A magnetic screen door usually means the hanging mesh curtain sold at big-box stores: cheap, easy to hang, and fine for a back door that sees light use. For a front door, patio slider or garage man-door that gets used daily, a retractable screen door with side rails and a magnetic catch holds up far better.
Magnetic screen doors vs ROLLerUP vertical bug door screens
A magnetic screen door curtain is the mesh panel sold at hardware and big-box stores: two halves of lightweight fabric hung from a frame, with a strip of small magnets sewn down the centre seam. You pin or staple the frame to the top and sides of a doorway, split the curtain down the middle, and walk through – the magnets snap the two halves back together behind you. There's no cassette, no track, no hardware beyond a staple gun, and it's inexpensive enough to replace in an afternoon if it tears. Most people put one on a back door the family uses a few times a day in summer and takes down again by fall.
A retractable screen door is a different piece of equipment entirely. The mesh rolls into an aluminum cassette mounted at the top or side of the door frame, running on a pair of side rails that keep the panel stretched flat and square in the opening rather than loose and flapping. A pull bar lets you draw the screen across by hand, and a magnetic catch at the latch side holds it shut without a handle to fumble with. When you don't need it, the whole panel retracts into the cassette and disappears from view. We measure the opening on site, order the cassette and rails to match that door's actual width and height, and mount the hardware into the frame itself rather than trim or drywall, which is what keeps it running square after years of daily use.
What it solves
A back door you open twice a day
If the door only gets used occasionally – a garden door in summer, a cottage entry on weekends – a magnetic curtain does the job. It keeps flies out between trips to the yard and costs next to nothing to put up or take down. We won't tell anyone to spend more than that use case needs.
A patio slider in daily use
A curtain on a slider gets brushed aside dozens of times a day, and the magnets lose their grip as the fabric stretches and sags. Within a season it's hanging open more than it's closed. A retractable screen stays tensioned on its rails and keeps working the same way on day one thousand as it did on day one.
Dogs, kids and screen doors
A curtain has nothing holding its edges once a paw, a shoulder or a bike handlebar pushes through it – it tears or pulls off its mounting strip. A retractable panel is framed on both sides by aluminum rail, so the mesh has somewhere to anchor instead of just hanging in open air.
Wind off an open yard or a lake lot
A hanging curtain moves with every gust, which means bugs get in around the edges exactly when you'd want the screen working hardest. A retractable screen's side rails hold the mesh in a fixed plane, so wind doesn't open a gap at the seam the way it does with a magnet-and-fabric curtain.
A garage man-door that needs to actually seal
Garage man-doors see rougher daily traffic than most entries – tools in hand, hands full, the door often propped. A retractable screen with a magnetic catch closes itself behind you without needing a free hand, which a curtain can't manage once you're carrying anything.
What it costs
We put the figure in writing after the free on-site measure – every one of these is sized and priced to the opening.
What moves the number:
- the width and height of the doorway being screened
- whether the mechanism is sliding, hinged or retractable vertical
- the mesh grade – basic insect mesh versus a heavier-duty pet-resistant weave
- how many doorways are screened in one visit
- whether the door frame needs modification before the track can be mounted
- the frame colour or finish chosen to match the door and trim
Jobs we've done
Retractable screens on a covered lakeside deck
Retractable screen on a covered patio beside a pool, Newmarket
Two motorized retractable screens over a pool patio, Holland Landing
Retractable screens on a cedar-framed covered patio
Wide retractable screen on a stone and wood house patio
Retractable screens between stone columns on a covered patio
If you're also weighing a retractable screen against a fixed window screen or a sliding insect door, our retractable screens hub lays out which mechanism suits which opening.
How the ROLLerUP® Process Works
Consultation
We assess your space and recommend the best retractable screen solution for your needs.
Custom Design & Quote
You’ll receive a transparent quote and a design that fits your space precisely.
Professional Installation
Our team installs your screen system with precision and care—on time and on budget.
Post-Installation Support
We stay available after the install for adjustments, care advice and warranty questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where we install this
Ontario's swing from humid summers to sub-zero winters is hard on anything mounted outdoors. Aluminum rails and cassettes don't swell, rust or warp the way the curtain's plastic frame strips can after a few freeze-thaw cycles, and the mesh stays tensioned instead of sagging in damp heat. Most homes here use a screen door seasonally – up by May, stored or left retracted into its cassette by late fall – so we fit the hardware to handle being left alone through winter without the track seizing or the mesh stretching out of shape.
More about retractable screens
Where we install
- Retractable screens in King City
- Retractable screens in Newmarket
- Retractable screens in Oakville
- Retractable screens in Richmond Hill
- Retractable screens in Stouffville
- Retractable screens, awnings and louvered pergolas in Toronto
- Retractable screens in Uxbridge
- Retractable screens in Vaughan, Woodbridge and Maple
- Retractable screens in Whitby
Get a free on-site estimate
We'll measure your doorway, talk through mesh and mechanism options, and put the price in writing – call (289) 270-5747 or visit the Newmarket showroom, Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 17:00.