Dryer Vent Cleaning in San Bernardino, CA
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Cold nights turn dryer lint into a wall inside your vent
Your dryer pushes out warm, damp air every time it runs. That air has to travel through a vent that sits in cold space, in your attic or along an outside wall. On winter nights that average 39°F here, the vent walls are cold enough that the warm air cools fast, and the moisture in it turns to a light dampness on the metal.
Lint sticks to a damp surface much better than it sticks to a dry one. So through the months you run your heat, November through March, the lint that would normally blow through and out the hood instead catches on the walls of the vent and builds up there, layer on layer.
- 39°F
- the average winter night, and cold vents catch damp lint
- 5 months
- November through March, the vent stays cold
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- How often should a dryer vent be cleaned?
- A contractor can tell you for certain, but the general rule is once a year. Lint builds up along the duct walls even when the lint trap is cleaned after every load, and the buildup gets worse the longer it sits. A vent that has gone past a year without cleaning is already making the dryer work harder to push air through.
- Can I clean my dryer vent myself?
- You can clean the lint trap and the first few feet of duct behind the dryer yourself with a vent brush kit. What you can't reach is the rest of the run out to the wall, especially where it bends or runs longer than a few feet. A contractor has the rods and vacuum to clear the full length and check that the vent hood outside opens and closes the way it should.
- What are the signs of a clogged dryer vent?
- Clothes that need a second cycle to dry, a dryer that feels hot on top while running, and a burning smell are the clearest signs. Lint collecting around the lint trap door or piling up at the outside vent hood is another. If the vent hood flap barely moves while the dryer runs, air isn't getting through and the duct needs to be cleared.