Categories Dryer Fire Prevention, Dryer Fire Safety, Dryer Vent Cleaning

Why Screens Should Not be Used on Dryer Vent End Caps

Clogged dryer vent

Screens Should Not be Used On Dryer Vent!

Screens should never be used on dryer vents for the simple reason they prevent lint escaping. Whilst this does not happen straight away it does so slowly over time, damp air escapes first followed by lint that sticks to the dampness inside the dryer vent and if a screen or grill is fitted the lint starts to bond to it too. Over a period of time this then forms a lint plug like you see in the photo.

Keep Pests Out Can Increase The Risk of a Dryer Fire?

Some people put screens over the end cap of their dryer vent to prevent birds or critters from moving in. Whilst this may seem to make sense, the truth is it is not the best of decisions as once the vent gets plugged at the end the lint has no where else to go. Just like cholesterol it builds up over time and starts to restrict the airflow thus lint starts to accumulate inside the dryer itself. Lint starts to settle inside the dryer cabinet and on or around the dryers heating element.

Dryer Fires Start Inside The Dryer

So the screen on the end of the dryer vent caused a lint plug, this then causes the lint to accumulate more through the dryer vent and inside the dryer. The lint inside the dryer is what causes dryer fires, the heating element glows red and reaches temperatures as high as 190 degrees fahrenheit all it needs is for a clump of lint to sit on the element and you can have a dryer fire on your hands.

Never Leave Your Dryer Running When No One is Home

The dryer should only be run when someone is in the house, also you should not run the dryer when sleeping at night this is not to scare you but just to draw attention to the fact there are hidden dangers in the home and the dryer is one of them.

 

Author VentExpert
Categories Dryer Vent Cleaning

Lint Clogged Clothes Dryer With Signs of a Fire

This is a particularly bad dryer we recently came across, which due to the dryer vent being clogged lead to the whole dryer struggling and also signs of a dryer fire having taken place. This really was one lucky customer, they narrowly avoided becoming a dryer fire statistic. The customer chose to have the dryer cleaned inside the cabinet when they realized how serious the situation was.

Here is the Clothes Dryer

As you can see a normal looking clothes dryer … from the outside lets see whats inside

dryer vent cleaning in Burlington
This looks like a normal dryer wait until we open it up

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clogged Dryer Exhaust

Behind the dryer is the dryer exhaust that the transition hose connects to. Look at how much lint is built up in there.

back of clogged dryer
back of clogged dryer this is inside the dryer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lint Builds Up Under Lint Trap

Lint build up below the lint trap and under the lint trap housing this is tricky to remove but really does need to be removed.

excessive lint in clothes dryer
Look all this lint below the lint trap!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Blower Housing Caked With Lint Build Up

It is easy to see that lint is just going to stick to the existing build up here, this is why it makes sense to carry out dryer vent cleaning on a regular basis. We recommend once a year if there are 4 or more living in the home, single or just a couple then once every 2 years will be enough.

dryer vent cleaning Burlington
dryer cleaning to reduce the risk of fire

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lint Build Up Inside a Dryer Cabinet

If lint cannot exhaust properly then it will start to build up inside the dryer over time which is not good news! With clean dryer vents the lint exits the dryer preventing build up like this.

dryer cleaning Burlington Ontario
Dryer cabinet with lint build up

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Signs of a Dryer Fire

The owner of this dryer said that it was taking sometimes 3 cycles to dry a load of clothes. This was not only costing a lot in electricity costs and also putting more strain on the dryer and the clothes too! Below you will see signs of where lint has already burned, the owners were lucky that they called us when they did. Houses in the area of Burlington are between 4 – 15 years old, the house this dryer is in is 12 years old.

The dark brown bits are burnt lint slowly smouldering away.

dryer heating element with burnt lint
dryer heating element with burnt lint

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Burnt lint removed from clothes dryer just look at how much there is! Have your dryer vent cleaned regularly to prevent this level of lint build up.

burnt lint in the dryer
burnt lint in the dryer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dryer Cleaned Out Lint Free!

Here you see a nice clean cabinet, we greased the mail bearing and checked the drive belt and tension rollers, then went on to clean out the dryer vent and change the transition tube from a vinyl flex hose to a semi rigid one the manufacturers recommend.

dryer cabinet cleaning prevent dryer fires
dryer cabinet cleaning helping prevent dryer fires

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Professional Dryer Vent Cleaning

If you live in Burlington, Ontario and surrounding areas and are having problems with your clothes taking a long time to dry. Is the top of your clothes dryer feeling really hot to touch? Or are you noticing excessive lint on your dry clothes? These are all signs that your dryer vent is clogged with lint and needs cleaning. Contact us today to schedule dryer vent cleaning, the service will pay for itself in time savings, reducing your utility costs and reducing your risk of fire.

 

 

Author VentExpert