Dryer Vent Cleaning in Wilmington, DE
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It takes about a minute.
Step 1 of 3: Equipment
Cold vents make lint stick
Your dryer pushes out warm, damp air every load. Once that air hits a cold vent run, it cools fast, and the moisture left behind gives lint something to stick to instead of blowing outside. Winter nights here average 27°F, cold enough that the air cools before it clears the vent.
That lint builds up over the season and narrows the path the air has to take. A blocked vent traces heat back into the dryer, and a dryer that cannot vent properly has to work harder to dry anything at all.
- 27°F
- the average winter night, and cold vents catch damp lint
- 7 months
- October through April, the vent stays cold
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NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- How often should a dryer vent be cleaned?
- Once a year for most households. If you run the dryer for a large family or you have a long vent run with a lot of turns, once a year may not be often enough and you will notice lint buildup sooner. A shorter drying time than usual is a good sign the vent is due.
- Can I clean my dryer vent myself?
- You can clean the first few feet from the back of the dryer and the outside hood yourself. A vent brush kit reaches further into straight runs and clears a good amount of lint. But most vents have at least one bend, and lint that packs in past a bend is hard to reach without the right length of rod and a shop vac strong enough to pull it out. If the vent runs a long distance or through the attic, a contractor with the right equipment will get it fully clear.
- What are the signs of a clogged dryer vent?
- Clothes taking longer than one cycle to dry is the clearest sign. Others are the outside of the dryer feeling hot to the touch, a burning smell during the cycle, and the flapper on the outside vent hood barely moving or not opening at all when the dryer runs. Lint collecting around the hood itself is also worth checking for, since it means lint is escaping the vent before it gets outside.