Dryer Vent Cleaning in Annapolis, MD
Tell us about your home, and a licensed contractor who covers Anne Arundel County will get in touch.
Tell us about the job
It takes about a minute.
Step 1 of 3: Equipment
Cold vents make lint stick
Your dryer pushes out warm, damp air every time it runs. From October through April, that air is moving through a vent that sits in cold space, and on a winter night here that can mean pushing warm air through a vent surrounded by 29 degree air. The moisture in that exhaust cools fast against the cold walls of the vent, and lint sticks to damp metal instead of blowing straight through to the outside.
Over a winter that buildup narrows the vent. A narrower vent means more heat and moisture stay trapped inside it, which gives the next load of lint even more to stick to.
- 29°F
- the average winter night, and cold vents catch damp lint
- 7 months
- October through April, the vent stays cold
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
NOAA nClimDiv, 1991–2020 normals
- How often should a dryer vent be cleaned?
- Once a year for most households. If you dry a lot of loads each week, or your vent run is long with a lot of turns, check it more often than that. A vent that takes longer than it should to get clothes dry is telling you it needs attention sooner.
- Can I clean my dryer vent myself?
- You can clean the lint trap and the first few feet of hose yourself, and you should do that often. The rest of the run, especially where it goes through a wall or up to the roof hood, is harder to reach and harder to clean well without the right brushes and rods. A contractor can clear the full length of the vent and check that the hood flap outside opens and closes the way it should.
- What are the signs of a clogged dryer vent?
- Clothes that take more than one cycle to dry is the biggest sign. The dryer or the laundry room getting hotter than usual during a cycle is another sign worth noticing. Check the outside vent hood while the dryer runs. If you feel little to no airflow there, or the flap barely moves, lint is built up somewhere in the line.