How Much Lint Collects Inside Your Dryer Exhaust Duct?

How much lint actually collects inside your dryer exhaust duct? This is a common question that we are often asked when performing dryer exhaust duct maintenance or dryer vent cleaning, however, it is difficult to give a simple answer that applies to everyone.

The amount of lint that collects inside your clothes dryer vent will depend on several factors, which include how often the dryer is used, what type of clothing is being dried, and the overall length of the dryer exhaust vent.

This photo above shows a flexible dryer vent that we removed from a fairly new home, in fact, this dryer vent was only eight months old. Rather than cleaning the flexible part of this exhaust system, the home owner chose to have us replace it with a fire-retardant, aluminum flex pipe. This one could have been easily cleaned with our equipment, but it was way too long for the required installation and we were going shorten it. Alot.

Often times, we see way more flex jammed in behind the dryer than what is actually needed. All you need there is a piece of flex that is long enough to allow you to pull out the dryer. Anything more than that amount just adds to unnecessary air restriction.

Flexible dryer exhaust vents can be easily cleaned by the home owner in most cases. Just remove it completely, then take it outside and shake it out. It can also be cleaned with a garden hose and then re-assembled once it is dry. This procedure alone can often save you from having to clean the entire portion of the dryer duct as often.

If you have a similar plastic vent like this one and notice that it is getting brittle, then it is time to replace it completely.

We recommend that your dryer exhaust duct system be thoroughly cleaned and inspected at least every two years in most homes. We provide this service on its own, but it is always more cost-effective to have this done in conjunction with a complete air duct cleaning in your home.

Here are some details about how often you should clean your dryer ducts.