How to Remove a Sliding Screen Door

Co-authored by Patrick Johns

Last Updated: January 3, 2022

If you are the owner of a home with sliding screen doors, there’s a good chance those doors will develop problems. Sometimes they don’t roll as smoothly as they should, which could be due to an accumulation of grime in the tracks. Most problems are easily solved by temporarily removing the door so repairs can be made. However, sliding screen doors are made of fragile parts. Knowing what steps to take in removing the door can help you do so with little risk of damage to the door or its parts.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Removing the Screws and Head Stop

1
Remove any curtains or other decorations. Any decorative items you may have on the door, such as curtains, will only get in the way of your job. Removing them before you start working will save you from hassle later on.^{[1]
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2
Locate the screws at the bottom of the door. Most sliding screen doors have screws located at the bottom corners. These screws hold the wheels your door uses to slide back and forth on its track in place.^{[2]
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3
Use a Phillips head screwdriver to unscrew each screw. Unscrewing the bottom screws will effectively loosen the door’s wheels and make the door easier to remove from its frame. Be sure to rotate the screwdriver to the left to unscrew the screws. Don’t stop until you can clearly see the heads of both screws sticking out of their sockets, and the door has become loose enough for you to push it up and away from the bottom track.^{[3]
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- You don’t have to take the screws out completely unless there’s no other way to get the door off the track. You can test this by lifting the door once the screw heads are poking out of their sockets. If the door lifts up from the track easily, don’t unscrew any further. Keep unscrewing if the door won’t lift.
4
Pull the door up until you can see its bottom wheels.^{[4]
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Expert Source

Patrick Johns
Home Improvement Specialist
Expert Interview. 26 October 2021.} You should be able to see 1 wheel on either side of the door. When you pull the door up, move it as gently as you can. You don’t want to risk breaking the door or any of its parts, especially if you plan on putting the door back later on.^{[5]
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5
Unscrew the head stop with a power or Phillips screwdriver. Open the door and locate the head stop screw at the top corner of the door frame, right where the door would touch the frame when it closes. This screw may be tightly fixed; if you can’t undo it with a manual screwdriver, try a power screwdriver.^{[6]
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- Your screen door could fall out of the frame once the door stop is taken out. Be sure to have someone else watching it while you work until you’re ready to take the door out of the frame. They can catch the door just in case it falls.^{[7]
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Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Taking the Door out of the Track

1
Slip a flat screwdriver underneath the wheels and push them upwards.^{[8]
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Patrick Johns
Home Improvement Specialist
Expert Interview. 26 October 2021.} Pushing the wheels up will make it easier to lift the door out of the track. Again, move the screwdriver gently. It should slide underneath the wheels with only a little bit of effort.^{[9]
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2
Pull the door up from the bottom track until the wheels are out.^{[10]
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Expert Source

Patrick Johns
Home Improvement Specialist
Expert Interview. 26 October 2021.} You will be able to tell the wheels are sufficiently loosened once you’re able to pull the door up away from the bottom track. Pull it gently, and keep holding it up to begin moving the door out of the frame.^{[11]
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3
Slide the door over the bottom track and out toward you.^{[12]
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Expert Source

Patrick Johns
Home Improvement Specialist
Expert Interview. 26 October 2021.} You will have to pull the door upwards first before you can maneuver it out of the track. Again, move as gently as you can. It will not take much force to remove the door now that the wheels are loosened.^{[13]
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4
Remove the door by pulling it out of the top track of the door frame.^{[14]
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Expert Source

Patrick Johns
Home Improvement Specialist
Expert Interview. 26 October 2021.} The door should slide right out of the top track once you’ve freed it from the bottom track. Once the door is completely loose from the frame, set it aside somewhere safe, such as against the side of the house or lying flat on a work bench.^{[15]
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Expert Q&A

Question

How do you install a sliding screen door?

Patrick Johns
Home Improvement Specialist
Patrick Johns is a Home Improvement Specialist and the Owner of CatchAll Handyman Services. With more than 28 years of experience, he has worked on a variety of home improvement projects, such as carpentry, plumbing, and door and window installations in both commercial and residential properties.

Patrick Johns

Home Improvement Specialist

Expert Answer

Set the door at an angle and put the top portion in first. Then, pop your wheels into the bottom and move them up to sit on the track.