Screen doors
Reno's afternoon wind and your screens
Most summer afternoons a west wind called the Washoe Zephyr picks up across Reno-Sparks around 2 p.m. and blows into the evening, and it is a main reason screen doors jump their tracks, spline pops loose and screens blow out of windows here. A few habits and a well-fitted screen prevent most of that damage.
Updated · A-Affordable Screen, Sparks
What the Washoe Zephyr is
The National Weather Service office in Reno describes the Washoe Zephyr as 'a thermally induced downslope wind frequently observed in the summer during the late afternoon and early evening across the Sierra Front in western Nevada and northeast California.' It forms along the eastern slopes of the Sierra and moves east across the Reno-Carson City area.
According to the same NWS paper, it 'is a west wind that usually begins within 2 hours of 21 UTC (2pm local),' with peak sustained speeds of 12 to 20 knots, about 14 to 23 mph, and it dies down by about 9 p.m. The name goes back to Mark Twain's Roughing It, where he called it 'a pretty regular wind, in the summer-time.'
What NOAA's numbers show at the airport
- Calm mornings, windy afternoons. In NOAA's 1991-2020 hourly normals for Reno-Tahoe International Airport, the average wind from 2 to 6 p.m. runs about 13 mph from April through July, against 2 to 4 mph in the early morning.
- Calm is rare after lunch. From April through August, only about 2 to 4 percent of afternoon hours are calm, compared with roughly 41 to 53 percent of early-morning hours.
- It comes from the west. The prevailing afternoon direction is west from March through September.
- Gusts are common. Our tally of NOAA's daily observations for 2016 to 2025 (not an official normal) found a peak gust of 30 mph or more on about 145 days a year, 40 mph or more on about 45 days, and 50 mph or more on about 12 days. The strongest in that decade was 78 mph on November 17, 2020, a storm rather than a zephyr.
- July afternoons are the gustiest. In that same tally, about 65 percent of July days had a gust of 30 mph or more.
Month by month
The table shows how the afternoon wind builds through spring, holds through summer and fades in fall. It is the calendar to plan screen work around.
| Month | Average wind 2-6 p.m. | Average wind 5-8 a.m. | Afternoon hours calm | Prevailing afternoon direction | Days with a gust of 30 mph+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.4 mph | 3.3 mph | 26 percent | South | 25 percent |
| March | 11.4 mph | 4.2 mph | 6 percent | West | 44 percent |
| April | 13.1 mph | 4.3 mph | 3 percent | West | 48 percent |
| May | 13.2 mph | 3.6 mph | 2 percent | West | 50 percent |
| June | 13.4 mph | 3.0 mph | 3 percent | West | 56 percent |
| July | 13.1 mph | 2.3 mph | 3 percent | West | 65 percent |
| August | 12.0 mph | 2.1 mph | 4 percent | West | 50 percent |
| September | 10.2 mph | 2.0 mph | 6 percent | West | 35 percent |
| October | 8.3 mph | 2.6 mph | 12 percent | East | 19 percent |
| December | 6.6 mph | 4.0 mph | 27 percent | South | 26 percent |
Wind averages, calm share and direction: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals. Gust share: our count of NOAA GHCN-Daily peak gusts, 2016-2025, not an official normal. Hours are local standard time. More on our Reno-Sparks sun and climate data page.
Which homes feel it most
The airport sits on the valley floor. NOAA notes that foothill neighborhoods run windier, so homes on the slopes of Northwest Reno, the higher parts of South Reno and the open ground of Spanish Springs often see stronger gusts than the numbers above.
On any house, the west and south walls take the afternoon wind head-on. A slider on the west side of a newer tract home, with no fence or trees to break the wind, is the classic case: a door left half open at 4 p.m. becomes a sail.
What the wind does to screens
- Sliding screen doors: a gust against a door that is half open pushes it sideways, lifts it out of the top track, or slams it into the jamb hard enough to bend the frame. West- and south-facing sliders take the brunt.
- Spline: the rubber cord that locks mesh into the frame channel. Constant flexing in the wind, plus summer UV, dries and shrinks it until the mesh pulls free at a corner.
- Mesh: wind makes screen fabric billow like a sail. Over a season that stretches it, loosens it and tears it where it meets the spline.
- Loose window screens: a screen held by weak tension springs or missing clips rattles in the afternoon and can blow right out, often landing on a rock bed or driveway.
- Solar screens: they catch more wind than insect mesh, so their clips or turn buttons need to be snug and the frame straight.
A spring wind check
March is when the afternoon wind starts building, so late March or April is the best time for a quick walk-around. Do it on a calm morning.
- Slide every screen door open and closed. It should roll smoothly with one hand. If it drags, scrapes or rides low, vacuum the track and see our sticking slider guide for what to check.
- Check the top of each door. The top of the door should sit inside the upper track along the whole run, with no spot where the door can lift out.
- Look at every screen corner. A gap where spline has pulled out, or mesh that has gone slack, is an easy fix now and a torn screen by August.
- Count the clips and springs. Replace any missing clip, turn button or spring, starting on the west side.
- Press on each frame. A frame that flexes or rocks when laid flat may be bent. Our rescreen or replace guide explains when a frame is worth keeping.
Habits that prevent most damage
- Close sliding screen doors fully in the afternoon, and latch them if they have a latch. A door that is all the way closed has little for the wind to push against.
- Keep the track clean. Grit makes a door stick, and a sticking door gets forced or left half open.
- Check each door each spring. If it drags or rides low, vacuum the track and look at the frame before summer.
- Replace missing clips or springs on window screens right away, especially on the west side.
- Do yard work that needs the slider open in the morning, when NOAA's normals show the air is usually calm.
- If you remove solar screens for winter, put them back on a calm morning; see our winter guide.
Built for this wind
A screen door that fits its opening and has a stiff frame handles the zephyr far better than a thin, loose one. That is why we make our custom sliding screen doors from heavy-duty material, measure each opening on site, and build to the actual height, whether 80 or 96 inches, and to any width. Our door sizes guide explains the two heights. When your door's frame is still straight and sound, rescreening gives it fresh mesh.
Window screens with pulled spline or stretched mesh can usually be rescreened in the same frame through our screen repair and rescreening service, and missing or bent ones can be replaced with new custom window screens. Rescreening uses new spline, or the same spline reused when it is still good. Tighter-fitting screens matter in mosquito season too; our mosquito guide covers that side.
The fire side of the zephyr matters too. The NWS notes it affects fire weather across the Sierra Front, and it has fanned large fires near Carson City and south of Reno. On Red Flag Warning afternoons, close windows and doors instead of relying on screens, and follow local fire officials' guidance.
Questions
Straight answers
What time does the wind pick up in Reno?
In summer the Washoe Zephyr usually starts within about two hours of 2 p.m. and fades by about 9 p.m., according to the National Weather Service in Reno.
Why does my sliding screen door keep coming off the track?
Usually a dirty or bent track, a bent frame, a door that is too short for the opening, or wind catching a half-open door. Keeping the door fully closed on windy afternoons and the track clean helps, and a custom door measured to the opening stays on its track.
Why does the screen keep pulling out of the frame?
The spline has shrunk or hardened with sun and wind, or the mesh has stretched. Rescreening the same frame with new mesh, using new spline or the same spline when it is still good, usually fixes it.
Are solar screens safe in Reno's wind?
Yes, when the frame is straight and the mounting hardware is snug. They catch more wind than insect mesh, so fit matters. See solar screens.
Which month is windiest for screens?
Afternoon averages are highest from April through July, about 13 mph at the airport, and July has the largest share of days with a 30 mph gust in NOAA's 2016-2025 daily records.
Related
Keep reading
Sources: National Weather Service Reno (Brong): Using Thermal Gradients to Forecast the Strength of the Washoe Zephyr (opens in a new tab) · NOAA NCEI: U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 (Reno-Tahoe International Airport, hourly wind) (opens in a new tab) · NOAA NCEI: Global Historical Climatology Network daily summaries (Reno-Tahoe Intl, 2016-2025 gusts) (opens in a new tab)
Since 1997 · Sparks, Nevada
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