Finding Fly Screens ?

[ianlgv]

Hi
We have a year 2000 43' Fountaine Pajot Belize Maestro catamaran and we are trying to find fly screens for our hatches. Does anyone have any ideas or contacts?

[s/v Moondancer]

You can buy good netting cheaply and make your own...you sew fishing weights into the edges to keep in place

Mosquito Netting vs. No see um netting comparison

[swagman]

For deck hatches the above idea of self made or from Compass marine with nets and small lead weights works well. Who made your side opening hatches? Ours are Lewmar who also provide rigid clip in fly nets in a plastic mesh.
Cheers
JOHN

[stacy]

In the U.S. there are a number of hardware stores that will make up aluminum framed nylon screens. Just bring in the dimensions you need. We affix ours with velcro spots. They work great. We were even able to bend the screen frames to match the curves on the inside of the hatch/ port.

[osirissail]

Making the "tent" style fly screens solves the problem of being able to quickly open or close the hatch from the inside. A lot of internal or inside the cabin screens need to be removed before you can open/close the porthole or hatch. In a sudden tropical downpour you have a minute to close lots of hatches and portholes and the internal screens get banged up or broken.
- - For deck hatches the "tent" styles works fine and can be sewn from rolls of hardware store vinyl/plastic screen and lead fishing weights in a hem. But how to make a similarly convenient screen for vertical portholes is the magic question. Inside opening portholes can use internal screens but external opening portholes need something, yet unknown that will work.
- - Also the plastic screen material only lasts about 6 months to a year in the Tropical sun as the plastic is quickly eaten by UV.

[ianlgv]

Hi
Thanks everyone for some great ideas, Also thanks for the website for the material.

[troymclure]

I'm currently using flyscreens on the 3 of my boats hatches. I ordered them online made to fit the hatch diameters. They attach via velcro. Only had them for about a month but so far so good.

I measured the size of the hatches sent it in to the website and they sent back some flyscreens cut to size with velcro around the outsides and some velcro (with adhesive already attached) was basically peel the backing off and stick on then done.

[Randyonr3]

I build hatch screens often.. have one setting on my table now for a boat down the dock..
The material, eith Phifertex or Textra can be purchase from different sorces and different degrees of shade factors.. normally used as sunscreen, it also keeps out the bugs...
Sailrite, www.sailrite.com carries the Phifertex brand and can be in either 70 or 90% shade factor........... and offered in different colors to match your boat

[GordMay]

Phil links to some excellent products:
➥ Mosquito Netting vs. No see um netting comparison

Mosquito net mesh size should be large enough for air circulation, but as small as possible to keep out the mosquitoes.
A mesh size of 1.2 mm x 1.2 mm is the most common and recommended.
For effective malaria protection, the mesh size that is recommended is 120-200 holes per square per inch.
The small sand fly, however, which also transmits diseases to humans, can pass through this mesh size, and can only be avoided with a small-meshed mosquito net (0.6mm x 0.6 mm).
Use a denier (strength of fibre used to make net) that is between 70 and 100. The strongest is 100; anything below 70 usually tears easily.

[osirissail]

If you are seriously worried about malaria carrying insects or others you can treat the screen mesh by filling a hand sprayer with Malathion and spraying the screens and let them dry. Insects with definitely stay away or die trying to negotiate the mesh. I carry a bottle with me and spray the screens before heading up any equatorial swamp streams/rivers.