Bug Screens

[Dimitri-2000X-Tampa]

We are about ready to try an family overnight on the boat, and I need to get some insect protection. I want to get your opinions on what you have. Now for some reason, I could swear that there had been some recommendations on this board previously (I remember Duane commenting on his screens). But I tried searching on both bug and insect screens and couldn't come up with anything. Perhaps it was a discussion on the old board or something. Anyway, apologies if this has already been covered, but I can't find any notes.

Here are some options I'm considering:

1. Make my own (probably won't happen).

2. Sailnet carries Sogeman screens (bugbusters) which seem to be high quality, but not inexpensive either.

Bugbuster's Companionway Screen, Small $59.95
Bugbuster's Companionway Screen, XL $63.95
Bugbuster's Hatch, Extra Large $54.95
Bugbuster's Hatch, Large $49.00
Bugbuster's Hatch, Medium $39.95
Bugbuster's Hatch, Small $32.95

I see that West Marine sells this line of screens too.

3. Some places offer flexible insect screens that mount with velcro, for example, http://www.flexiscreens.com/ I imagine these are more inexpensive, but I had these kind of screens on my last boat and the velcro is always grabbing the screen part when they are stored.

Are there some other options that I'm missing?

If you have any good or bad experiences with any of these products, please let me know. And if you remember what size screen(s) you purchased, it would be very useful too. TIA

[Dimitri-2000X-Tampa]

Sorry Duane, now I remember the discussion we had in private messages (I should have shipped those to my email so I could have filed them properly). You said you were planning to get a Sogeman screen for your front hatch but you didn't need one for your companionway due to your full enclosure. Did you ever get that one?

I'm also planning to do a full enclosure some time but it will probably wait until next year. I wonder if its still nice to have a companionway screen just in case you don't feel like deploying the full enclosure.

[Mark Prouty]

I too would be interested in the topic of forward hatch and campanionway screens.

Thanks,
Mark

[Jack O'Brien]

I bought a couple kits at Lowe's that use velcro. They were inexpensive. Haven't needed or installed them yet.

[CaptEd]

This is where I found a lots of neat stuff, including screens..

Click Here

[craiglaforce]

I bought the bugbuster screen for the front hatch and it works OK but is a bit of a pain to use. It looks ugly from the outside and it cuts down on airflow a fair amount.

For the companionway, I finally did something that works well and cost almost nothing.

Got some nylon screen material, a tube of superglue and a wood slat about 1.5 inch wide X thin stuff maybe 3/16 inch thick. Cut it to just fit the top part of the hatch panel guide channel. Then simply glue the screen all along the wood slat. THe screen simply drapes down over the entire hatchway. The screen has a bit of curl to it from being rolled up and that seems to make it hug the boat and seal better. At the bottom I usually toss some rope or something against it to keep the wind from blowing it open. No velcro, no giant wood frames that can't be stored.

To store it, just pull the wood slat up and roll up the screen onto it. very compact. There are still some places where a determined mosquito can get in, (like the clearance area along the aft edge of the big sliding hatch) but this screen at least helps reduce the number that get in.

[jmdefino]

I bought a rather large (68" x 200") piece of mosquito netting on ebay for $10. This fellow seems to have a bunch of this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... %3AIT&rd=1

[Duane Dunn, Allegro]

The Sogeman is what I am going to get for the front hatch. It is a simple, passive solution. The weight of the lead beads in the perimiter hold it down ad it drapes over the hatch, no fasteners of any kind needed.

My full enclosure has completely screened zip open windows so I don't need anything at the companionway.

[Dimitri-2000X-Tampa]

Will the Sogeman 25 X 25 fit the hatch properly or did people buy the next larger size (30 X 30)?

I notice that Macgregorowners.com has a custom 77 X 40 for the Mac26X companionway, but nothing modified for the front hatch. The custom companionway screen is not inexpensive at $73 but if the quality is good, its easier to buy off the shelf than to fabricate something. I guess the 26X companionway is much longer than most.