit sliding screen in the track. Sliding window without a track, or hinged: pressure-fit extendable screen with an aluminium frame. Small hinged window (bathroom, kitchen): Velcro with mesh. Terrace door: magnetic curtain or a tall extendable screen if the door is not used much.
- 4
Clean the contact surface
Wipe isopropyl alcohol over the frame where the screen will sit or stick. On the coast the aluminium frame always has a film of salt and dust that stops the adhesive or the pressure rubber from gripping.
- 5
Fit a pressure-fit extendable screen
Extend the frame until it just fits the opening, with the mesh facing outwards and the pressure rubber against the window frame. Tighten the frame's locking screws and turn the pressure feet until it is firm. Check with the level and try pushing it: it should not move.
- 6
Fit a magnetic curtain screen
Stick the self-adhesive Velcro tape along the head and sides of the door frame, press for 30 seconds per section and leave it to cure for an hour. Hang the two halves of the curtain and check that the central magnets close by themselves as you walk through. Trim the surplus mesh at the bottom leaving 1 cm.
- 7
Fit a Velcro screen
Stick the self-adhesive Velcro tape around the inside perimeter of the window frame, leave it to cure for an hour, cut the fibreglass mesh with 2 cm to spare and press it on, tensioning from the centre outwards. Trim the surplus with the knife.
- 8
Check after a week and before summer
No-drill fly screens loosen with heat and use. After a week, retighten the pressure feet and press the Velcro down again. Every spring, clean the mesh and check the magnets and rubbers are still in good shape.
Types of no-drill fly screens and how long they last
We have fitted and removed hundreds of no-drill fly screens in flats in Benidorm, Torrevieja and Valencia. This is what each type stands up to in practice, not on the box.
| Type | Which window | How it is held | Real-world durability | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pressure-fit extendable, aluminium frame | Sliding and hinged windows of 40 to 140 cm | Frame pressure against the opening | Good; 3-5 years if readjusted every year | 15-35 euros |
| Pressure-fit extendable, plastic frame | Small windows | Pressure | Weak; the plastic gives in the heat | 8-15 euros |
| Pressure-fit sliding screen in the shutter track | Sliding windows with a shutter box | Slotted into the track, no screws | Very good; it is a normal sliding fly screen | 40-80 euros made to measure |
| Magnetic curtain | Terrace and balcony doors | Self-adhesive Velcro on the frame | Fair; the magnets wear out in one summer and the Velcro peels in the sun | 15-30 euros |
| Velcro with fibreglass mesh | Small hinged and tilt-and-turn windows | Self-adhesive Velcro | Fair; one season, peels off with humidity | 8-15 euros |
| Roller screen with adhesive | Hinged windows | Double-sided tape | Poor on sunny facades; good indoors | 30-60 euros |
Mistakes that stop the fly screen lasting
- Buying an extendable screen by width without checking the height. Extendable screens grow in width, not height. If the opening is taller than the frame, there is a gap the mosquitoes come through.
- Sticking Velcro without cleaning the aluminium. The coastal salt stops the adhesive gripping. Isopropyl alcohol, every time.
- A magnetic screen on a door with heavy traffic. The magnets and the fabric hinges last about 2,000 openings. On a terrace door used 30 times a day, that is two months.
- A plastic extendable screen on a sunny facade. The frame warps in the heat and loses its pressure. On the coast, aluminium.
- A pressure screen on an inward-opening window that gets a lot of use. Every time you open and close the sash you knock the screen frame. Better a Velcro or a roller screen.
- Forgetting the roller shutter. If you lower the persiana every night, the fly screen has to sit between the shutter and the window or in the track; otherwise the shutter rips it off.
When to call a professional
If you have more than two or three windows, if the terrace door is large or heavily used, if you live on the seafront with wind, or if the property is yours and you can drill, a made-to-measure fly screen installed costs little more and lasts 10 years. And there is a halfway option almost nobody knows about: on windows with a roller shutter track we fit made-to-measure sliding fly screens in the track itself without a single screw, with the same result as a screwed-in one.
Manitas Costa prices: sliding fly screen fitted 45-80 euros, roller fly screen 75-130 euros, pleated 160-260 euros, mesh replacement 25-45 euros, and a complete 2-bedroom flat 320-480 euros. Fixed price by WhatsApp from photos of the windows and measurements, fitted in one visit, 6 months written guarantee.
All the details in made-to-measure fly screens in Valencia and Alicante and in how much made-to-measure fly screens cost with fitting. We work in Valencia, Alicante, Elche, Dénia and all along the coast.
Tips for the coast: wind, sun and salt air
In a flat in Benidorm with the terrace facing the sea, the easterly levante wind comes in hard. A magnetic curtain screen turns into a sail and rips the Velcro off in an afternoon. On windy facades, only well-tightened aluminium extendable screens or sliding screens in the track; for the terrace door, the honest answer is a screwed-in sliding or roller fly screen, and if the residents' association will not allow it, a tall extendable screen you can take out and put back.
The Costa Blanca sun breaks down adhesives in a season. If you use Velcro or double-sided tape, choose Tesa or 3M exterior grade and replace them every spring. Fibreglass mesh stands up to the sun better than polyester; polyester mesh yellows and turns brittle in two summers.
With salt air, clean the fly screens every month with water and a soft sponge, as we explain in how to clean fly screens without taking them down. And if you are still torn between types, in types of fly screens: which to choose we compare sliding, roller, pleated and fixed for each window.
Frequently asked questions
Which no-drill fly screen is best for a sliding window?
If the window has a roller shutter track, a made-to-measure sliding fly screen slotted into the track without screws: it holds up best and costs 40-80 euros. Without a track, a pressure-fit extendable screen with an aluminium frame, 15-35 euros, which adjusts to the gap between the sash and the frame.
Do magnetic fly screens last?
For a balcony door that is rarely used, one season. The magnets and the mesh wear out with traffic, and the self-adhesive Velcro peels off with sun and salt. On terrace doors in daily use or exposed to wind, no: there you need a fitted sliding or roller screen.
Can I put no-drill fly screens in a rented flat?
Yes, that is the usual case. Pressure-fit extendable screens and sliding screens in the shutter track come out without leaving a mark. Velcro screens leave adhesive residue that comes off with alcohol. For a screwed-in installation, ask the landlord for written permission; many agree if you undertake to leave the screens behind.
How much does a made-to-measure fly screen cost fitted?
Sliding 45-80 euros, roller 75-130 euros, pleated 160-260 euros, fitted and at a fixed price. A complete 2-bedroom flat, 320-480 euros. For many windows with a roller shutter track we do it without drilling, at the same price and with the same guarantee.
Does the fly screen go inside or outside the window?
Pressure-fit and Velcro screens go inside, resting on the inner frame. Sliding screens go outside, in the roller shutter track or in their own track, so the window opens with the screen in place. If you lower the shutter every night, the fly screen has to sit between the shutter and the glass.