Dryer Vent Cleaning in Lafayette, IN
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Step 1 of 3: Equipment
Cold vents make lint stick
Your dryer pushes warm, damp air out through that vent. From October through May, the metal it's traveling through is sitting in cold air, sometimes down near 21°F on winter nights. The warm air cools fast inside that cold duct, and the moisture in it settles on the walls of the vent. Lint sticks to a damp surface a lot easier than a dry one, so it builds up faster in the cold months than it would otherwise.
A vent that's clogged with lint doesn't just slow your dryer down. It's blocking the path that hot, damp air needs to get outside, and that air has to go somewhere.
- 21°F
- the average winter night, and cold vents catch damp lint
- 8 months
- October through May, the vent stays cold
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NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- How often should a dryer vent be cleaned?
- Once a year is the standard rule, regardless of how often you dry clothes. Lint builds up along the full run of the vent, not just in the trap, and a year is about how long it takes to narrow the airflow enough to matter. If a load is taking longer to dry than it used to, don't wait for the yearly mark, have it checked then.
- Can I clean my dryer vent myself?
- You can clean the lint trap and the first few feet of duct behind the dryer yourself with a vent brush kit. The part most people can't reach is the run through the wall and out to the exterior hood, especially if it's long or has more than one turn. A contractor has the rods and vacuum to clear that full length and check that the hood flap opens and closes the way it should.
- What are the signs of a clogged dryer vent?
- Clothes coming out hot to the touch but still damp is the clearest sign. Others include the outside of the dryer feeling hot during a cycle, a burning smell, longer drying times than you're used to, and little to no airflow at the exterior vent hood when the dryer is running. Lint collecting around the lint trap door or the back of the dryer is also worth checking.