How often should a dryer vent be cleaned?

Once a year for a typical household. More often if you run several loads a day, if the duct run is long or has multiple bends, or if you dry heavy items like towels and bedding regularly. Vents serving a household with pets usually need it more often too, because pet hair binds with lint and packs tighter.

What are the warning signs that my dryer vent is blocked?

Clothes taking two cycles to dry is the most common one. Others are the dryer or the laundry room feeling unusually hot during a cycle, a burning or musty smell, lint visible around the door seal, and no strong airflow at the outside vent hood while the dryer is running. If the machine shuts off mid-cycle on its own, treat that as urgent.

Is a clogged dryer vent actually a fire risk?

Yes. Lint is highly combustible and a restricted duct traps heat in the dryer instead of carrying it outside. Failure to clean is the leading cause of home clothes-dryer fires, and the failure is gradual, so there is rarely an obvious moment when a vent goes from fine to dangerous.

Can I just clean the lint trap myself instead?

The lint trap catches only part of what the dryer sheds. The rest travels into the duct and collects at bends, at the transition hose behind the machine, and at the exterior hood flap. Those are the three places that actually block, and none of them are reachable from the lint trap opening.

How long does a dryer vent cleaning take?

Most single-family jobs take under an hour, including checking airflow before and after so you can see the difference rather than take our word for it. A long or complicated duct run, a rooftop termination, or a vent that has not been cleaned in several years takes longer.

Do you work on apartment and condo buildings?

Yes. Multi-unit buildings often have long shared or stacked duct runs that are well beyond what a consumer kit reaches, and they tend to be the most neglected because no single resident owns the duct. We work with building managers and HOAs as well as individual owners.

My dryer vents through the roof - can that be cleaned?

Yes, and it needs it more than a side-wall vent does. Vertical runs work against gravity, so lint settles back down the duct, and roof terminations are also where birds nest. It is not a job to attempt from a ladder with a brush kit.

Can a dryer vent be rerouted if it runs too far?

Often, yes. Ducts that are too long, that use flexible foil instead of rigid metal, or that have too many bends will keep clogging no matter how often they are cleaned. Where that is the underlying problem we will say so and quote the reroute rather than sell you a cleaning every few months.