Chimney Care Company's Blog
How to Know if Your Dryer Vent Needs Repaired
Clothing dryer technology is simple; a heating element warms the air and blows it into the rotating drum of the dryer. When your clothing dryer isn’t working properly, there are few components that could be to blame for the malfunction. Often, problems with clothing dryers are traceable back to the clothing dryer vents. That’s why you should know the signs that your clothing dryer vent requires repairs.
Signs Your Dryer Vent Needs Repairs
Often the first signs that clothing dryer vents aren’t working properly are subtle. For example, each load of clothing will take longer to dry than is normal. You might find that clothes are damp and musty instead of fresh, dry and pleasantly warm. Your dryer might feel unusually hot to the touch when it’s running. Your laundry room might have a strong burning smell or an overwhelming smell of fabric softener. You also might notice that your lint trap fills up faster than usual, or you might see an accumulation of lint around your vents or dryer.
How to Tell if Your Dryer Vents are to Blame
How can you hone in on the true cause of damaged dryer vents? There’s a simple check that should be able to help you determine if your dryer vents are exhausting air the way they should. When the dryer is in use, pay a visit to your external dryer vent, the vent that allows the air from your dryer to exit your home. The flap covering the dryer vent should be forced open while the dryer is in use. You also can place your hand under the vent to verify that air is blowing outward. If air isn’t exiting through the vent when the dryer is in use, it’s time to take action.
Why a Damaged Dryer Vent Matters
A malfunctioning dryer vent is an inconvenience and a hazard. Faulty dryer vents cause thousands of home fires each year, and they can allow dangerous carbon monoxide to leak back into your home. At the very least, a damaged dryer vent can increase your home energy bills, as it takes more cycles to dry your clothes.
Who to Call if Your Dryer Vent Needs Repairs
If your dryer vents clearly aren’t doing their job — or if you suspect that they need to be repaired — call in the experts from the Chimney Care Co. Their technicians can clean your dryer vents to verify that a clog isn’t to blame for your dryer woes. They’ll also inspect the entire dryer vent to make sure that it is in good repair. Your Chimney Care Co. technician will restore your dryer vent’s function so that your clothing dryer once again will run safely and efficiently.
The importance of dryer vent cleaning
There’s a fire hazard lurking in your home: Your clothing dryer, or more specifically, your dirty dryer vents. The lint that builds up in your dryer can cause your dryer to overheat and ignite. On top of that, the in itself is highly combustible and likely to cause a fire.
How often should dryer vents be cleaned?
Dryer vents should be cleaned at least once per year, according to the National Fire Protection Association. There are, however, other factors that could lead you to require more frequent cleanings. If you have pets in your home, their fur sticks to your clothing and linens and leads to additional buildup in your dryer vents. If you do a lot of laundry each week, this also means your dryer vents will become clogged more quickly and require more frequent cleanings. You also will want to call in professionals if you notice any changes in your dryer’s function, such as clothes taking a longer time to dry or become abnormally hot, or if you notice the laundry room becoming very warm or filling with the scent of your dryer sheets while the dryer is running.
Why does professional dryer vent cleaning matter?
It can be tempting to pull out your vacuum and use the attachments to clear away the lint from your dryer and dryer vents, but a do-it-yourself dryer vent cleaning isn’t adequate to keep you dryer running safely. There are many catch points where lint is likely to build up, and professionals know where these catch points are, how to access them and how best to clean them. Most dryer vents are made from a flexible, accordioned material that twists and turns to reach an outside terminus. While dryer vent cleaning attachments are available for home vacuum cleaners, they do an inadequate job of reaching all of the nooks and crannies in a dryer vent, leaving homeowners with a false sense of security. A professional dryer vent cleaning utilizes a rotating brush that ensures that the dryer vent is totally cleared of lint and debris.
What are the other benefits of dryer vent cleaning?
In addition to reducing your home’s risk of a dryer fire or carbon monoxide buildup from your dryer, dryer vent cleaning comes with some other benefits. When dryer vents are cleared, your dryer operates at maximum efficiency, reducing your energy bills by lowering drying times. Clean vents also extend the life or your dryer because your dryer does not have to work as hard to dry each load of clothes. When you have professionals clean your vents, they also will inspect the vents and connections for any signs of weakness or damage that could cause a hazard in your home.
To keep your home safe from the dangers of dirty dryer vents, call the professionals at The Chimney Care Co. We’ll make sure your dryer vents are completely clear of debris, free from damage and a safe part of your home’s infrastructure.
Protect your home with our dryer vent services
Dryer vents are often neglected when it comes to home maintenance, but just like your chimney or gutters, regular dryer vent cleaning can keep your home safe and efficient. Making your dryer vents a home maintenance priority can help keep your home safe. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) recommends that homeowners have their dryer vents cleaned and inspected at least once per year.
The importance of dryer vent cleaning
Each time you dry a load of clothes, hair and lint makes it pass your dryer’s lint trap and builds up in your dryer vents. When dryer vents become too clogged, the heat from the dryer can cause the extremely flammable lint to ignite, posing a major fire hazard to your home. Dryer vents also can be clogged by animal nests and other debris, or poorly placed plants can grow up into the vents, causing blockages.
According to the NFPA, clothes dryers are responsible for more than 15,000 house fires each year, causing more than $230 million in property damage and more than 50 deaths. The NFPA blames the majority of those fires on clogged dryer vents. Blocked dryer vents also can force the gases, including carbon monoxide, created by your dryer back into your home. At the very least, clogged dryer vents decrease the efficiency of your dryer and make it work harder to dry your clothes. That costs you time, as it takes longer to dry each load of clothes, and it increases your home’s energy costs.
Signs of clogged dryer vents
Your dryer may be warning you that your vents are in need of a cleaning. If your clothes are taking longer to dry than normal, or if they feel abnormally hot to the touch at the end of each cycle, your dryer vents probably aren’t allowing all of the hot air to escape from the dryer. Clogged dryer vents can cause your laundry room to heat up when the dryer is running, or can cause a slight burning smell when the dryer is in use. Your dryer sheets also may smell abnormally strong if your dryer vents are clogged.
If you’re concerned about your dryer vents, a quick visual inspection of the vent’s exterior can help you determine if you’re in need of a dryer vent cleaning. Lint blowing out of the vent is a sure sign you’re due for a cleaning. Or, if the vent flap isn’t opening and closing when the dryer is running, it’s a sign that air isn’t properly flowing out of the dryer, and vents should be cleaned immediately.
How dryer vent cleaning works
If you’re overdue for a dryer vent cleaning, or if you’ve observed any of the signs above, call The Chimney Care Co. We’ll use specialized brushes to gently clean the lint from your dryer. As the lint is loosened, we’ll suck it up with our high-powered vacuums, saving your home from any mess. We will also visually inspect your dryer vent system and help you with any needed repairs. With The Chimney Care Co., you can be confident that your dryer vents are clean and damage free, keeping your home safe from a potential fire and maintaining your dryer’s efficiency.
Being Fire Safe With A Dryer Vent Cleaning
Laundry is part of life’s weekly grind, but did you know that dryers cause roughly 2,900 home structure fires, 5 deaths, 100 injuries and $35 million in direct property loss in the U.S. each year? What’s more, the majority of dryer fires happen in the fall and winter months, with the peak being in January. The most common cause of dryer fires is failure to do a thorough cleaning. Because a lint trap is not a foolproof method for catching all the fuzzy stuff in your dryer, lint can gradually build up and catch fire in the heating element or exhaust duct. Many people are under the impression that cleaning these vents isn’t all that important. Unfortunately for them, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
RECIPE FOR A HOUSE FIRE
Clogged dryer vents are an accident waiting to happen. A partially obstructed vent filled with lint can cause increased drying times and waste energy while a blocked vent can lead to a fire. There are numerous warning signs that will indicate that you have a dirty dryer vent: your clothes are still damp after a complete drying cycle, there’s excessive heat buildup in your laundry room, and/or your dryer is used frequently. One of the ways—perhaps the best way—to decrease the chances of a dryer fire in your home is to simply clean your lint trap before or after every laundry load of clothes.
LINT BUILDUP IS COSTLY
Aside from the inherent danger of fire, buildup of dirt and lint in the dryer vent can also significantly increase your energy consumption, thereby costing you more money. The increased energy usage is due in large part to your dryer taking more time to dry your clothes because of the blockage; it has to work twice as hard to accomplish the same amount of work. Possible signs that a dirty or clogged dryer vent may be to blame include: your dryer no longer dries the clothes in one cycle, your clothes carry a musty smell after a full drying cycle, your dryer seems to run hotter than normal, a visible amount of lint is noticed around the lint filter, and debris is noticed within the dryer vent opening on the outside of your home.
CLEANING DRYER VENTS IS A MUST!
To avoid this potentially dangerous buildup in your vents, following a predetermined maintenance schedule is important. The majority of dryer vents need to be cleaned at least once a year; some dryer ducts need more frequent attention. Some determining factors include: the number of people who are using the same dryer, the age and condition of the dryer, and the length of your dryer vent. The best way to ensure dryer safety is to clean the lint screen after every use and to have your vent and duct cleaned regularly. In fact, studies prove that effective cleaning maintenance of dryer vents and lint screens can reduce the chances of fire by as much as 90%. Not only does vent cleaning help prevent house fires, it also will make sure your clothes are dry and smell nice after each use.
Lint builds up in your dryer vent each time you run your dryer. Cleaning the lint screen will help you keep the dryer running and working well, but a little lint will still remain within the vent itself. It’s very important to keep up with dryer vent cleaning, as the accumulated lint is a fire hazard that endangers your house and everyone in it. Call Chimney Care Company to schedule an inspection and cleaning of your dryer vents today!
Dryer Vent Safety
In case you didn’t know, a major cause of house fires originates from dryer vents. That is why it is imperative that you have your dryer vents cleaned by professionals.
Put the cleaning of your dryer vents as top priority on your home maintenance checklist.