Great build from Alan. This is a screen guard to protect windows from golf balls! He shared some great details about the project.
"The screening material was Metro Screenworks' stainless steel security screen, which comes in a 5' x 25' roll that fit well with our nine 5' tall porch windows, each approximately 22" wide, and separated by vinyl strips. The conduit frame I constructed on which to stretch the screening in sections ended up being about 21.5' x 5.5' to take advantage of the soffit on either side.
Two hacks I discovered by fortuitous accident: (1) The T connectors proved to be just the right size for spacers that position the conduit frame far enough away from the windows to keep the screening material, which has some give to it, from hitting the glass along with a wild golf shot. I was able to seal the open end of the connectors with your End Plug/Caps, together with some Mortite caulking, so hard metal wouldn't scratch the vinyl window frame (see photo); (2) When almost finished, I saw that the center of the build bowed out a few inches on top. It doesn't reduce the screen's effectiveness but I hated the look of it. I could have easily screwed an eye hook into the vinyl and used a cable tie to draw the conduit back in but I preferred not to put a hole in the siding. In the course of experimenting with different options, I realized I could attach a T-connector to the center cross bar at top and in tightening it, use the two halves at the open end to "pinch" a small section of the vinyl siding and keep things in place (see photo) -- kind of like a clamp. Not ideal for sure -- there's very little for it to grab onto and loosens every now and then -- but tightening it is a simple and quick fix until something better comes along.
Other examples of aesthetics trumping functionality: (1) I couldn't use outdoor cable ties because those come only in black, and both Barbara and I felt the white ones looked better. Didn't realize until the very end that that might be a problem in a year or two once those deteriorated from UV light. Nor did I know that stainless steel ties are available and much more durable. (Not sure how easy they are to work with though, and whether they're too big for the existing grommets.); (2) For appearance sake, I chose small grommets, whose openings barely allowed the cable ties to pass through; (3) A larger grommet would have had room for two cable ties to provide additional strength. Although I'm sure the screen material is strong enough to repel a golf ball, I hope the cable ties won't snap on impact and allow the ball to hit the glass. Time will tell, I guess: it would be so nice, wouldn't it, to know at the start of a project what you learn by the end of it! :)"
