Nothing feels more amazing than a warm, soft towel that has just come out of the dryer. The dryer vent may need to be cleaned if your towels are more of a damp disappointment. Cleaning your dryer vent on a regular basis helps to protect your house from dryer-related risks while also improving the functionality and efficiency of your appliance.
Cleaning dryer vents isn’t always simple, particularly if your house has extensive ducting. How do you choose between doing it yourself and hiring a professional when it comes to cleaning your dryer vents? We have some suggestions!
WHEN TO DIY
The performance, effectiveness, and safety of your dryer depend on periodic dryer vent cleaning, so you should include it in your annual home maintenance schedule. In the following situations, you might want to think about performing your own dryer vent cleaning:
You have a limited budget.
Doing the work yourself might help you save money if you’re on a tight budget. Typically, it costs $150 to hire a professional to clean your dryer vents. However, those prices may rise in accordance with the location of the dryer’s outer vent. For instance, you’ll probably spend a little bit more if your dryer vents from the basement or first floor of your home than if it is on your roof.
The purchase of the brushers or dryer vent cleaning kit, which normally costs between $20 and $50 at most hardware stores, will be the only expense if you choose to handle the process yourself, on the other hand.
Your Ductwork is Short
If your ductwork is short (about 4 feet or less) and the vent is easily accessible from the outside, cleaning dryer vents by yourself can also be rather simple. You might be able to clean the vent with gloves on if the ducting is shorter. But you may get a vent cleaning kit from your neighborhood hardware shop if you prefer some useful cleaning equipment and want to prevent further mess.
To assist you access the numerous internal ridges and difficult-to-reach crevices inside your ducting, kits frequently contain a brush, drill attachment, and extension. Additionally, if your ductwork links to your exterior vent in a pretty straight line with no elbows or bends, you might be able to clean ducts slightly longer than 4 feet using a normal brush set.
WHEN TO HIRE A PRO
Although cleaning your dryer vents by yourself is absolutely an option, many homeowners choose to hire a professional. After all, having clean vents affects more than simply performance and effectiveness. Additionally, they concern safety. How to decide whether to seek professional advice is as follows:
Your Ductwork Is Elongated Or Curved
Ductwork sometimes travels a rather lengthy and meandering route before arriving to an outside vent. It would probably be preferable to let the dryer vent cleaning company handle the task if it accurately reflects your ducting configuration.
For ducting longer than a few feet or with several curves and twists, ordinary brushes and cleaning equipment most likely won’t be enough. Because brushes may easily break off within the ducts and become trapped in these elbows, you’ll probably need to hire a professional to recover it.
Additionally, if you can’t reach the whole length of the ductwork, attempting to DIY can make the issue worse. The lint and debris can be pushed deeper into the duct by brushes and rods, resulting in a dangerous clog.
However, experts utilize a variety of equipment to clean ducts thoroughly and safely, including spinning brushes, vacuums, and air “whips,” which can clean your whole ductwork without running the danger of damaging it as brushes and rods can.
You Can’t Easily Access Your Dryer Vent
If your dryer vent cannot be easily accessed from the exterior of your house, you should also think about contacting a professional. A person will need to climb onto the roof to do the task since some dryers vent via the roof, which means there will probably be a lot of ductwork to deal with.
Your Vents And Ducts Are In Bad Condition
Lint, grime, and debris are undoubtedly present in quite high concentrations if it has been more than a year since your last cleaning or if you have bugs in your vents or ducts. If you don’t have the necessary tools to clean up bigger messes, hiring a professional can help you from leaving clogs behind. Additionally, you won’t have to be concerned about accidentally damaging your ductwork or having brushes and other items trapped within the vent.
