DRYER VENT CLEANING

Why Bother with Dryer Vent Cleaning?

Anderson Appliance Repair takes safety and efficiency seriously. That’s why we have equipment designed specifically for cleaning dryer vents. Inside walls, crawls, or to the roof - no job is too big or too small.

Keeping your dryer vent clean is important. Did you know that there are approximately one thousand house fires annually that are caused by dryer fires? These fires could have been prevented with proper maintenance, vent cleaning, and vacuuming of the interior of the dryer. Plus, your dryer runs more efficiently, meaning your clothes will dry faster, reducing wear and tear on the dryer and increasing the life of components. Hey, that saves you time and money!

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Why Clean Your Vent?

Okay, here is some basic knowledge of a dryer and how your venting can affect the performance and longevity of it.

Now, I know this picture is of an older dryer, but the airflow inside of all dryers is the same. Got it? So, you can see from the picture on the left that the blower is creating a negative air space inside the drum of the dryer by blowing air out of it and down the vent. Doing this causes the air outside the dryer to rush into the cabinet through vents behind the dryer and the numerous unsealed panels that make up a dryer cabinet. Do you follow me? Good! This air is unfiltered and full of dust, hair, lint, and whatever else is floating around in your house. It’s the same stuff clogging up your furnace filter every month. As the air rushes in, some of this stuff is deposited on the surface inside the dryer. This is one way that lint builds up inside a dryer. This is a fire hazard, but it’s not the only contributing factor. I'm getting to that.

Dryer Vent | Dyer, IN | Anderson Appliance Repair

Lint Fire Example

Lint Fire | Dyer, IN | Anderson Appliance Repair

This is just one example of a lint fire. This fire was small and contained. We see this all the time! It’s amazing that more houses don't go up in flames when you see stuff like this on a regular basis. Seriously, dryer maintenance is important but almost nobody even knows it’s required! Please check this stuff. A fire like this could easily lead to an entire whole house fire.

Airflow Information

Okay, back to the airflow. After the air enters the dryer cabinet, it is sucked into the burner. The burner is just a hollow tube about 12 inches long with a large flame blowing down it. Well, it's actually being sucked down the tube by the negative airspace inside the drum. As the air enters the burner it is heated and sucked into the drum heating the clothes. Now, as the clothes tumble around and rub together inside the drum, they create more lint. The air and lint go through the lint screen, into the blower and are blown out through the vent hose. So, you might ask, why do I need to clean my vent? Well, the lint screen catches some, but not all the lint. The lint that makes it through settles in the vent, accumulating with every load. As that lint builds up, it creates resistance in the venting. The more resistance there is, the less air that can be pushed down it. That means less suction inside the drum. The lack of suction results in less air being pulled down the burner, which forces the flame inside the burner to back up inside the dryer. This causes heat to build up near the motor, thermostats, bearings and gas valve, stressing these components. Remember all the lint accumulating inside your dryer? Yep, that stuff catches on fire easy, and this is how it happens.

Cleaning your vent annually and having the inside of the dryer serviced will prevent this from ever happening. Also, learn to recognize the signs of possible vent clogs, such as LONG DRY TIMES! That’s right, if your clothes start taking longer to dry, chances are you could have a clogged vent. GET IT CHECKED!  So, now that you know, give us a call.

Thanks for reading,

-Kirk Anderson