Written by Anthony Clark
If you’re one of the millions of Southwest Florida homeowners who have a screen enclosure, chances are the harsh conditions of the Florida outdoors have taken its toll on your cage’s finish. Over a relatively short period of time the aluminum can become chalky, faded and even start deteriorating from corrosion. Do not fear though, as there are ways to protect, clean & even restore unsightly surfaces, and you may not even have to paint!
First, let’s examine the mechanism under which your beautiful, shiny screen enclosure turns into the chalky, faded rust buckets we’ve all seen hanging off our neighbors houses. After one Florida rainy season your enclosure will begin to develop corrosion throughout the aluminum, with the horizontal surfaces accumulating the brunt of it. If left on the surface for a substantial amount of time, the corrosion will slowly, but surely deteriorate the aluminum. The rate of deterioration increases exponentially over time, so eventually it will start deteriorating more rapidly. If the enclosure is on a waterfront the process will happen more rapidly and if it’s on a salt waterfront, it will be even faster. Sunlight will also take its toll on the finish.
It may seem that corrosion and fading are an inevitable part of having a screen enclosure in Southwest Florida, but with a very simple maintenance routine your pool cage can last over 5 times longer than a neglected cage! We recommend at the end of each rainy season you wipe your entire enclosure down, or at least as much as you can reach, with WD-40. This does several things, first it knocks off the surface corrosion with relative ease. Next, it atomically penetrates the aluminum and actually smears the anodization; the protective coating your enclosure is finished with. Though it does have lubricating properties, WD-40’s primary function is that of a penetrant and water displacer. It travels much further into the aluminum than traditional oil, and as a result it cleans and lubricates deeper. Though your enclosure will still fade over time from sun exposure, this simple preventative routine will ensure your enclosure ages gracefully and evenly.
Now we will talk about when an enclosure is so corroded and deteriorated the anodization cannot be salvaged. For this painting is the next best option. We still recommend you scrub it with Wd-40 as sometimes it will surprise you with how bad of a finish it can bring back, and even if it doesn’t, it’s still good for the aluminum. If it still isn’t up to your standards after that and you really want to recapture that new look, repainting is an option, though you should know it is no light-hearted endeavor. A professional paint job on a screen enclosure entails sanding, cleaning, and prepping surfaces, protecting surrounding areas with barriers, and usually applying multiple coats to get a full even layer of paint. You should expect to pay close to what it costs to rescreen your enclosure when using an established screening company. Lastly, painting is typically only an option when fully rescreening the enclosure, so you’re probably already spending a lot of money. That being said, if you are already rescreening it and it really does need it, you may want to use that window of opportunity and see if your contractor can tack a paint job on your enclosure for a reasonable price. Just make sure they’re using an exterior grade metal paint and applying it with a spray gun.
It’s worth mentioning, the best touch up paint we have found by far is Rust-Oleum enclosure spray paint, as it’s a tough as nails, exterior grade metal paint, matches well, and the extra wide spray lid comes out almost as smooth as a spray gun. So in conclusion, a paint job is not always necessary when an old, tired pool cage needs a little spit shine and it is generally best used as a last resort. It never hurts to slather a penetrant on a rag and give it a good scrubbing, you may be surprised at the results! As always, I sincerely hope I helped anyone reading this article and we are always available to answer any questions you may have. Have a great rest of the summer and stay cool Southwest Florida!
