Choosing Your Netting

90% of the time, Heavy-Duty Black Mosquito Netting is the best choice. It is the most durable, most see-through, and best long-term investment.

No-see-um netting is really only necessary if you have no-see-um bugs.

Black netting is the most popular color for two reasons: it reduces sun glare/increases visibility and it does not get stained. 

Installing Your Netting

Wood and vinyl surfaces: For softer surfaces like wood or vinyl, stapling is the most common installation method. If installed properly and removed properly, staples will not damage the netting and will leave only tiny, tiny holes in the surface. 

Metal surfaces: Most metal surfaces are not metallic, but if your surface is, you may be able to use strong magnets. You can test any metal surface with a fridge magnet. If the surface is NOT magnetic, you have two options: industrial strength adhesive Velcro (generic hook and loop tape is cheaper than name-brand Velcro) or putting hooks into the metal and hanging the netting on the hooks with grommets (see grommets section below)

Brick or stucco surfaces: There is almost no way to attach to brick or stucco surfaces without drilling holes and installing hooks. Adhesives do not work well on brick or stucco. 

Creating DIY Mosquito Curtains

There are two ways of making curtains, one that involves sewing and one that does not. In most cases, I recommend the NO-SEW option. 

Sewing method: Fold the top edge of the netting over and sew along the base of the fold to create a curtain rod sleeve. (Sewing guide below)

NO-SEW method: Insert snap grommets every 12 inches along the top of the netting. You only need a hammer to do this. Then attach the netting to a curtain rod using shower curtain hooks or zip ties. (No-sew guide below)

What do I use for the rod?

You can use any curtain rod, but most home decor curtain rods are 72 inches or less. If you want rods that are longer than 72 inches, we recommend using aluminum EMT conduit rods. While not technically curtain rods, they come in 60 inch and 120 inch lengths, they are very lightweight, rigid, inexpensive, can be painted, and can be joined together and mounted easily. (More info about rods below)


Sewing Method for DIY Curtains

Sewing a sleeve into heavy-duty netting is as easy as folding the netting over onto itself, pinning it with straight pins, and sewing along the base of the fold to create a sleeve. 

FOLD & MEASURE

3.5 to 4 inches is ideal for a curtain sleeve. 

PINNING 

Use straight pins to keep the fold in place while sewing.

Placing a straight pin every 6 to 12 inches helps keep the fold in place. You will remove the pins as you sew. 

SEWING

Sewing the heavy-duty netting is easy. Feed the edge of the folded netting into your sewing machine. Sew about 1 inch, then reverse and sew backwards over the starting stitch back to the edge, then continue sewing forward. This is a common sewing practice to ensure the stitch is sealed at the start. 

Continue sewing until you reach the end of the sleeve fold and then reverse the machine, sew backwards over the last inch of the stitch, and then sew forwards over it again to seal the end of the stitch. 

Now your sleeve is complete. 

CURTAIN RODS

In most cases, we recommend EMT aluminum conduit rods for curtains. These rods are available in the electrical sections at Home Depot and Lowes and these rods are lightweight, rigid, inexpensive, easy to mount, and don't rust. 

We recommend using 3/4 inch EMT rods for UP TO 10 ft spans and 1 inch EMT rods for more than 10 ft spans. 

The rods come in 5 ft and 10 ft lengths and can be joined together using EMT couplers (photos below)

Above is a 3/4 inch diameter 5 ft length of EMT conduit

EMT conduit mounts, corner joints, and couplers. Match the size to your rods

(i.e. 3/4 inch parts for 3/4 inch rods and 1 inch parts for 1 inch rods)

MOUNTING A ROD

EMT conduit rods have 2-hole strap mounts that can be used to mount the rods on your patio, porch, etc. 

Use two screws for each mount on each side of the rods. If you are doing a really long span (20 ft) with a single rod, you can mount two strap mounts side-by-side on each end of the rod for double reinforcement. 

COMBINING RODS

If you are wanting to have a single rod that is longer than 10 ft, you will have to join two rods together using a EMT coupler. 

This is a 3/4 inch EMT screw coupler. It is smooth on the inside.

Slide the coupler onto on rod, then slide the other rod into the other end of the coupler. 

Once both rods are inserted into the coupler, tighten the screws to secure them in place.

All done!

CORNER JOINT COUPLER

If you need to bring your curtain around a corner, you can join two EMT rods with a 90 degree corner joint coupler. It is the same basic design as a straight coupler. 

Insert a rod into each end, tighten the screws to secure the rods in place, and the curtains can slide around a corner fairly easy (just be a little careful to make sure it doesn't get caught) 

NO-SEW Method for DIY Curtains

Grommets are great for hanging curtains (using shower curtain hooks), hanging on cup hook screws, or for securing your netting to a post. We recommend Easy Gardener Sunshade Grommets from Home Depot. They are $4.50 for a 10-pack. 

These grommets are UV-resistant, rust-free polymer and can be inserted anywhere in your netting using just a hammer. 

These are the only tools you need: a hammer and a knife/razor blade.

On a hard surface, place the netting on top of the male-side of the grommet, and sandwich the netting with the female-size on top. Then hammer the grommet together with gentle taps until the grommet sets. 

Once you have inserted the grommet, cut the netting out of the center with a sharp knife or razor blade. 

You can then hang your netting on a hook or attach it to a curtain rod using shower curtain hooks or zip ties.

 

 

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