Count the Bad Panels First
Walk your enclosure and count every panel that is torn, sagging, or pulling out of the frame. One to three bad panels with the rest of the mesh still strong and flexible? That is a repair job. Bad panels everywhere — or new tears appearing every few months? That is a cage telling you the mesh has aged out, and a full rescreen is the honest answer.
The Touch Test
Press a good-looking panel gently with your finger. If the mesh feels strong and springs back, it has life left. If it feels brittle, crinkles, or your finger goes through — the UV has eaten it, and every panel of that age is on the same clock. Brittle mesh everywhere means rescreen, even if only a few panels are torn today.
Repair Makes Sense When…
- Damage is localized. The dog tore the door panel, a branch hit one wall panel, the kids poked one screen. The rest is fine.
- The enclosure is young. Screens under about 8 years old that fail in isolated spots usually just need those panels.
- The frame is solid. Straight aluminum, good screws, doors that hang right. No reason to touch what works.
Rescreen When…
- Mesh is brittle everywhere. The touch test fails on panel after panel. Repairing these one at a time is paying visit fees over and over.
- Fading is uniform. When the whole cage has gone gray and chalky, it looks old even after the torn panels are fixed. A rescreen makes it look new.
- You want a mesh upgrade. Moving the whole cage to 20/20 no-see-um or pet-resistant mesh means a full rescreen — mixing mesh types looks patchy.
- Storm damage is widespread. If a storm took out a third or more of the panels, the math usually favors a full rescreen.
The Money Math
Panel repairs run $150 to $400 each, and every visit carries setup costs. A full rescreen of an average cage runs $3,000 to $6,000. The crossover is roughly a third of the panels: if a third or more need work, the rescreen is usually the better money — and you get a uniform, like-new cage instead of a patchwork.
What About the Frame?
Rescreening assumes the aluminum frame is sound. If the frame itself is bent, corroded through, or pulling away from the house, that is a different conversation — frame repair first, then screens. We will tell you straight which one your enclosure needs, including when the answer is "just fix the panels and save your money."
Not Sure? Get Eyes on It
Send us the form with photos — a wide shot of the cage and close-ups of the worst panels. We will tell you whether your enclosure is a repair candidate or a rescreen.