PSA: You should clean your dryer vents.

jst1ofknd shared a link said Wed, Oct 3rd 2018 at 11:51pm ET

Don’t just take my word for it…

https://www.usfa.fema.gov/prevention/outreach/clothes_dryers.html

13 comments, 7 replies
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jst1ofknd said Wed, Oct 3rd 2018 at 11:53pm ET:

There was even a helpful PDF that I didn’t read because it was too long.

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- @jst1ofknd TL;DoF
  
  mehcuda67 said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 12:38am ET
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Kidsandliz said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 12:14am ET:

Yup. Mom burned up all our clothes when I was about 6 with a dryer fire.

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mike808 said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 8:13am ET:

Isn’t equipment maintenance the responsibility of that nice hardworking tax-paying immigrant family that started their laundry service in the strip mall down the road?

By using their laundry services I’m creating jobs and outsourcing this risk of dryer fires. Win-Win!

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Moose said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 10:31am ET:

Failure to clean the dryer (34 percent) is the leading cause of home clothes dryer fires.

Other than electrical shorts, what is the other 66%? “ah shit I forgot to take my flint and steel out of my pants pocket before I put it in the dryer!”

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- @Moose oil and gas on clothing perhaps? My washer has a note under the lid that oil can’t be washed out and should never be dried.
  
  RiotDemon said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 10:34am ET
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- @Moose My money is on static electricity and VOCs (nail polish, glues, paints, etc.).
  
  Heat, fuel, air flow, and a spark.
  /giphy BOOM! Science.
  
  mike808 said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 9:57am ET
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- Total props to giphy. Bonus Halloween theme for the win!
  
  mike808 said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 9:59am ET
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medz said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 10:38am ET:

How tho?

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rockblossom said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 11:06am ET:
at manufacturers of dryers.
1. They make it harder than necessary to clean the vents. Every year I pull the dryer out, disconnect the duct, then have to rotate the dryer 180 degrees so I can get to the vent to clean it. They could put a little door on the front of the dryer that would allow someone to use a vacuum cleaner to clean the vent, but they don’t.
2. The dryer came with plastic ducting. Knowing that it would, I already had metal ducting on hand before it was delivered. (Can’t use rigid ducting because the placement of the outside vent opening is not in line with the dryer opening.) I have extras because it is simply easier and less blood-pressure-raising to put on a new duct every time than to try cleaning the inside of flexible ducts.
3. Manufacturers (and home builders) keep pushing stacked washer/dryers to “save space” and often put them in little closet-like cubby holes. Great. Now the owner/tenant/whoever gets to pull the washer/dryer combo all of the way out of the closet to reach the vent and ducting. Being a little old gray-haired lady with arthritis, this is a deal-breaker in a new abode. Hmmph!
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callow said Thu, Oct 4th 2018 at 7:10pm ET:

Last year when I took apart the dryer to replace the belt I found out that cleaning the lint screen and ducts religiously are not enough! The area inside the door behind the lint screen was absolutely packed with lint. It’s a wonder my home was not part of those statistics. Now i use a long thin brush to clean beyond the screen and I’ll be taking it apart occasionally.

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melonscoop said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 12:04am ET:

As a semi professional fixer of broken appliances, I can second this idea. The majority of broken dryers that I get have like five sheep worth of lint in the systems. Fire hazard aside - dryers just run better if they are thoroughly cleaned a couple times a year.

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lordbowen said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 12:41am ET:

My home’s back door opens into the laundry room, so the dryer’s ductwork only has to travel about five feet before venting directly outside. I use my Shark vacuum (from Meh) to clean the duct from both the outside and from below the lint trap inside the dryer. The lint trap itself is cleaned every time the dryer is used. Really convenient setup for someone as safety conscious as me.

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dashcloud said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 8:54am ET:

Still need to get the industrial grade earplugs before I bring in the leaf blower to blow out the dryer vent from the lint trap- only so much I can get with vacuum and attachments.

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mike808 said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 10:04am ET:
Great ideas for DIY maintenance.
- Just replace any flex vent hosing. Low cost, not worth time to clean vs time to replace.
- Use a leaf blower to clear (in suck or blow mode) the vent end-to-end.
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- @mike808 Just be careful with the blower if it’s possible you have sections in the attic or whatever that could come loose from too much air pressure.
  
  medz said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 1:53pm ET
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medz said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 1:58pm ET:

/image vent periscope

Anyone have experience with these? The squarish shape makes me think more lint would collect in the corners inside.

I currently have semi-flexible metal tube from the dryer half-way up the basement wall. (unfinished) then round solid metal vent up to the bit that sticks through the wall outside.

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- @medz I just read a thing that has a bunch of people complaining about them that they restrict air flow too much and it takes longer to dry.
  
  RiotDemon said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 2:43pm ET
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- @RiotDemon roger that. since our washer/dryer/cat litter room is not finished, I don’t have to worry about fitting it between the walls studs. I probably just need to get a longer solid metal tube for the main vertical run and use a shorter semi-flex metal thing to connect to the dryer. I suppose I could get couple 90 degree bends and do it all in solid tube…
  
  medz said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 2:59pm ET
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blaineg said Fri, Oct 5th 2018 at 6:19pm ET:

So you’ve got a 0.17% chance of dying IF you have a dryer fire? Not bad odds.

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