Retractable Screen Door Review

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luckguy said:
qwerty said:
i got one through these guys - am very happy with the product. no issues with it yet. got the recommendation from homer. $350 for the door, installed in about 45 minutes.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/ejs-home-improvements-mission-viejo
http://www.ejshomeimprovements.com/

they use mirage screen doors
http://www.miragescreensystems.com/retractable-screen-doors/screen-door-benefits.htm
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Do they also do the media center? How is their job?
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I really liked EJ's.  Eric is terrific and he does blinds too.  I'm not sure about Media Center.

I just chose Phantom Legacy (non-magnetic) over Mirage (magnetic).  But EJ does have the best price of for a magnetic retractable screen door.
 
ZeroLot said:
Called Lowe's about the Larson retractable screen door.  The price for the Inspire version will cost $775 for a french door.  I chose Inpsire because the cassette is supposedly removable.  Larry at Lowe's didn't know how the removable process worked.  In fact Larry was rude.

When I asked if Lowe's install Larry said no.  So I said if that means I'm suppose to assemble it.  Then Larry said "That depends on your skill level".  WTF? So I grilled him and said if  Lowe's doesn't install and you're saying I can't install it, then how does this thing get installed?  He said I need to hire a handyman. 

I knew yaliu07 said that Lowe's charge $99 so I inquired further and said if Larry was sure.  He then checked and said that Lowe's can recommend someone but they will charge $450 to install the retractable screen.

I told him that's ridiculous that Lowe's is selling something that costs over $1000 when I got quotes from $600 to $700 INSTALLED.

Anyhow Larry was already irritated with all my questions so I just ended the call.

So far EJ's Home Improvement is still the best deal.  They just don't use the Clearview that comes with the speed reducer, which I am currently fine with after reading sentosa's review.  Just one more vendor to go today and I'll be done with  my vetting process.
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Sorry Zerolot, finally got a chance to take pictures.

Picture from Lowes.  On the right, the installation fee is $97
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Picture from my friend's door
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Thanks Yaliu07 for the pictures.  But HOA won't allow me to install those doors.  Retractable screens are the most Irvine HOA will allow. 

I just got my retractable screens installed by Drew and his crew at ScreenMobile and all 3 looks fantastic. 

1)  I upgraded the phantom screen from magnetic to latch system. 

2) Then I got another installed on my front door. 

3) The one piece phantom screen on the french door looks amazing.  It looks, in my opinion, so much better than the two piece phantom screen door (and cheaper too). 

When not in use I have to keep it in the housing and not expose it to the elements.  Plus it won't be an eyesore for the association if I keep it retracted most of the time.  The install went fantastic.  Very friendly, professional, great communication, and always on-time.  After the install they asked me to inspect each screen door to make sure I was happy with everything.

The guys were so happy with their work they look lots of pictures and will be posting it up on their website.

I would definitely recommend ScreenMobiles and their Phantom Legacy Latch System.
 
Here's a picture of the retractable screen door latch.  It contains no magnets.  ScreenMobile website ishttp://www.screenmobile.com/

714-379-0010 - Drew

If you want a magnet retractable screen door, I definitely recommend EJ's, as recommended by Qwerty too. 
 

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Hi! Trying to decide between the Legacy Phantom with latch (newer mechanism) or the Phantom Professional magnet retractable for my French Doors...is there any big advantage/preference/argument for one over the other??

Also, I heard about a one-piece screen for French Doors made by Phantom...any experience for this one on French Doors?
 
jazzy1 said:
Hi! Trying to decide between the Legacy Phantom with latch (newer mechanism) or the Phantom Professional magnet retractable for my French Doors...is there any big advantage/preference/argument for one over the other??

Also, I heard about a one-piece screen for French Doors made by Phantom...any experience for this one on French Doors?
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I had a magnetic latch and upgraded it to a latch mechanism but it truly is personal preference. 

I went with the one piece French door and it was much cheaper than a two piece but I do have to more careful with the retraction as there is more screen to retract and hence a higher chance of it getting jammed.
 
Trav25 said:
Has anyone done a retractable screen door on an accordian door?
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Just did it on my opening from kitchen to CA room.  The doors fold outside and the screen is on the inside.  It was very expensive, much more than I thought it would be.  I have about a 20 foot opening and I checked with all the vendors that have the retractable screens.  Hardly anyone even wants to do them.  With a large opening the screen drops from top instead of the side.  It is electric as well with a remote control. I knew I was going to do this during escrow so I had the builder put an outlet on top.  I called the manufactures that I could find ClearView, Phantom, Mirage, Wizard, and Casper.  I can't remember which ones didn't have a product at all for this large opening.  I remember a couple of companies sub'd out to another manufacturer, they had a very large screen that moved left to right.  I didn't really like it.  We eventually went with Phantom.  Be prepared for the sticker shock
 
still research on screen door.  from screenmobile.com, i see 9 different type of screendoors.  does anyone know these differences?

[list type=decimal]
[*]Phantom
[*]Mirage
[*]Clearview
[*]stowawy
[*]aira
[*]vanishing
[*]roll-away
[*]reel
[*]genius
[/list]

i also found more retractable screen from larson
  • Inspire
  • Escape
  • Comfort Breeze
http://www.larsondoors.com/retractable_screens/

 
It is hard to find any information to compare between the brands.  I got quotes from multiple companies. Most of them are around same price point ($500) for single door of 36 x 90 size.

I am debating between Phantom and Genius. Has anyone used Genius ?  Appreciate any feedback.
 
If you only need a 36" wide one (single door), Costco sold the Genius brand one for only $99 and it wasn't very hard to install myself.
 
We are thinking about going with the Larson Inspire after seeing on some recent model homes. We have a 9' x 7' opening leading out to the CA room. We received a quote for $550 for the door and need to do the install ourselves.
 

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Here is the opening I would like to cover so we can get a nice breeze coming into the house. Also will be ordering another screen that leads from the kitchen into the garage to get a nice cross breeze. Love the pleated look of the Inspire. Looks great in person.
 

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