Dryer Vent Cleaning

Facts About Dryer Vent Cleaning: Is it worth the risk of a fire?

Dapper Ducts, Inc. provides dryer vent cleaning services in Washington DC, Virginia and Maryland. Dryer vent cleaning is important for both safety and financial reasons. Few people realize that dryer vent duct cleaning significantly reduces the risk of a dryer vent fire in your home or apartment and improves the efficiency of the clothes dryer, thereby lowering utility costs.

A clogged dryer vent can be a hazard. According to the National Fire Protection Association, the leading cause of home clothes dryer fires is failure to clean them. In 2010 in the United States, an estimated 16,800 reported fires involving clothes dryers or washing machines (including combination washer/dryers) resulted in 51 civilian deaths, 380 civilian injuries, and $236 million in direct property damage (NFPA). In many cases, injuries and death can be prevented with proper dryer vent cleaning. Is not cleaning your dryer vent worth the risk?

Why Dryer Vent Fires Occur

In today’s homes, dryer vents tend to be vented longer distances, creating more places for lint to gather. Although dryers are equipped with lint traps, a significant amount of lint is not caught by the trap, and instead, builds up inside the dryer. Fires can occur when lint builds up in the dryer or in the exhaust duct. Lint can block the flow of air, cause excessive heat build-up, and result in a fire in some dryers.

In addition to creating a fire hazard, if your dryer vent duct is too long or has too many bends, it will cause your dryer to take much longer than necessary to dry loads, using more energy and electricity. Do you frequently need to use two cycles to dry one load of laundry? You probably need your dryer vent cleaned.

Finally, inadequate clearance space between the dryer and the wall can cause the dryer to work inefficiently. Many people create problems by pushing their dryer as close to the wall as possible, thereby crushing the venting material in the process. The cumulative effect of reduced air-flow and the resulting lint buildup prevent the dryer from drying at a normal rate and risk causing a fire.

Dapper Ducts' Dryer Vent Cleaning Method

Dapper Ducts, Inc. performs dryer vent cleanings using powerful compressed air tools supplying 180 pounds per square inch of air pressure. Our tools will blast through even the most compact debris, including layers of birds' nests. In fact, if you have had problems with birds entering the dryer vent duct and creating nests, please inquire about a bird guard. Depending on the severity of the clog, the length of the dryer duct and the height of the outlet, the average cleaning lasts approximately 45 minutes to one hour.

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