Product News
Product News
Dryer Vents: How Do They Work?
Dryer Vents: How Do They Work?
Unless you work in the laundry business, you might not care much about dryer vents until something is wrong with yours. But maybe you should.
You might think of a dryer vent as something necessary, but you leave it alone without giving much thought to it. You aren’t alone in that mindset, but without a properly working vent, your dryer may incur a lot of problems. Today, we’re going to go over how a dryer vent works, why they are needed, and other important information about the essential part a simple vent plays in your typical laundry routine. Keep reading to learn more.
How Dryer Vents Work
A typical clothes dryer tumbles wet clothes with hot air in a rotating drum. When the heat interacts with the water in the clothes, it creates moisture in the dryer that must be pushed out of the dryer in order to dry the clothes properly. That’s where your trusty dryer vent comes in. A fan in the dryer will blow the moisture out of the drum through the vent that leads outdoors. On the back of every dryer is a space for a vent duct to be attached, approximately four inches in diameter. A vent duct can be flexible or rigid and made out of various materials, and it’s meant to carry the hot air from the dryer to the exterior of your house, where a hole should be cut to accommodate the vent.
All dryer vents should take the shortest route to the outside, but vents can be fed under floors in crawl spaces, through walls, and even up through a venting space in your ceiling if needed. Flexible aluminum connectors and foil tape are used to connect all the tubing, ensuring that the vent tube is connected correctly, letting no air out along the way. If the moist air spills out along the way, it could cause potential damage to the building, so it’s essential that the vent duct is properly installed and cared for.
The Importance of Cleaning Your Dryer Vents
Keeping your dryer vent clean is essential to the efficiency of your dryer. While the duct is only supposed to carry hot air, you can expect that lint from your clothes will end up inside the vent tubing, slowly clogging the vent. Dirty or clogged dryer vents and ductwork will not only reduce your dryer’s performance, but the combination of heat and accumulated dryer lint can lead to a severe fire hazard. In fact, The United States Fire Administration reports that about 2,900 clothes dryer fires are reported each year.
It is highly encouraged that the lint filters in your dryer are cleaned after each use of the dryer, and the dryer vent should be cleaned out at least once every year. For those who can easily access each end of the dryer vent, cleaning out the vent could be as simple as disconnecting the tubing, cleaning it out with a rag, then re-attaching the tubing to the back of the dryer and the exit point. However, it would be in your best interest to call in a professional for those with a more complicated vent that runs through walls or up through the ceiling. If you’re diligent about cleaning your dryer vent, it can save you money on your electricity bill and even more if an unfortunate fire were to occur.
Ziggurat Products for Your Home and Business
At Ziggurat Products, we are all about making dryer vent installation and maintenance a breeze. Try our dryer vents and other related products for yourself to see the difference Ziggurat makes! We ship our products throughout the United States directly to home customers, and we are also wholesalers for businesses that we look forward to partnering with. Shop our products online today or contact us to learn more!
Unless you work in the laundry business, you might not care much about dryer vents until something is wrong with yours. But maybe you should.
You might think of a dryer vent as something necessary, but you leave it alone without giving much thought to it. You aren’t alone in that mindset, but without a properly working vent, your dryer may incur a lot of problems. Today, we’re going to go over how a dryer vent works, why they are needed, and other important information about the essential part a simple vent plays in your typical laundry routine. Keep reading to learn more.
How Dryer Vents Work
A typical clothes dryer tumbles wet clothes with hot air in a rotating drum. When the heat interacts with the water in the clothes, it creates moisture in the dryer that must be pushed out of the dryer in order to dry the clothes properly. That’s where your trusty dryer vent comes in. A fan in the dryer will blow the moisture out of the drum through the vent that leads outdoors. On the back of every dryer is a space for a vent duct to be attached, approximately four inches in diameter. A vent duct can be flexible or rigid and made out of various materials, and it’s meant to carry the hot air from the dryer to the exterior of your house, where a hole should be cut to accommodate the vent.
All dryer vents should take the shortest route to the outside, but vents can be fed under floors in crawl spaces, through walls, and even up through a venting space in your ceiling if needed. Flexible aluminum connectors and foil tape are used to connect all the tubing, ensuring that the vent tube is connected correctly, letting no air out along the way. If the moist air spills out along the way, it could cause potential damage to the building, so it’s essential that the vent duct is properly installed and cared for.
The Importance of Cleaning Your Dryer Vents
Keeping your dryer vent clean is essential to the efficiency of your dryer. While the duct is only supposed to carry hot air, you can expect that lint from your clothes will end up inside the vent tubing, slowly clogging the vent. Dirty or clogged dryer vents and ductwork will not only reduce your dryer’s performance, but the combination of heat and accumulated dryer lint can lead to a severe fire hazard. In fact, The United States Fire Administration reports that about 2,900 clothes dryer fires are reported each year.
It is highly encouraged that the lint filters in your dryer are cleaned after each use of the dryer, and the dryer vent should be cleaned out at least once every year. For those who can easily access each end of the dryer vent, cleaning out the vent could be as simple as disconnecting the tubing, cleaning it out with a rag, then re-attaching the tubing to the back of the dryer and the exit point. However, it would be in your best interest to call in a professional for those with a more complicated vent that runs through walls or up through the ceiling. If you’re diligent about cleaning your dryer vent, it can save you money on your electricity bill and even more if an unfortunate fire were to occur.
Ziggurat Products for Your Home and Business
At Ziggurat Products, we are all about making dryer vent installation and maintenance a breeze. Try our dryer vents and other related products for yourself to see the difference Ziggurat makes! We ship our products throughout the United States directly to home customers, and we are also wholesalers for businesses that we look forward to partnering with. Shop our products online today or contact us to learn more!