How Often Should You Clean Your Dryer Vent?

You should clean your dryer vent at least once a year. Some homes need it every six months. Very few can safely go longer than a year.

That is the short answer. How often your own dryer vent needs cleaning depends on how much laundry you do and how the vent is built.

Why Cleaning the Dryer Vent Matters

A clothes dryer works by pushing hot, damp air out of the house through a duct. Lint rides along with that air. The lint trap catches some of it. The rest coats the inside of the vent.

As the lint builds up, the airflow drops. Two things follow:

• The dryer runs longer and hotter. That wastes energy and wears out the machine.
• The fire risk goes up. Lint is highly flammable, and a clogged vent traps heat right next to it.

Failure to clean is the leading cause of home dryer fires. The U.S. Fire Administration has more on preventing home fires.

With a gas dryer there is a second hazard. The vent also carries the exhaust from the burner. A clogged vent can push carbon monoxide back into the laundry room.

How Often to Clean Your Dryer Vent

Once a year

Right for most homes: a couple or a small family, a few loads a week, and a short vent that goes straight out through a wall.

Every six months

You may want to clean the vent twice a year if:

• You have a large family and run the dryer every day
• You have dogs or cats that shed
• You wash a lot of towels, blankets or bedding
• The vent run is long or has several bends
• The vent goes up through the attic and out the roof

Right away

Do not wait for the calendar if you notice any of the warning signs below.

Signs Your Dryer Vent Needs Cleaning

• Clothes are still damp after a normal cycle
• Drying takes twice as long as it used to
• The top of the dryer is hot to the touch
• The laundry room feels hot and humid when the dryer runs
• A burning smell
• Lint collecting around the dryer door or the exterior vent
• The flap on the outside vent hood does not open when the dryer is on
• The dryer shuts off before the cycle ends

Why Dallas Homes Often Need It More Often

In many newer Dallas homes, the laundry room is in the middle of the house or on the second floor. The vent cannot go straight out a wall. It runs up through the attic and out through the roof.

A long, vertical vent run is harder for the dryer to push air through, so lint settles faster. Roof vents also attract birds, which build nests in the opening and block it completely. If your vent exits through the roof, yearly cleaning is the minimum.

What You Can Do Yourself

• Clean the lint filter after every load.
• Wash the lint filter with soap and water every few months. Dryer sheets leave a film that blocks the screen.
• Check the outside vent while the dryer is running. The flap should open and you should feel strong, warm air.
• Look behind the dryer. The hose should not be crushed or kinked.
• Replace foil or plastic hose with rigid or semi-rigid metal duct. Plastic and thin foil hose sag, trap lint and can burn.

What a Professional Dryer Vent Cleaning Includes

A professional cleaning reaches the whole vent, not only the first few feet. We disconnect the dryer, run a rotary brush through the full length of the duct while a vacuum collects the lint, clean the outside vent hood, and check the airflow before and after.

At Dallas Chimney Care, a basic dryer vent cleaning in Dallas is $79 for vent runs up to 5 feet. Longer runs and roof vents cost more, and we tell you the price before we start. It is easy to add to a yearly chimney sweep, so both fire risks are handled in one visit.