If you’ve been using your dryer for a very long time and you haven’t done any kind of maintenance work for it, be worried: build-up can kill your machine, or worse, it can even start a fire. It may sound harsh, but it’s the truth. Dryer ducts can be unpleasant and dangerous when you don’t clean them properly. The lint, for example, is easy to ignite when it is dry. Just a bit of a spark from the electrical could burn all of those deposited in your dryer vent.
In case you’re able to avoid any fire disaster after all this time, you’re still on the hook for inefficient energy use. The build-up of debris in the dryer vent lessens its efficiency, meaning, the machine needs to work extra hard to provide the service it’s intended to do. This only means one thing: more power consumption. You won’t notice the gradual increase in your electricity bill, but if you compare it back when your dryer was brand new, the results could be shocking. And when your machine is working extra hard every time, it only means greater wear and tear and a shortened life span. Add them all up and you’re easily losing your investment every time you use it.
This is why you need to properly clean your dryer vent regularly. If your hands are tied with work and other things that keep you from doing it, hire reliable dryer vent cleaning services in your area.
Here are some quick tips in cleaning your dryer vent.
Disconnecting the Duct
Locate your duct and disconnect the dryer. Know where the vents start and end, so you won’t have a hard time going back to spots you might have missed. You can then proceed to clean them with a lint brush.
Scheduling Future Cleaning
Notice how much build-up is available in the duct. Consider this volume and the period where you last cleaned it. That way, you can know how often you should do thorough cleaning depending on your use.
If it’s already packed and the airflow is constricted, you might want to consider going that long with cleaning the dryer vent. Adjust accordingly so you won’t have to deal with bigger issues like the vents catching fire or the dryer breaking down later.
A Bit of Elbow Grease Goes a Long Way
Don’t be afraid to get dirty. Use an extension on the lint brush to clean hard-to-reach spots. Go over them twice or thrice, making sure you dislodge a good amount of dirt build-up every time. There are segmented ducts for easier cleaning. You can even soak them in water to loosen the dirt build-up if it becomes too packed and hard to remove with a lint brush.
Once you’re done cleaning, dry up everything before reconnecting them. Make sure the dryer’s unplugged before putting them back together. Most of the modern devices are easier to plug and reconnect, so you probably won’t have a hard time assembling things to the way they were before.