Hurricane Screens on Fort Myers Beach, FL
Motorized hurricane screens for Estero Island — for new elevated builds and for the homes that came through.
Fort Myers Beach is still two towns at once. Parts of Estero Island have been rebuilt to a standard the island never had before. Other parcels are still empty, still in permitting, or still tangled in litigation three years on. Which of those two situations you are in changes this conversation completely, so we will split it.
If you are rebuilding or building new
Effectively the whole island sits in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, and the Town requires finished floors at base flood elevation plus a foot of freeboard for new construction and substantial improvements. Which means the house you are putting up is elevated, and elevation changes the wind problem in three ways most people do not anticipate:
- Your openings are higher, so they are more exposed. Wind speed increases with height above grade, and you have removed the ground-level obstructions that used to shelter the structure.
- The openings themselves are usually bigger. New island construction is designed around the view. Wider sliders, taller lanai openings, more glass facing open water.
- Retrofitting later costs far more than specifying now. Mounting detail, structural backing and electrical for a motorized system are cheap while the wall is open and expensive afterward. This is the single most valuable thing we can tell anyone rebuilding here.
If you are in design or under construction, talk to us before the walls close. We would rather scope the backing and the power run now than cut into finished work in two years.
If your home survived
Then you already know what the island can do, and the question is only which openings are still unprotected. On most surviving beach homes the answer is the lanai and the sliders — the largest openings, the ones facing the water, and the ones no panel system covers well in a single span.
Watch the 50% rule here. The Town assesses substantial improvement against the structure’s value, and since February 2023 jurisdictions across Lee County have had to use the building cost value from the Property Appraiser rather than the older Tax Roll Value Letter. If you are combining a screen project with other repairs, that arithmetic needs doing before the first permit goes in, not after.
What goes on the openings
Two systems, both Florida product-approved for hurricane protection:
| System | Why it gets picked on the beach |
|---|---|
| MagnaTrack Defender FBC #30798 | Spans up to 30 ft wide by 20 ft high in one piece with no center post. Dual-pull neodymium magnetic track on a low-friction Keder interlock; the magnetic fields dampen wind and debris and hold the screen flat. Self-Adjusting Technology. |
| UltraShield FL-42141 | Housing stays 7 inches or under at every size and does not grow with the span — it stays out of the sight line on a wide water-facing elevation. Clearest view out in the industry. Patented four-sided end retention and an adjustable base slat that self-levels to a pitched floor up to 1.75 inches. |
Detail on both is on our motorized hurricane screens page. We also fit rolldown shutters, accordion shutters and impact windows and doors.
Permitting with the Town of Fort Myers Beach
The Town runs its own building services, separate from Lee County. Flood-resistant design and elevation requirements sit at the center of any substantial work here, and every product on an exterior opening needs a current Florida Product Approval rated for the wind zone at your address. Permitting is handled as part of the job.
Where we work
Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel, Captiva, Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Bonita Springs and Estero.
Hurricane screens across Southwest Florida:
Cape Coral · Naples · Fort Myers · Punta Gorda · Bonita Springs · Estero · Sanibel · Port Charlotte · Marco Island · North Fort Myers · San Carlos Park · Babcock Ranch
Hurricane shutters in Fort Myers Beach, FL
If you are rebuilding on Estero Island, specify the shutters during design rather than after. Backing and the electrical run for a motorized roll-down shutter cost almost nothing while the wall is open and a great deal afterwards. On a house that came through Ian, the usual gap is the windows rather than the lanai — accordion shutters close that quickly and cheaply.
Shutters and screens are different products doing different jobs, and most houses in Fort Myers Beach end up with some of each. If you are not sure which your openings want, that is exactly what the call is for.
Product pages for Fort Myers Beach
Accordion shutters in Fort Myers Beach
Nothing to store, on an island where ground-level storage is restricted.
Bahama shutters in Fort Myers Beach
The beach-cottage look the rebuild is reaching for.
Roll down shutters in Fort Myers Beach
Rebuilding? Specify now – backing and wiring are nearly free while walls are open.
Storm panels in Fort Myers Beach
Height, storage and salt all work against them here. Where they still fit.
Roll down screens in Fort Myers Beach
A covered deck or balcony in one clear span, Gulf view intact.
Impact windows in Fort Myers Beach
Cheapest it will ever be is during the build you are doing right now.
Talk to us about your openings — Fort Myers Beach
Tell us what you are looking at and someone from our team will call you the same business day. We go through it on the phone first — your openings, the products that actually fit, what is involved — and if it is a fit we come out and put a written quote in your hand. No charge and no obligation.
Fort Myers Beach hurricane screen questions
I am rebuilding. When should hurricane screens be specified?
During design, before the walls close. Structural backing, mounting detail and the electrical run for a motorized system are inexpensive while the framing is open and costly to retrofit later. This is the most common and most expensive mistake we see on island rebuilds.
Does the Town of Fort Myers Beach issue its own permits?
Yes. The Town runs its own building services separately from Lee County, with flood-resistant design and elevation requirements central to substantial work on the island.
How does the FEMA 50% rule affect a hurricane screen project?
It applies to substantial improvement against the structure’s value. Since February 2023 jurisdictions in Lee County use the building cost value from the Property Appraiser rather than the former Tax Roll Value Letter. A screen job alone rarely triggers it, but combined with other repairs the arithmetic should be done before permitting.
Do elevated homes need different hurricane protection?
The openings sit higher and are therefore more exposed, wind speed increases with height above grade, and new island construction tends to have larger water-facing openings. All three push toward a system that covers a wide span in one piece.
Can a single screen cover a wide water-facing lanai?
Up to 30 feet wide by 20 feet high with the MagnaTrack Defender, in one screen with no center post.
More questions? Our full hurricane shutter & screen FAQ covers products, service, permitting and financing.
Florida Screen & Shutter, LLC · 883 NE 27th Ln #5, Cape Coral, FL 33909 · (239) 409-0426
License #SCC131152867 · Fully Licensed & Insured Florida Contractor · MagnaTrack President’s Club, #6 in the country, 2025