Well, this is perhaps one of those experiences with a lesson whose moral everyone else already knows, but bear with me--if you didn't know, you might spare yourself an emergency...
When we had owned our clothes dryer for what felt like a relatively short time, it got less and less effective at doing its intended job--we had to run clothes through more than one cycle in order to dry them, though eventually they did get dry. Not a good scenario energy-wise, or energy bill-wise, or even patience-wise. So we finally bit the bullet and called in a repairman to find out what the problem was.
Turns out we had a burned-out element which needed replacing, but from what I understand, that was not the only factor contributing to the problem. I know about the lint screen that you are supposed to clean out after every load. What I didn't know was that about every year or so you are supposed to clean out the entire hose that is connected to the dryer, because the lint filter, helpful as it is, doesn't catch all the lint that decides to separate itself from your fabrics. In fact, the repairman informed us that not only was build-up of lint in the dryer hose contributing to the slowdown of the drying process, but such build-up can cause a fire. I'd call that an emergency. It may not be a likely emergency, but I doubt that anyone will stand in the laundry room discussing statistical probability while it happens to them. My husband now cleans out the dryer hose every year or so now--and it feels good to know that we are making our home a safer place to be. Hopefully this is a case where it will always be an emergency averted. Have you checked your dryer hose lately? You know what they say about prevention...
Dryer lint, you may ask? You may think that I am stretching for blog subjects, (which may sometimes be the case) but one of the things that led to the story about dryer lint was this post, found over at Survival Lady's website. (Thanks, Survival Lady!) Talk about a cool fire-starting kit, and one of the main components is.... (drum-roll please)...dryer lint! I have yet to put one of these together, but I have purchased a tin in which to place the components. Soooo....if you are into statistical analysis and figure the probability of a fire is not enough to clean out that dryer hose, maybe you'll do it for the sake of a few good fire-starting kits...
7 comments:
Marie, this is a VERY important post. I worked in a store that sold and serviced furniture and appliances for 15 years and I know first hand the dangers that go along with a dryer. I can't tell you how many times I have taken a dryer apart for service and found ashes inside. Yes ASHES !! The lint you mention can also make it's way all the way to your dryer elements and catch fire. Always, and I mean always, when cleaning out your dryer vent, clean the entire inside of your dryer. The front will come off of most dryers for easy service, if yours does not, find out how you can get to those elements. Vacum all the lint away that you can even where the cord attaches to your dryer. These are potential fire hazards. I have known of many house fires do to the dryer catching fire. I have many times had to go through our store records to find a purchase date for an insurance company investigating a dryer fire. Honestly, it's probably the most dangerous thing in your house. I have first hand experience of this problem and clean ours every year, regardless. I'm sure you can search online of the make and model of your dryer and find out how to clean it properly. It could save your life. Very important post that I hope many will benifit from.
Thank you,
Chris
Very good points, Marie! And yas, the dryer lint does indeed make a good fire starter!
Good post...
Chris--Wow, that's even scarier than I thought--thanks for providing so much information and sharing your expertise. Your comment provides even more motivation to be careful than the post does, and I'm sure that a lot more people will be helped with this safety issue as a result. Guess we have some research and more preventative measures to do--thanks very much for the guidelines!
HermitJim--When I first heard about using dryer lint like this I thought it was brilliant--just have to be extremely careful with it, apparently....thanks for your comment!
Had a renter that never cleaned the dryer lint screen - complained to us about the dryer not working. After cleaning out the screen, about 1 1/2 inches thick, the short, about 6 foot long hose, 1 inch thick all around and the BLOCKED outside vent, we showed both husband and wife the results. He was horrified, she didn't care.
We then had our lawyer write an additional specific rule, we already had the must take care of appliances, etc, concerning the dryer. Basically, we checked it once a month and if it was not clean, they would be charged for cleaning, damage, and if it continued eviction. Lawyer and insurance agent said more renters should have it in the lease. Protects everyone including the neighbors! By the way - had no more problems with them and they left the home spotless.
Good Post Marie. Dryer lint can also be composted. whodathawt.
Carl In wisconsin
Can't you clean out the hose yourself? Why use hubby?
Anonymous--Thanks for providing another scenario on this subject--I hadn't looked at that perspective before, but I think it's an excellent idea to inform tenants of potential problems and to take steps to help ensure that they will at least try to prevent them. Sounds like everyone was fortunate to avoid a big problem there when their dryer wasn't working. Thanks for your comment and great advice!
Carl-- Thanks! I certainly didn't know that dryer lint could be composted--anything to help the garden grow is good in my book. Thanks for your comment and the new info!
Anonymous--Interesting question--I don't know about "can't", but I do know that he usually does it, and I usually give credit where credit is due...and I do know that he reads the comments, so I bet he'll get a kick out of this one...thanks for reminding me to watch/learn/do next time so that I'm sure that I can clean it out... :)
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