Dryer Vent Cleaning and Installation
Why You Need To Have Your Dryer Vent Cleaned Regularly

1. Fire Hazard. First, and worst of all, when the vent is clogged, flammable lint is more likely to back up into the dryer and ignite causing a fire which can spread to the rest of the home.

2. Carbon Monoxide Hazard. In the event that you have a dryer that uses natural gas or propane, a second hazard is carbon monoxide poisoning. With the exhaust vent clogged, carbon monoxide can get backed up into the home, further threatening the health of the occupants.

3. Longer Drying Time / Wasted Energy. If your dryer is taking longer to dry clothes than it should, it’s likely the vent is clogged. This results in clothes taking much longer to dry, and consequently using more energy. 

4. Dryer Overheats/ Wears Out Prematurely. When the Vent is clogged with lint, the dryer can overheat causing the heating element and other expensive parts to wear out prematurely. 
​
​CLEANING THE VENT
     ​There are many companies that offer dryer vent cleaning.  A thorough cleaning of your dryer venting system takes time, no matter how short the distance from the dryer to the termination vent outside.  Blowing the vent out should not be considered a cleaning option.  We have discovered that many companies will turn on your dryer and then use an air hose to blow the lint off the liner system from the outside.  You can imagine what kind of mess that must make!  To clean out your dryer duct we use a similar procedure to cleaning your chimney - utilizing rotary brushes and vacuums.
​CERTIFICATION IS IMPORTANT
The C-DET credential is the only nationally-recognized credential of its kind. ​​
 Hiring a CSIA Certified Exhaust Technician® means you are trusting your home and family to someone who has spent countless hours studying for (and passing) an extensive exam covering everything from the proper inspection and maintenance of dryer vents to the applicable codes and standards relating to these systems. Many of the current C-DET Certified Techs have participated and passed a rigorous two-day workshop where they have learned directly from some of the most respected experts in the chimney and venting industry.
​
​THE FACTS ABOUT DRYER FIRES
​These statistics come from data collected in the U.S. Fire Administration’s (USFA’s) National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS):
  • Clothes dryer fires happen more often in the fall and winter and peak in the month of January.
  • “Failure to clean” is the leading cause of clothes dryer fires in residential buildings.
  • Dust, fiber, lint, and clothing not on a person are, by far, the leading items first ignited in clothes dryer fires.
     
     
     In recent years dryer vents have become an increasing fire hazard.  This is partly because more and more new homes are being built with the washer and dryer inside the home, far from an exterior wall…which usually means a very long clothes dryer vent!  Every time you dry clothes, microscopic particles of lint get past the lint screen in the dryer and deposit themselves in the long dryer vent, eventually clogging the vent. With a clogged exhaust vent, the clothes dryer has a difficult time doing its job safely.  According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission dirty and clogged dryer vents are responsible for over 15,000 fires each year in the United States. 
     ​If your dryer is getting warm, or hot to the touch, then the problem is most likely not your clothes dryer.  It is likely clogged or restricted and needs to be cleaned. This is not the lint screen that you clean after each dryer load.  It is the duct pipe that runs from your laundry room, inside your walls and exits either through the roof or a side wall.

A few other symptoms to watch for are:
  • Clothes dryer is getting too hot Excessive lint in your laundry room
  • Heating element cuts off intermittently
  • Laundry room is overly hot or humid
  • Lint collecting on a small area of the lint screen, or on the back of the screen
Seven Facts About Clothes Dryer Exhaust Safety

1. According to manufacturer’s specifications and local codes, dryer ducts must be a minimum 4” in diameter and at least as large as the dryer outlet.

2. Unless otherwise specified by your dryer’s manufacturer or local code, the developed length of your dryer’s exhaust duct should not exceed 25 feet. (When determining developed length, each 90º turn adds 5 feet to the actual length.)

3. Dryer vents shall be independent of all other systems and terminate outdoors, not into a chimney, crawl space or attic.

4. Your outside dryer exhaust vent’s termination hood should be equipped with a back draft damper to ensure that the exhaust doesn’t come back in your home.

5. Metal transition ducts should be used between the dryer and the exhaust duct.

6. Flexible transition ducts should never be used in an attic, a crawl space, or inside a wall.

7. The CSIA Certified Dryer Exhaust Technician credential is the only nationally-recognized credential of its kind.
Proudly powered by Weebly