[jsta_grl22]

I've been looking online at homes for sale and i've noticed that almost all of the pools in Florida are covered by a large screened-in patio/atrium. What is the purpose of this? Is it for bugs?

[Lisa_from_Debary]

We have some rather astonishing bugs here and of course with all the standing water, we also have alot of musquitos as well...its alot nicer with a screen in fact if I were looking at a house, I wouldn't even consider it if it didn't have a screen unless the price was low enough to put one on.

The nice thing in the summer is that it keeps the water from getting too warm, in late summer it can feel sort of like tepid bath water...not so much if you have a screen.

[BahamaBreeze]

In South Fl you will find more pools without screens than in Central Fl.
One reason is that there is a seabreeze on the coast that helps, in the summer it also really helps with the heat. Also, the more close to nature that a house sits on, the more "wooded" "reserve" etc then of course the more frogs, creepy crawlers and whatnot you will find in or around "your" pool.

[harry chickpea]

Screens also reduce the amount of wind-blown debris that lands in a pool. Our pool is surrounded by Royal Poincienas, Beshovia, and Black Olive trees. Keeping it clean was impossible until I started using pool robots. Unfortunately, the landscaping would make adding a screen enclosure difficult, and they don't last though anything more than a minor hurricane anyway.

[Songbird42]

They also cut the glare of the sun to some degree, you will still get a burn if your in the water. Also some people have cutouts in the corner of there
lani's where they plant some palm trees or whatever, worst thing you can do
a good wind or hurricane and look whats in your pool!!!! I've even had snakes
crawl under the doors of my screen enclosure and wiggle all around the screen enclosure. I think its also a HOI thing for liability. You don't want strangers swimming in your pool.

[chisoxfan]

One key thing to know about pool enclosures: They're susceptible to being blown down in hurricanes and (at least in South Florida) some of the homeowner insurers, if they cover them at all, will charge you extra to have a rider attached to the policy. For instance, if we want Citizens to insure our pool enclosure, we'd have to pay an extra $500 a year on top of our regular windstorm policy. We figure instead that we won't replace the enclosure if it's ever blown down (although it survived Wilma with only a few torn screens -- a few of our neighbors weren't so lucky).

[urbandeco]

Screen enclosure, a must (in my opinion )in almost all of the Florida from the months of July to October.

[RedWingsFan]

They are a must even on back patios/porches. If you don't have one then in my opinion your patio is useless because the bugs will out number you and your family by about thousand to one! Seriously, the bugs are so bad here you must have screened enclosures.

[lorriem]

I love our screened in pool area.No bugs,clean pool and no sun burn. My sister in law came for a visit two years ago and she hadn't been swimming in over 20 years due to being very sensitive to the sun. The last day that they were here she jumped in the pool with her clothes on and had a great time. She has since moved to SC and they had a home built and she insisted on a pool with a screen enclosure. They love it. Plus we also have three dogs and they love the extra area to play . We even have a TV out there.

[lorriem]

Originally Posted by RedWingsFan

They are a must even on back patios/porches. If you don't have one then in my opinion your patio is useless because the bugs will out number you and your family by about thousand to one! Seriously, the bugs are so bad here you must have screened enclosures.

Are you getting the massive am't of little black bugs now. We are and with out that screen we would be stuck inside.