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Our screened porch and room enclosure services in New Orleans, LA turn open porches into usable living space. We design and build screen rooms that fit your existing roofline and structure, using durable framing and mesh to keep insects out. New Orleans Screens helps you enjoy fresh air living areas without sacrificing comfort.
New Orleans Screens provides professional screened porch installation throughout New Orleans, LA, Louisiana and the surrounding area. Our licensed, insured crew delivers safe, clean, on-time work with a free estimate before anything begins. Call (504) 499-0717 or request your free quote.
Screened porch installation built for New Orleans homes
A screened porch or room enclosure in New Orleans has to do more than look nice. It needs to stand up to humidity, heavy rain, swarming mosquitoes, and the occasional tropical storm. At New Orleans Screens, we design each screened porch installation around how you actually use your space and how our climate really behaves.
Most projects start with a walk-through of your porch or patio. We look at how the sun hits your house, where rain blows in, and how close your neighbors are. That tells us where you need extra shade, tighter privacy screening, or stronger framing. We also check your existing structure, including floor, roof line, and posts, to see what can be used and what needs to be added or reinforced.
In many New Orleans neighborhoods, a screened porch is considered an accessory structure or an alteration to the exterior. We help you understand if your job is a simple screen wall installation or a full enclosure that might need a permit from the City of New Orleans and possibly HOA approval. For smaller projects that do not change the footprint or roof, permits are often not required, but when they are, we can coordinate with licensed contractors or your architect to get the right drawings and paperwork submitted.
From there, we talk through function. Some customers mainly want bug protection so they can sit outside without citronella candles. Others want a semi-conditioned room with ceiling fans, outlets, and pet doors. New Orleans Screens plans your screened porch installation around those priorities so you do not end up overbuilt or underbuilt for what you actually want.
Materials and design options that work in Louisiana humidity
The materials you choose for a screened porch or room enclosure affect price, durability, and maintenance. In our climate, not everything sold at big box stores holds up well. At New Orleans Screens, we walk you through options based on what lasts in New Orleans, not just what looks good in a catalog.
For the framing, we typically use either aluminum or pressure-treated wood. Aluminum framing is popular in our area because it will not rot, and it handles high humidity and rain with minimal maintenance. It works well for porches that are mainly being enclosed with new screen walls. Pressure-treated wood is better if you want a more traditional look that can be painted to match historic trim, but it needs proper sealing and periodic repainting to stand up to New Orleans moisture.
Screen mesh is where many projects succeed or fail. Basic fiberglass screen is affordable and fine for low traffic areas, but it tears more easily if you have pets or children. For most screened porch installations, we recommend heavier-duty options like:
• Pet-resistant polyester or PVC-coated mesh if you have dogs or cats that might scratch or push against the screen.
• Small insect mesh that has tighter weave to keep out no-see-ums and gnats that are common near water and marshy areas.
• Solar or shade screen that cuts heat and glare on west-facing porches and can help your porch feel usable even in mid-summer.
If you are near Lake Pontchartrain or in a more exposed area, we can combine stronger frame profiles and upgraded screen systems that better resist wind pressure. For many New Orleans homes, we also plan for corrosion-resistant fasteners and hardware, using stainless or coated screws and clips so the porch looks good season after season instead of spotting with rust.
How the screened porch and room enclosure process works
When you hire New Orleans Screens for screened porch installation, we follow a clear sequence so you know what is happening and when.
1. Site visit and measuring: We measure every opening that will be screened and take note of uneven floors, out-of-square posts, and any existing damage. In older New Orleans houses, nothing is perfectly straight, so we plan custom cuts and fillers where needed so you do not end up with gaps that let in bugs.
2. Layout and design: We sketch out where vertical posts, horizontal rails, and doors will go. We talk through sightlines, furniture placement, and fan or light locations so no frame member ends up blocking your view or your planned TV wall. For room enclosures that will be more like outdoor rooms, we consider wall height, transoms, and how to integrate existing columns or brick knee walls.
3. Proposal and options: You receive a written proposal that breaks out materials and labor, and notes optional upgrades, like pet doors, kick plates at the bottom of screens, or heavier storm hardware on doors. This helps you see where cost is coming from and decide what matters most for your porch.
4. Fabrication and scheduling: Once approved, we order materials sized for your project. For aluminum enclosures, we often pre-cut frame components so installation goes faster and results are more precise. We then schedule your installation around weather as much as possible, since some sealants and paints do not cure well in heavy rain.
5. Installation: On site, we remove any old screen or hardware, repair minor wood damage if agreed, and then build the frame, install the doors, and stretch and spline the screen panels. Proper screen tension is important in our humid climate, so we allow for a little give without sagging. For room enclosures that include knee walls, we coordinate with carpenters or masons if additional wall work is needed before we screen above it.
6. Final walkthrough: We check every opening and door, spray the screens to confirm water sheds correctly, and confirm that sliding or swinging doors latch cleanly. You get tips on how to clean and maintain your new screened porch and what to watch for after the first heavy rain or wind event.
Costs, common issues, and what affects your price
Screened porch installation costs in New Orleans vary widely, and it helps to know what really drives the price. At New Orleans Screens, the main factors are size of the porch, height of the openings, condition of existing structure, material choices, and access.
A simple ground-level porch with a sound roof and posts will cost less per square foot than a second-story balcony or a porch that needs structural repairs. Taller walls require more framing, more ladder work, and sometimes scaffolding, which adds labor. If your existing posts are rotted at the base, they may need to be repaired or replaced by a carpenter before we can safely tie in new screen framing.
Material choices also change your budget. Aluminum framing and specialty meshes like pet-resistant or solar screen cost more upfront but generally last longer and reduce maintenance. If you choose pressure-treated wood, factor in the cost of paint or stain and future repainting in our climate. Hardware upgrades like self-closing hinges, heavy-duty door closers, and corrosion-resistant latches add some cost but pay for themselves in everyday use.
Common issues we solve in New Orleans include:
• Water intrusion at the porch floor when it rains sideways. We can add low kick plates or build the screen a few inches up from the floor with a solid base to reduce splashing and protect the bottom of the mesh.
• Gaps at the top of the porch where the old roof line or beam is uneven. We use custom trim, fillers, and angle cuts to close off these openings so mosquitoes and palmetto bugs do not find a way in.
• Settled or cracked concrete that creates uneven thresholds. We can adjust door placement, add low ramps, or use threshold extenders to keep doors swinging smoothly and to reduce tripping hazards.
By being upfront about these conditions and options, you can compare bids on equal terms instead of being surprised by change orders later.
Local considerations, HOAs, and when to choose a room enclosure
New Orleans has a mix of historic districts, HOAs, and low-lying neighborhoods, and each can affect how your screened porch or room enclosure is built. New Orleans Screens is familiar with many of the local rules and can help you ask the right questions before work starts.
If your home is within a local historic district, exterior changes visible from the street may need review. In many cases, a screened porch at the rear of the house is easier to approve than one on the front, especially if framing and trim match existing details. We can adjust design to keep the look consistent with your home, including using narrower frames, painted wood, or divided-light style screen panels that echo your existing windows.
HOAs and condo boards around the metro area often have guidelines on color, height, and whether you can add solid walls. Before final design, we suggest checking your governing documents or sharing them with us so we can design your screened porch installation to comply. Supplying a simple plan view and a few elevation sketches is usually enough for approval.
In some cases, a full room enclosure is a better choice than just screens. If you want to use the space year-round, add a mini-split AC, or protect furniture from blowing rain, we can design a hybrid approach. This might mean solid lower panels or windows below and screens above, removable screen panels that can be swapped for storm windows, or reinforced framing that can accept glass or acrylic in the future.
We also consider flood and elevation. In lower areas or raised houses, we help you keep enclosures open enough at the base or designed so that if water does enter during a storm, screens and frames can be repaired without major reconstruction. Our goal is to give you a porch or room enclosure that looks like it belongs with your New Orleans home and can be maintained realistically in our weather.
If you are ready to explore what is possible with your porch, New Orleans Screens can walk you through options that fit your house, your neighborhood, and how you actually live outside.
