Dryer vent cleaning tips
Your trusty dryer hums along, cycle after cycle, faithfully drying your laundry. But what lurks behind the scenes, hidden in the depths of that unassuming vent? A potential fire hazard, simmering silently in the form of a clogged dryer vent. Don’t let ignorance become your downfall! Learn the warning signs that scream “DANGER” before your laundry room becomes a tinderbox.
You’ll look better, run faster and sing sweeter with a clean dryer vent. If you experience any of the following, it is time to clean the vent from the inside to outside.
- Drying Marathon: Does your drying cycle double or triple in time?
- The Burning Truth: Do clothes come out of the dryer very hot?
- Are you finding very little lint on your lint screen?
- Does your dryer stop during a cycle?
- Do your clothes have a moldy smell?
- Is your dryer hot to the touch while running?
- Do you find lint on your clothing?
- The lint trap is empty? With a decrease of suitable air flow, dryer vent ducts will not push lint out to the lint trap.
- Do you have a plastic exhaust duct from your dryer to the wall? Upgrade to a metal exhaust duct to prevent fires.
- Did you know that carbon monoxide is vented through your dryer’s vent? The fumes that a gas dryer emits are dangerous.
- You do not clean the lint from the dryer’s lint screen after every load.
- Memory Lane: Can’t remember the last vent cleaning? Every year counts! Schedule regular maintenance to prevent buildup and keep your home safe.
.
Why is my exhaust vent clogged?
Poorly vented or clogged exhaust vents can cause expensive repairs, create fire hazards and even carbon monoxide poisoning. Failure to clean the dryer vent is the leading cause of home clothes dryer fires. Facts about home clothes dryer fires.
- Dryer exhaust hoses can be bent, crimped, squashed, restricted and collect more lint.
- Lint builds up with added condensation.
- Pests or a bird nest is blocking the vent.
- What you dry and how often the dryer runs.
.
What happens when dryer vent is blocked?
When lint accumulates in an exhaust duct, it reduces the dryer’s ability to expel heated water vapor. That causes heat energy to build up within the dryer.
As the dryer overheats, mechanical failures can trigger tiny sparks, which can cause lint trapped in the dryer vent to burst into flames. Fires generally originate within the dryer but spread by escaping through the ventilation duct, incinerating trapped lint, and following its path into the building wall.
A plastic dryer vent should be replaced with a metal vent.
.
Learn the true condition of your clothes dryer exhaust vent.
Clogged clothes dryer vent increases drying costs and shortens the life of your dryer.
If you want to DIY, move the dryer away from the wall, disconnect power, shut off gas valve, disconnect vent. Clean lint and dust under the clothes dryer. Remove lint from the duct by hand and then vacuum inside the dryer and vent. Use hose extensions and vacuum deep into the vent line. Go to the outside vent and vacuum the same.
.
Call a trusted heating expert to keep you safe.
PDM Plumbing, Heating, Cooling Since 1885 will perform a complete dryer inspection. Check if your dryer is properly vented and free from lint, even nests of mice or birds.
For clothes dryer vent inspections in the greater Bolingbrook, Homer Glen, Joliet, New Lenox and Plainfield, IL areas, ring the PDM Clean Team. PDM has served your neighborhood for 138 years. Contact PDM for trusted service. 815-207-4111.
.
