I like looking out of a window without the screens so we remove them in the winter and store them. We live in Montana. Only the windows we will open in the summer get them put back on. We open them to cool the house naturally at night, so because of bugs those windows get them.

Just took them all out today... window cleaners coming next week. Won’t need them over the winter. Cleaned and storing them, will only put on those in upper guest rooms, where guests might appreciate fresh air, whatever the season. Timely question. Thanks.

I used to hate screen. But after I read that mosquitoes all over the country are beginning to have the diseases that were mostly in more southern countries I decided we would have our screens on all the time.

We are getting mosquitoes well into winter with global warming. They say preventing mosquitoes from biting people causes the diseases they carry to diminish and the disease-carrying type of mosquito to diminish as well.

Ventilation is needed in all habitable buildings. For houses its usually provided by clear window opening areas equal to 4% of the floor area of habitable spaces. As houses get tighter this requirement becomes more important.

If you never open your windows, you should add mechanical ventilation to your house if you don't already have it.

As for appearance, many screens available today are virtually invisible from the inside.

fresh air is a must in my opinion always ans definately in the air tight homes nowI don’t thik you need them on every window in the house ans certainly not many bugs in the winter so take them off for at least the winter at the front where they big you. I ahve my bedroom window open a bit even in the winter in Canada.

like Cheryl, I take them off in the winter, but they go back up in the spring when we open the windows. We don’t have AC, and have lots f mosquitoes. I even put them back on the front facing garage windows that are never opened, because it all has to look the same.

Screens? Do you have flying and crawling critters...?

There's your answer!

I live in SoCal and can’t imagine not having screens. I draw the line at screen doors though.

Central Texas here, too. :-)
If y'all don't want the screens, then definitely store them (flat) in the attic. I *love* opening windows as long as the temperature outside doesn't exceed 78* (I don't mind freezing my tush off a bit), and well, sometimes with cooking (like stir fry!) windows must be opened, regardless of how hot or cold it is outside. :-D

Mine are off and stored in garage. Sometimes in spring I put kitchen window screens back in but it is on back of house so it doesn't mess with the look of the house. We also live in a 1 story ranch and not comfortable having windows open at night while sleeping

I store mine in the winter but I'm another who likes fresh air so I open windows the rest of the year. How dark are these screens that bother people? Here's what I'm looking at right now; no lights on so the only light is through the windows. Screens on the left and right windows but not the middle large window. Maybe it's just me but I barely notice any difference.

I hate the way they look so I had builder put most of them in the attic. I had him put them on a few select windows (mud room, laundry, back hall) that don’t face front, and were windows that we don‘t gaze out of, lol. These are ones I open during temperate weather or if I cooked something pungent to help the vent, vent! Lol!

Australia here. Screens on all windows, including sliding doors, year round. Keeps the flies out, lets the fresh air in.
Open windows in the late afternoon in summer provide almost all the cooling we need, so it saves on the power bill.

I couldn't exist without screens and I live in a dense part of a major city.

I installed roller screens which pull down when I open a window and roll up when my windows are closed. That way I see my view through glass when my windows are closed.

Helen: Didn't know there are "roller screens". Will be looking at them. Thanks for posting that info.

Edit: Googled roller screens and am getting blinds instead. Earlier this week I was searching for wall shelves and got links for large pieces of bedroom furniture. Goggle is really hitting rock bottom with its searches.

Checked with Edge and got a page of actual screens:

https://www.phantomscreens.com/

@Suzebell. I installed my roller screens awhile back and phantom screens were the brand I saw when I was thinking of replacement. I got mine at a local place that sells windows and doors.

years ago I lived in an old Spanish Colonial place and it had the original roller screens so evidently these have been around for awhile.

As a child my childhood house had retrofitted ”storm windows” which were supposed to theoretically provide some insulation for the drafty old wood windows.

You could keep a couple of those adjustable
quick pop in screens around for those rare instances when you want to open up. I had a couple in the bedroom and just slid them behind the dresser when not in use.

Our screens have been on our windows continuously for 33 years. Opening the windows to feel the breeze, hear the birds, and smell clean air is essential to us.

I can't imagine not having screens to open all the windows anytime you want to. If you do take them off, label them with masking tape so you know which ones go where if you ever want to put them back on.

We ordered our windows without them. Saved some money. We still open windows at various points - but certainly not at night. We do need to buy a few because we want them on some windows some of the time.

Every other house had them in storage which was kind of annoying.

There is no question that windows look prettier without screens. But sometimes, they are needed. I no longer ever open a window due to allergies/chronic pulmonary problems. So, I removed (and carefully stored!) the front window screens on my house. The others are in place - really don't have room to store them and their appearance really only bothered me on the front.

I have a whole house generator so I have have no need to open the windows in a power outage.

I am going through this dilemma now - my husband and I bought a historic home in capitol hill DC and there are no screens. we were torn between having our contractor add screens so we could open windows, but the front of the house just looks so beautiful without screens. i did find these adjustable screens that are a temporary fix if you do want to open for ventilation ! adjustable screens

We keep ours on. We frequently open one or more windows for fresh air and can't imagine not doing so.

Even with the most current mechanical ventilation requirements you may not (probably not) be getting enough fresh air for your physical and mental health. U.S. codes are about 2 decades behind Europe and Asia on HVAC.

@opaone I guess that could be a problem for someone who is housebound but we are outside many times a day so fresh air isn't a problem in this house. Plus, with dogs in our house, they are constantly needing the door opened to run outside. I have my schnauzers trained to ring a bell by the backdoor so they are always wanting to go outside to play, chase a cat, or hunt down some random noise they are certain they heard. lol! Again, if we could never leave our house, I could see the point for sure. Maybe a good point for the elderly!

I enjoyed reading thru the posts. To those concerned about ventilation, if you are from a family with multiple children & pets, then you know the door is opened frequently, right? I can't imagine how that would be the concern. I never really considered it, even though our A/C system does bring in fresh air from the outside. Our doors are opened & closed so much in the summer that the flies become a problem on some days & I start paying my kids 25 cents per fly they kill. If I'm super annoyed & the flies are in my kitchen, then it is 50 cents a fly. SO not kidding. lol! I have my schnauzers trained to ring a back door bell (used it for potty training but they progressed to using it for more than that) so we also open/close the door frequently for them daily. (I considered a doggie door but worried I'd be inviting stray cats, skunks, possums, snakes, etc on in as well...)

I think we will go ahead and remove all of the screens off of the front of the house as soon as the attic is sealed in (foamed & the home sheet rocked) & store those. I opted for fixed windows in my living room & dining since it is all open concept & the backdoor is right there, so no screens on the back downstairs. I'm unsure what to do about my son's upstairs. Part of me says to leave it, in case he wants to open it, so that it feels safer. But, then I worry about if he will be able to get it off easily in an emergency (I am buying the escape ladders for their bedrooms, in case of a fire...hopefully will never need them but I definitely want them available, just in case). Decisions, decisions...

JunkSalvation - lots of people like to keep their windows open (with screens) to benefit from the cross breezes - A/C on the cheap. Depends on climate, of course. And lots of people enjoy open windows at night as well. It has nothing to do with how much time one spends outside during the day. I admit I'm on the slippery slope into becoming an antique in my own right, but that has nothing to do with my preference for fresh air in the house, especially in the evenings and at night. And, right now,4 in the afternoon in Australia , I'm enjoying a sea breeze coming in from the north to cool things down. I'm also about to open the triple slider on the deck, which has a screen across it, to bring a bit of the outside in, as it were, minus the flies.

People have different life styles and preferences: don't assume that everyone wants to live the same way.

I have never used the screens. I have never seen so many words used for this type topic! Wow! Since this is a "new build", you might not be allowed to take them offsite, but the chances of them "walking" are pretty high. They just take up space in my attic, so walk away! lol

Southern coastal California here. I insist on screens on every window and door because unless I am using air conditioning I love to have as many windows and doors open as possible. And mosquitoes love me; I mean they love me so much a worldwide dinner gong goes off if I even think about stepping outside in the evening.

@jmm1837

People have different life styles and preferences: don't assume that everyone wants to live the same way.

Right back at ya. ;)

I'll repeat it again... I enjoyed reading other peoples thoughts on window screens. Who knew so many had some thoughts to share on the topic! I had no idea. The ventilation thing though I found more amusing than anything. Maybe it has to do with our TX climate & partially to my husband's main job (dealing with A/C & heating, etc), as well as our own home & occupants. Right now, or at least this week, our weather has been very mild. So, window opening lovers are probably enjoying it, if they live in TX.

@Aphaea I could definitely see the possibility of screens if I lived on the coast. I might could become converted to windows staying open. lol! My parents owned a coastal home here in TX as a second vacay home for awhile. The mosquitos were INSANE. There was a screened in back porch and they found their way in there, too. It was weird because sometimes we'd be visiting & you wouldn't even notice them. Then, the next time, they'd just swarm you the moment you stepped outside!

@Flo Mangan lol, me & you both! Eye opening. We are the GC's on the project (not our first build but the first time I've considered ditching the window screens though). As far as keeping them on for now, are you referring to inspections? Not thought of that. I will check in with our inspector about them though. I definitely don't want to hold up any inspection! I like to see those go as smoothly as possible. :)

Well, where we used to live, in south coast New South Wales, the open windows and sliders in the afternoon provided virtually all the cross ventilation we needed to cool the house in summer - saved a heap in electricity costs, I can tell you, and there's nothing like hearing the sea crashing and the cockatoos shrieking to make you feel part of the wider world :) . We live in Victoria now, where the climate is a bit more extreme, so we do need A/C here, but the sea breezes still help a lot in the afternoon. Like I said, depends where you live (even when I lived in Ottawa, I liked windows open a crack, even in winter Brrrrh!!!!)

I am south of Houston so AC is on most of the year! Mosquitoes are to be eliminated as much as possible. Best of luck!!

What you thought is a good idea itself, remove one of them as you prefer and keep it stored. You can always place it back if it doesn't turn out good for you.

It's 63 degrees in Fort Worth at 70 in the house - windows are open for business. I'll admit having the windows open means you have to listen to everything going on outside and for us that's big trucks, an airport, a possible train, kids, and street noise. It's not relaxing but it's doable. It's a challenge - how low I can go without using the HVAC.

While growing up in Phoenix, my parents wanted to capture the bits of cool morning before the scorching hot summer day. They installed a big window fan - obnoxiously big - to draw in the cool air and it worked perfectly. It was so loud but a nice payoff when the house was so cool in the afternoon, that and our house is oriented E/W with no windows on the front or back.

As for flies and mosquitoes - get the kids an electrified tennis racket that zaps the bugs. My FIL has one and being retired (in the Caribbean no less), it's his favorite past time and he claims it gives him a workout.

It's very interesting to read the different viewpoints, because I never even considered that there were people who prefer not to open their windows. I open all of my windows as soon as the temp goes above 50-55F in the spring, and they stay open as late into the fall as I can possibly stand it. I'll even go to bed in layers of clothes just to be able to enjoy the fresh air and the bug symphony at night. I also feel there's no better way to fall asleep at night than while listening to a rain storm through open windows. I don't have AC, and I really have no desire for it, either. I'm sure I would think differently if I lived in a city or a very hot climate, but I've only ever lived in rural northeast PA.

"@opaone I guess that could be a problem for someone who is housebound but we are outside many times a day so fresh air isn't a problem in this house. Plus, with dogs in our house, they are constantly needing the door opened to run outside. I have my schnauzers trained to ring a bell by the backdoor so they are always wanting to go outside to play, chase a cat, or hunt down some random noise they are certain they heard. lol! Again, if we could never leave our house, I could see the point for sure. Maybe a good point for the elderly!"

Not necessarily. The greatest problems we're seeing with indoor air quality and its impacts on our health are increased concentrations of CO2 and particulates in bedrooms during the night. Even during the day frequent opening of doors is likely not nearly enough to maintain healthy IAQ. This is one of the reasons that we have such higher levels of preventable chronic diseases and why we have the lowest life expectancy of developed nations.

Honestly, I think our diets play a much larger role in chronic preventive illness compared to open or closed windows. The standard American diet is atrocious. Though that is another subject for another thread :)

@Nidnay, yes. Lack of activity is #1 and diet is #2. IAQ is top 5 and we are increasingly learning about health problems caused by poor IAQ.

I would put diet at the top of the list :)

@nidnay I agree.

If you don't want screens on the windows, at least save them. In my area, if you are selling your home and the windows open, screens are required. Obviously, you don't have to keep them on the windows but they have to be available for the new owners. If you throw the screens away, you have to buy new ones for the sale of the house.

Wow sluggo, where do you live that they are actually required for sale?

IRC does not have a requirement for window screens, but many county and municipal housing codes do require them. In some cases, the local codes may make an exception for homes with air conditioning. Also, the FHA, HUD, and USDA mortgage programs specify that screens be in place and in good condition. The USDA inspection checklist, for example, states that windows “must have an insect screen in good repair.” Damaged windows screens, however, are always called out for repair. When an openable window has an empty slot for a window screen, an inspector may call it out as a defect for repair simply because there was one and it is gone.

We definitely have them and leave them on. We paid a lot more for Truescene screens which are virtually invisible in the sense they don’t block the view or light; we don’t even notice them.

Some of the window screens have been left off. I guess the owner of the house I rent felt it best to leave most of the screens off for some reason. Birds and insects damage window screens.

" Birds and insects damage window screens. "

They do?

Hence services that reasonably and easily replace them. Good lord, everything will get damaged at some point.

We rarely open windows. Blame seasonal allergies, poor outdoor air quality, Western wildfires and burglars.

Alberta wildfire air pollution. (CTV News)

Outside last week it smelled like I was back in Boy Scout camp in a bygone century.

We don’t have any screens on our windows because they are rarely opened. In Western PA, we can need the furnace and the a/c in the span of 6 hours. Around the same time period is when farmers are plowing and fertilizing the fields (lots of dust and smells).