Dryer Vent Cleaning in New Bedford, MA
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Step 1 of 3: Equipment
Cold air turns dryer lint into a wall
Your dryer pushes warm, damp air out through the vent every time it runs. On a night near 23°F, that vent is cold well before the air reaches the end of it. The moisture in the exhaust cools fast, and the lint riding along with it sticks to the duct wall instead of blowing clear.
Over a winter that runs from October through May, that buildup narrows the vent from the inside. Air that used to move straight out now pushes against a lining of damp, packed lint, and the dryer has to work against it.
- 23°F
- the average winter night, and cold vents catch damp lint
- 8 months
- October through May, 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 rule for most households. If you run several loads a day, or your vent run is long or has a lot of turns, clean it more often than that. Lint builds up inside the duct even when the lint trap is clean, and that buildup is what causes the problems.
- Can I clean my dryer vent myself?
- You can clean the parts you can reach, but you likely cannot clean the whole run. A vacuum and a brush kit will get lint out of the first few feet at each end. The rest of the duct, especially where it bends or runs through a wall or roof, needs a longer brush or a rod system to reach, and that is where the worst clogs tend to sit.
- What are the signs of a clogged dryer vent?
- Clothes that take longer than they used to, or come out hot to the touch even after a normal cycle, are the first sign. A burning smell, a musty smell, or lint collecting around the outside vent hood are others. If the outside hood flap barely moves or doesn't move at all when the dryer runs, air isn't getting through and the vent needs attention.