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20.09.2024
Brooke Kirshne
Drying your clothes can be a difficult task sometimes, especially if you have a lot of clothes. Cleaning your clothes and drying them one by one is a pretty hard thing to do, so what should you do? In today’s world, people are very busy, so waiting to dry their clothes is not an option. That’s why engineers have created clothes dryers for the convenience of the modern world’s people. The dryer takes the help of its component known as the dryer vent; this is one of the important parts of a dryer, and without this, your clothes will not dry.
The vent's main purpose is to throw all of the heat air outside your house or building when your clothes dry properly with the help of that heat. Do you know there’s a common problem that occurs with every vent? If you don’t know, the answer is dryer vents get clogged over time.
Are you wondering how it gets clogged? And what are the signs of clogged vents? If yes, then don’t worry because you came to the right place in this blog. You are about to learn every issue related to dryer vents. So individuals who are reading this blog should read every section carefully.
How Dryer Vents Get Clogged
As you know by reading the above section, the main purpose of your dryer vent is to collect all of the hot, moist air and throw it outside your living place. Do you know there’s another thing that comes in handy while drying your clothes? The answer to this question is a lint trap. Many people think that a lint trap and a vent are the same thing, but they are not; they both have different purposes. The main function of the lint trap is to capture lint from your clothes during a drying cycle.
The lint trap can’t capture all of the lint, so some of the lint goes inside the dryer vent and gets stuck there. Individuals who use their clothes dryer frequently make their vents clogged. Over time the amount of lint starts increasing in the vent, and if it is not cleaned in a given period, the vent will get clogged and start giving problems to you and your drying system. So it is necessary to keep your dryer vent clean from time to time.
Common Signs of a Clogged Dryer Vent
Cleaning your dryer vent is important, but do you know when you need to clean it? If your answer is no, then don’t think that you are an irresponsible person because the majority of U.S. citizens don’t even know that they need to clean their vents. According to USFA (United States Fire Administration), people should clean their vents once a year, and the cleaning frequency also depends on how you use your clothes dryer. In this section, you will learn the major signs of clogged dryer vents that will help you indicate that you need to clean the vent. Here are the signs:
Musty Smell Of Clothes
One of the main signs of a clogged dryer vent is that you will get a musty smell from clothes. A clogged vent will make your clothes dryer less efficient because the vent will not remove all the moisture from your wet clothes. You will find out that your clothes are dry, but there is some moisture left in them, and after some time you bring them out of the dryer, they will start having a musty smell. When you start to notice that your clothes smell musty, that is an indication that the vent needs to be cleaned, and if you don’t clean it, then you may face more problems than just musty clothes. So cleaning your vent professionally will help you prevent this problem, and you can have your clothes in good condition.
Burning Smells
A clogged dryer vent can cause smells that can indicate the condition of the vent is becoming worse. When you use your vent for drying clothes, it starts getting more clogged with every drying cycle. The amount of lint inside the vent is increasing, and when you get a burning smell, immediately turn off your clothes dryer. This thing happens because lint is a highly flammable substance, and a clogged vent is not able to throw the heat outside of your house. The hot air is kept inside the vent, and the temperature inside it starts increasing. Due to overheating, you get a burning smell, and if this happens regularly, then there’s a chance that the clogged lint can catch fire, which will be disastrous for you. So it is important to bring a professional as quickly as possible when you notice a burning smell.
Increased Clothes Drying Time
Many people think that they need a new clothes dryer when their clothes require multiple drying cycles and take a long time for the drying process. Most of the time these individuals think wrong because trapped lint inside the dryer vent can cause this issue. If you are using your dryer for drying clothes more than on cycle, then it is a sign that you need to clean your vent. When the amount of lint increases inside the vent, it makes the dryer less efficient, which causes a long drying time. A clean dryer works faster than a dirty vent, so call an expert for your vent whenever you notice the dryer is taking longer than usual.
High Humidity Level In Laundry Room
The level of humidity will start increasing in your laundry room when the dryer vent is clogged. If you feel high humidity in your entire house after using the clothes, then it is a sign that tells you to clean your dryer vent. The main reason for the high room temperature is that the clogged vent is not able to throw all of the hot and moist air outside your house and that air coming inside your home. Hot environments not only interrupt your living comfort, but they can also show some dangerous signs that, if not treated, can become worse. Taking the help of a dryer vent expert can fix this issue.
Vent Hood’s Blockage
If you think that your dryer vent is clogged and want to confirm it, you should check at our dryer vent hood. The vent is situated outside your home and its main purpose is to release all of the hot air created by your clothes dryer. Your dryer vent hood can show signs of a dirty vent. You can know this by going outside your home and finding the location of the hood. Inspect it and try to find any lint around the opening of the hood or inside it and if you find lint or debris it is time to inspect your dryer vent by a professional. Remember if the vent hood doesn’t show any signs of lint or debris that doesn’t mean that you don’t have to clean your dryer vent. It is necessary to clean it even if you don’t get any signs.
Vent Has Not Been Cleaned Since A Year
One of the main signs of a clogged vent is that it hasn’t been cleaned for a year. Ask yourself did you clean your vent last year? Or how long has it been since you cleaned your vent? If you answer that you don’t know it is time to bring an expert into your home for vent maintenance. As you learned from the above section every individual should clean their vent once a year. So keep your dryer performance at max, always note the day when you cleaned the vent because maintaining your dryer from time to time increases its efficiency and its life.
Related Blog Post: Benefits of Cleaning Dryer Vent
Why Does Your Dryer Vent Get Dirty Fast?
In the above sections you learned that you should clean the vent once a year, but do you know that its cleaning frequency can change due to some reasons? For some individuals, their vent starts dirty more frequently and they don’t know the cause. If you are facing the same problem then stop worrying now because in this section you will have the answer to this issue. Here are some of the key reasons that make a dryer vent dirty fast:
Excess Use Of Dryer Vent
The frequency of using the dryer vent is one of the major reasons that it can make it dirty fast. For individuals who have huge amounts of clothes and they use their dryer more often there is a chance that the vent will become dirty earlier. This happens because the lint that is stuck inside the vent will rapidly increase and a more frequent frying cycle means more lint will go inside the vent at a faster rate. To fix this problem cut off your dryer usage in half, by doing this the life of the vent will significantly increase.
Improper Installation Of Vent
One of the main causes that make your dryer vent dirty fast is that it is not installed properly. An improper vent installation can create problems like poor airflow, which can become a reason for a clogged filter. If the vent is too long then it will become more difficult to throw the hot air outside and the lint that comes with the air will stick to the surface of the vent. While installing the vents if it has more turns then it will also affect the direction of air which will make the lint stuck on every turn of the vent. So always make sure that the vent is installed perfectly.
Low-Quality Vent
The quality of the dryer vent is also another reason that makes the vent dirty faster. A low-quality vent is made of low-quality materials that are not smooth enough so the lint and debris pass from without sticking to it. A high-quality vent is much smoother and allows the particles to pass from it easily without leaving a high amount of lint inside it. So it is necessary to invest in a good quality vent if you don’t want to clean your vent more frequently.
Conclusion
The dryer vent is an important part of your clothes dryer because it helps to throw out all of the hot air that can cause problems. The purpose of the vent is to help the dryer to consume all of the moisture of wet clothes. One of the main components of a dryer is the lint trap most of the work is done by this. The function of a lint trap is to capture the lint which is released by clothes during a drying cycle. But the problem with the lint trap is some of the lint passes from it and goes directly into the dryer vent.
Over time the amount of lint starts increasing in the vent and makes it clogged. When your dryer vent is dirty and clogged you will get signs like a musty smell from clothes, a burning smell in your house, a high humidity level inside the laundry room or entire house, and many more. When you notice these signs then it is time to call a dryer vent specialist so your vent can go through a proper inspection and cleaning process. Individuals should always remember that they must clean their vents once a year or less according to their usage.
