Tips for Cleaning a Dryer Vent

Dryer vent cleaning is an essential task. Not only does it promote safety, it also allows for greater efficiency and lower bills. By cleaning out your vents at least twice a year, you can save money and stay safe at the same time.

In almost every home in the world, there is a dryer and a washer that both require different levels of maintenance. For the dryer, one of the most routine and common maintenance issues is cleaning the dryer vent. There are a few really great reasons to keep the dryer vent free from lint and other debris that may accumulate over time. Primarily, the accumulated lint and fabric leftovers are very dry and can create a very dangerous fire hazard for your home if it is left in the vent. A dryer produces massive amounts of heat to dry the clothes, thus a lot of that heat is blown into the vent along with the lint. This creates a hazardous situation and can be detrimental to the safety of your home and even your family. Also, a clogged dryer vent hinders the dryer’s ability to efficiently dry clothes because the airflow is reduced. So, cleaning your vent not only helps to protect the home, but also helps to lower utility bills as well.

There are many ways to clean a dryer vent, but just like everything else, there are easier ways to do it than others. A great tip for cleaning your dryer vent is to do it yourself. You can clean most of the vent (if you know where the vent lies in your home and it is not absurdly long) and save a lot of money by doing it yourself. Another tip is to let a vacuum do as much of the work for you as you can. Make sure you begin with a clean vacuum, as a clean one will always perform better than a clogged one. Extend the hose as much as possible with every attachment you have available that will snugly fit onto the hose (make sure you do not lose any of the extensions in the vent). Also, a shop vac has a simpler filtering system than a higher end house vacuum and is designed specifically to handle the dirty jobs a home vacuum typically can’t. If you have one or can borrow one, it will be more mobile, will probably do a much better job, and you don’t have to worry about potentially clogging your home vacuum with dryer lint.

Likewise, be sure to reach in as far as you reasonably can and clean the vent by hand before using the vacuum. Most of the lint will accumulate right away once it leaves the dryer and will be in the first 5 feet of the vent. Cleaning it by hand will help your vacuum not get as full as quickly. A fourth tip is if your vent has any bends in it, a bent wire clothes hangar can help to loosen and remove any clogs in the dryer vent that you cannot reach. A final tip is to go outside and check the far side of the vent as well as the end right behind the dryer. Most of the lint will accumulate at the ends, so if you can reach into and clear the far end of the vent as well, you have cleared most of the vent.

Cleaning a dryer vent several times a year can drastically improve a dryer’s performance and lower utility bills in your home. Keeping your dryer vent clean allows you to keep your family and your home safe throughout the year.