Porch Builders in Knoxville, TN — Screened, Front and Back Porches for East Tennessee Homes

If you’ve tried to sit on an open Knoxville deck in May or September after dark, you know what the problem is. The weather is perfect. The bugs are not. East Tennessee mosquito and gnat pressure from mid-April through October is serious enough that a lot of homeowners in Knox County who have open decks end up using them primarily from 9am to 5pm and calling it a year. A screened porch changes that.

We build screened porches new and convert existing decks. We do the framing, the roof, the screen system, and the permit — one crew, one contract, one warranty. The reason that matters: the place where a screened porch fails is almost always the roofline tie-in to the house. Z-flashing, guttering, the intersection of the new roof pitch and the existing house wall — that’s where water gets in if the roofing work and the framing work aren’t done by someone who understands both. Split it between two contractors and you’ve split responsibility for the joint where the problem is most likely to happen.

Converting an Existing Deck to a Screened Porch

This is the most common screened porch project we do. You’ve already got a deck with solid framing — we add the roof structure over it, tie into the house roofline properly, install the screen system between posts and beams, and handle the Knox County permit. The existing deck becomes the floor and the structural base.

Before we quote a conversion, we assess the existing deck’s framing. Ledger board attachment, post condition, joist spacing and sizing, footing depth. A screened porch roof adds significant dead load — the framing underneath has to be able to carry it. If the existing deck was built correctly and the framing is sound, conversion is the most cost-effective path. If the framing has problems we find during assessment, we tell you upfront. You don’t want to find out after the roof is on.

Typical cost for a deck-to-screened-porch conversion in Knoxville: $14,000–$32,000 depending on size, roof type, and screen system. That’s a real range — a 12×14 existing deck with a simple shed roof conversion is toward the low end. A 20×24 deck with a hip roof and ipe screened panels is toward the high end.

Building a Screened Porch New

New screened porch construction starts the same way any deck build starts for us: site visit, permit application, materials staged before anything comes out of the ground. The difference is that the design has to account for the roof structure from the beginning — post sizing, beam spans, rafter layout, and the roofline connection to the house all need to be in the drawings before Knox County will approve the permit.

New screened porches typically run $22,000–$50,000+ depending on size, foundation requirements (flat lot vs. hillside), roof complexity, and screen system. I know that’s a wide range. That’s because a 14×16 shed-roof porch on flat ground in Halls and a 24×28 hip-roof porch on a sloped Farragut lot with a Phantom retractable screen system are not the same project. Every new porch build gets a site visit and a written estimate with line-item breakdown before you commit to anything.

Screen Systems — What’s Actually Out There

Standard fiberglass mesh: What most porches get. Rolls of fiberglass screen stapled or clamped into framed bays. Works fine, easy to replace individual panels when one gets torn, good visibility, reasonable airflow. The choice when budget is the primary driver.

Aluminum screen: More rigid than fiberglass, better for high-traffic areas or anywhere pets might push against the screen. Slightly higher cost. Worth it if you have dogs or the screen bays are large.

No-see-um screen: Much finer mesh — 20×20 threads per inch vs. the standard 18×16. Blocks the tiny gnats that get through standard screen and make wooded Knox County lots miserable in late spring. Noticeably reduces airflow but dramatically improves comfort in gnarly gnat conditions. Standard around wooded properties in South Knox and on lots near Fort Loudoun Lake in Lenoir City.

Panel systems (aluminum-framed screen panels): Individual framed panels that snap into place between posts. More durable than stapled screen, easier to remove, replace, or reconfigure. Higher upfront cost, much lower long-term maintenance. My preferred choice when the budget allows it.

Knox County Permits for Screened Porches

A screened porch requires a Knox County building permit — same offices as a deck permit, and the process is similar. City of Knoxville: Plans Review and Inspections, (865) 215-3800. Unincorporated Knox County (Powell, Halls, Karns, Hardin Valley): Knox County Codes Administration, Room 552 at 400 Main Street, (865) 215-2325. Town of Farragut: 11408 Municipal Center Drive, (865) 966-7057. We handle the permit application on every screened porch project. Full Knox County permit guide →

Front and Back Porch Builders

Not every porch needs screens. A covered back porch off the kitchen gives you a dry, shaded place to sit through a summer storm, and a new front porch changes how the whole house looks from the street. We build both, from the footings and framing to the roof tie-in, decking, railings and steps.

The planning questions are the same as for a screened porch: how the roof meets the house, whether the floor ties into an existing deck, and what Knox County will require for permits. Railing options are on our deck railing installation page, and roofed deck options on covered deck builders.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a screened porch cost in Knoxville TN?

Converting an existing sound deck to a screened porch runs $14,000–$32,000 in Knoxville. Building new runs $22,000–$50,000 depending on size, lot conditions, and screen system. Every project gets a site visit before we quote it — the existing framing condition and roofline configuration both affect scope and cost significantly.

Can you convert my existing deck to a screened porch?

Yes, if the framing is in good shape. We assess the ledger board, posts, joists, and footings before quoting any conversion. If the frame is solid, conversion is usually the most cost-effective path. If there are structural problems underneath, we tell you before you decide anything.

How long does it take to build a screened porch in Knoxville?

A new screened porch typically takes 3–6 weeks from permit approval to completion, depending on size and roof complexity. Add 1–3 weeks for Knox County permit processing before construction starts. Conversions on existing structurally-sound decks can move faster if the framing work is minimal.