Dryer Vent Cleaning: A Matter of Life and Death

The Quality of Air you Breathe

Improper dryer vent systems can increase mold and mildew in your home which causes upper respiratory problems for residents and damage to your home. In some cases poor dryer exhaust venting has led to carbon monoxide poisoning for people with gas dryers.

A Growing Fire Hazard

Dryer fires are caused when lint builds up in the dryer ducts, restricting air flow and causing overheating. Lint is highly flammable; it provides just the right fuel for a rapidly spreading fire.

New Home Construction

Years ago most clothes dryers were in the basement; however, new trends in home construction have led to dryers being located away from an outside wall, upstairs near the bedrooms or in hallway closets. This means dryers have to be vented over longer distances with sharp turns and bends to accommodate the home structure. This creates hard-to-reach places for lint to accumulate and makes your dryer labor harder to expel the heat and moisture. In many cases it is necessary to install a dryer vent booster fan to speed up the air flow and make the dryer work more efficiently.

Lint Build-up in Dryer Exhaust Ducts

Most people think the lint screen is trapping all the lint that is removed from laundry; few are aware that about 40% of the lint is actually escaping the lint screen. Some of the lint that escapes the lint trap ends up in the dryer exhaust ducts that lead to the vent outdoors. Contrary to common belief, this lint does not typically travel all the way to the outside vent. The dryer ducts are responsible for removing heat and moisture from your laundry; the hot, moist lint usually sticks to the sides of the vent tube where it dries to a hard crust. As it continues to build up your 4-inch dryer duct opening gets smaller and smaller until there is no opening at all.

Inside the Dryer

Another place the lint end up is inside your clothes dryer. When you pull the lint screen out to clean it, look down in the chute and you will see more lint. Most people simply clean the screen and shove it back into the slot, forcing the lint to the bottom. From here, the flammable lint ends up creating a mess inside the dryer, near the motor or the heating element. Now all it takes is a small spark to start a devastating fire.

Your clothes dryer requires adequate air flow to work safely and efficiently. The most commonly noticed sign of poor air flow is when clothes start taking too long to dry. Other signs include clothes coming out with a moldy smell or they are very hot at the end of the dryer cycle; the dryer cabinet is very hot or the room is especially hot and humid when the dryer is running.

Dryer vent cleaning is recommended each year to prevent dryer fires, save energy and prolong the life of your clothes dryer.

Ed Rauch owns Dryer Vent Wizard of Northern Kentucky. He specializes is all dryer exhaust issues, providing dryer vent cleaning, repair and installation. Have http://www.dryerventwizard.com service your dryer vent system today and help with their goal to make one million clothes dryers safer and greener by the year 2010.