Dryer Vent Cleaning in Salem, OR
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Step 1 of 3: Equipment
Cold vents make lint stick
Every load of laundry pushes warm, damp air through the vent to the outside. On winter nights that average 33°F here, that air cools fast once it hits the metal duct. The moisture in it settles on the walls of the vent, and lint sticks to the damp surface instead of blowing through.
Layer by layer, that buildup narrows the path the air has to take. The dryer has to push harder to move the same load of air out of the house, and less of that damp air actually makes it outside.
- 33°F
- the average winter night, and cold vents catch damp lint
- 10 months
- September through June, 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 advice, and a contractor can tell you if your household needs it more often. A house that runs the dryer every day builds up lint faster than one that runs it twice a week. If clothes start taking longer to dry than they used to, that is the vent telling you it needs attention before the year is up.
- Can I clean my dryer vent myself?
- You can clean the part you can reach, but that is usually not the whole job. Pulling the dryer out and vacuuming the first few feet of duct, plus clearing the lint trap and the vent hood outside, is worth doing between full cleanings. The trouble is the run in between, especially if it has bends or goes up through a wall or roof, where lint builds up out of sight. A brush-and-rod kit made for dryer vents can reach further than a vacuum, but a long or twisting duct is easier for a contractor with the right length of cable to clear properly.
- What are the signs of a clogged dryer vent?
- Clothes that take more than one cycle to dry, a dryer that runs hot to the touch on the outside, and a burning smell partway through the cycle are the main ones. Check the vent hood outside too. If little to no air is moving out of it while the dryer runs, the duct is blocked somewhere along the way. Lint collecting around the lint trap door or a musty smell in the laundry room are worth acting on as well, since a blocked vent traps heat that a dryer is not built to hold.