If you live in Bluffton, on Hilton Head Island, in Beaufort, or out toward Hardeeville, you already know what your porch is up against. The no-see-ums come off the marsh at dusk. Summer thunderstorms roll in sideways off the Sound. Salt air works on every piece of metal you own. And from June through November, everybody keeps one eye on the tropics.
If you start shopping for motorized patio screens, two names you’ll run into quickly are Phantom Screens and Fenetex. Both are well-known brands. Both make good-looking retractable screens. But they’re built in very different places, and they started out solving very different problems. Phantom Screens are built in Canada. Fenetex is an American company that builds its screens in Jacksonville, Florida, and tests its hurricane screens to Florida hurricane code. For a home on the South Carolina coast, that difference matters a lot. Here’s an honest Phantom vs Fenetex screens comparison, side by side, using each company’s own published specs.
Built in Canada vs. built in Florida for Southeast weather
Phantom Screens is a Canadian company. It’s headquartered in Abbotsford, British Columbia, and builds its screens at its manufacturing facility there. Phantom started in 1992 with retractable door screens. Today it sells motorized outdoor screens, door screens, and window screens through dealers across North America, so its products are designed to serve a wide range of climates.
Fenetex is an American company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. It opened its first factory there in 2010 and has expanded its manufacturing space several times since. Every screen is custom-built to order for your openings. Fenetex started with hurricane screens in 2007, and it still calls them “the backbone” of its product line. Its insect, shade, and clear vinyl screens all come out of that same storm-first engineering, built and tested in the heart of hurricane country.
Why does that matter here? Our weather looks a lot more like Jacksonville’s than British Columbia’s. We share the same Atlantic hurricane season, the same sticky summers, the same pop-up afternoon storms, and the same salt air. Fenetex designs, builds, and tests its screens a few hours down I-95 from us, for the kind of weather we deal with every year. Its hurricane screens are tested to the codes Florida uses for Miami-Dade’s High Velocity Hurricane Zone.
To be fair, Phantom makes a well-built, good-looking retractable screen with a strong motor warranty. If you only need bug protection on a sheltered porch, it can do the job. But if you want screens you can leave down through a summer storm, or a system that doubles as tested hurricane protection, Fenetex is built for that.
Wind ratings: insect mesh, no-see-um mesh, and clear vinyl
This is where Lowcountry homeowners should pay the closest attention.
Phantom’s published wind guidance
Phantom says its Next Generation motorized screens offer “full operation at winds up to 25 mph with reduced operation at wind speeds up to 50 mph,” noting results may vary with unit size. Their maintenance guide says not to operate the screen in winds over 25 mph. Phantom does offer wind sensors that retract the screens automatically when it gets gusty, which is a smart feature.
Fenetex’s published wind testing
Fenetex says its One-Track insect screens use a welded end retention system “ensuring longevity and durability against winds up to 100 mph,” with welded edges instead of zippers. They also report testing 14′ x 14′ shade screens and 14′ x 14′ clear vinyl screens in winds over 100 mph with no damage.
What that means on your porch
A 25 mph gust isn’t a hurricane around here. It’s a regular July afternoon storm. If your screens are meant to come up whenever the wind picks up, they won’t help much at the moment you’d actually want them down, when rain is blowing across your outdoor kitchen. A screen system tested well past 100 mph gives you a lot more room to leave it down and keep the weather out.
One fair note: wind ratings in mph depend on screen size, height, and exposure. Your real-world performance depends on your opening, so we’ll talk through it on site.
No-see-um mesh
Both brands offer a tighter no-see-um weave, and you’ll want one if you’re anywhere near the marsh. Fenetex offers a 17×20 no-see-um mesh. Phantom offers Phifer TuffScreen No-See-Um mesh. Neither company publishes a separate wind rating just for its no-see-um mesh. Their ratings cover the whole screen system. For Fenetex, that system is the same One-Track build, rated to 100 mph. Learn more about insect and no-see-um patio screens.
Hurricane and large-missile impact testing
This is the biggest difference between the two brands, and it isn’t close.
Fenetex MaxForce Hurricane Screens hold Florida Product Approval FL8637. They’ve been tested as a large-missile impact protective system (Large Missile Level D) to the same standards Miami-Dade uses for its High Velocity Hurricane Zone:
- TAS 201 (large missile impact), TAS 202 (uniform static air pressure), and TAS 203 (cyclic wind pressure)
- ASTM E1886, E1996, and E330, the matching national test methods
Fenetex rates MaxForce for the 185 mph HVHZ wind zone, with design pressures up to ±200 psf under FL8637. In plain terms, it’s a fabric hurricane shutter that rolls up out of sight. Close it with a button or an app when a storm is coming, instead of hauling out panels.
Phantom Screens doesn’t offer a hurricane- or impact-rated screen. Guidance that Phantom publishes for Florida building professionals says its screens are not designed or intended to protect windows or doors from flying debris or storms, and that they should be retracted or removed when high winds approach. That’s not a knock on Phantom. It’s simply not what their product is for.
One honest detail: Florida Product Approval is a Florida document. For a home in South Carolina, the engineering still gets reviewed for your specific site and local permit. We’ll walk you through that. See our hurricane screens page for more.
Phantom vs Fenetex at a glance
| Phantom Screens | Fenetex | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it’s built | Canada (Abbotsford, BC) | USA (Jacksonville, Florida) |
| Company | Canadian, sells across North America | American, built and tested in Florida for hurricane country |
| Started with | Retractable door screens (1992) | Hurricane screens (2007) |
| Published wind guidance, everyday screens | Full operation up to 25 mph, reduced to 50 mph | Insect screens built for winds up to 100 mph; clear and shade tested over 100 mph |
| No-see-um mesh | Yes (Phifer TuffScreen No-See-Um) | Yes (17×20 no-see-um) |
| Hurricane / impact-rated screen | None offered | MaxForce, Florida Product Approval FL8637 |
| Impact standards | n/a | TAS 201/202/203, ASTM E1886/E1996/E330 |
| Screen edge | Not published | Keder edge with welded seams, no zippers |
| Motors | Somfy | Fenetex Smart Motors or Somfy |
| Motor warranty | 7 years | 5 years |
| Mesh and vinyl warranty | Excluded | 5 yrs insect/shade, 3 yrs clear vinyl, 10 yrs hurricane fabric (UV stability) |
Specs come from each manufacturer’s published materials as of October 2026. Ask us for current spec sheets.
Clear vinyl for windy, rainy days
Clear vinyl screens give you a weather wall without blocking the view of the marsh or the golf course. Fenetex’s clear screens use the same welded-edge construction as their hurricane screens, and they report testing them in winds over 100 mph. Pair them with insect mesh or sun screens on a dual system and you can change your porch with the weather. Read more in our post on the benefits of motorized clear vinyl screens, or see our clear screens page.
Frequently asked questions
Can I leave Fenetex screens down during a hurricane?
Only MaxForce Hurricane Screens are tested and approved as impact protection. Fenetex’s insect, shade, and clear screens are tested for high winds, but they aren’t hurricane shutters. We’ll help you plan which openings need which screen.
Is Phantom Screens a bad brand?
No. Phantom is an established company with a good product and a solid warranty. It just isn’t designed or rated for hurricane or impact protection, and it publishes much lower wind limits for everyday use.
Do no-see-um screens cut down airflow?
A tighter weave cuts a little airflow. Phantom lists its no-see-um mesh at 42% openness. Down here, most people gladly take that trade to stop sand gnats.
Do you install in my area?
Yes. Southern Custom Shutters serves Bluffton, Hilton Head Island, Beaufort, and Hardeeville.
Get a free in-home quote
We’ll measure your openings, look at your exposure to wind and water, and show you which Fenetex screens make sense for your home, from no-see-um mesh to full hurricane protection. Call 843-405-9129 or request your free in-home quote.