“In Maine, when the weather’s nice, everyone wants to be outside,” says Phil Kaplan, a successful Portland-based architect. That’s why, when Kaplan and his wife, Masey, a graphic designer, set out five years ago to build a new home in nearby Falmouth, a screened-in porch was a must. But given the couple’s other construction costs, so was finding an inexpensive way to build it. The solution: a 12×14-foot space incorporating 13 stock screens from The Home Depot at $26 apiece, instead of custom-built versions that could easily have cost 10 times as much. The result: a beautiful and easy DIY screened-in porch.
DIY Screened-In Porch | How-To
The savings commenced with the use of a pair of 10-inch-diameter Sonotube forms ($200) to set the foundation pillars. From there, builder Wes Myer, who handled much of the house construction, laid down a base structure supported by four 2×12-inch pressure-treated beams. “It’s pretty meaty stuff,” Phil quips.
The same can be said of the room’s two 8×8-inch corner posts, which the architect salvaged, along with other design elements, from an 18th-century barn in Wells, Maine. Concerned that the screens’ relatively short height — they’re a standard 80 inches tall — might lop off the surrounding view, Phil designed a 7-inch-wide sill to set them on, pushing the screens closer to the porch’s 8-1/2-foot ceiling. “The last thing we wanted was to cut off the sight of the trees,” he says.
Nor did he want the space, complete with red-cedar floorboards, to be just a summer destination. Around each of the 2×6-inch interior columns running floor to ceiling between screens is a three-sided pine cap, attached via a pair of 2-inch steel screws. Pop the caps off, take the screens out, insert storm windows, and you’ve got yourself a three-season porch.
The best part? “That’s a no-brainer,” Phil says. “It’s the view. It emphasizes the connection to the outdoors. You feel as if you’re part of the trees.”
DIY Screened-In Porch | Cost
Approximately $10,000 for materials and labor.
Ian Aldrich
Ian Aldrich is the Senior Features Editor at Yankee magazine, where he has worked for more for nearly two decades. As the magazine’s staff feature writer, he writes stories that delve deep into issues facing communities throughout New England. In 2019 he received gold in the reporting category at the annual City-Regional Magazine conference for his story on New England’s opioid crisis. Ian’s work has been recognized by both the Best American Sports and Best American Travel Writing anthologies. He lives with his family in Dublin, New Hampshire.