Every so often our phone lights up from one neighborhood. Call after call, everyone wants dryer vent cleaning right now. When we ask why, it’s the same answer every time. A house nearby caught fire, and the fire department’s report pointed to a clogged dryer vent.
Some people call it a dryer vent, some call it a dryer duct. It’s the same pipe, and the same risk.
“Can You Come in 2 Hours?”
That’s the first question on those days. We get the worry. We also joke a little: you waited 15 years, so one more day is fine. We book within the week. If you’re worried until then, don’t run the dryer until we get there.
Nobody Thinks About It Until Something Happens
Until there’s a fire down the street, most people never think about the dryer vent. It hides behind the machine and runs through a wall, the attic or the garage. Lint builds up a little with every load. The hazard is there every day, not just the week after a neighbor’s fire.
The U.S. Fire Administration lists failure to clean (31%) as the leading factor in home clothes dryer fires from 2018 to 2020. In its 2012 report on 2008–2010 data, USFA estimated 2,900 clothes dryer fires in residential buildings each year, and dust, fiber and lint were the items most often first ignited (28%).
Why a Dryer Fire Spreads So Fast
Many people run the dryer in the evening to save on electricity. The family is watching TV or getting ready for bed, and nobody is watching the dryer.
Most Bay Area homes are wood-framed. Laundry rooms are full of clothes, towels and lint. When a fire starts there, it has plenty to burn, and it’s hard to stop.
The Free Dryer Vent Inspection on Every Visit
Whatever we come for, air duct cleaning, chimney cleaning or a bathroom fan, we check the dryer vent for free. Some people think it’s an upsell. It isn’t. Most people just don’t know the vent is a hidden fire hazard. We show you what we see, and you decide.
Signs Your Dryer Vent Needs Cleaning
- Clothes need more than one cycle to dry.
- The dryer or the laundry room gets hot.
- You smell something burning while the dryer runs.
- There’s lint around the outside vent flap.
- The outside flap doesn’t open when the dryer is on.
The USFA dryer safety flyer also says to check that the vent behind the dryer isn’t damaged, crushed or restricted, like the foil hose in the photo above.
How Often to Clean Your Dryer Vent
For most homes, every 1 to 2 years. It depends on:
- How long the vent run is
- How many elbows it has
- Where it exits: roof, wall or garage
- How much you use the dryer
After every cleaning, we tell you roughly when the next one is due. More on this in how often to clean your dryer vent.
One Cycle Instead of Three
A clean vent lets the dryer push hot, wet air outside the way it should. Clothes dry in one cycle instead of two or three. That saves you time and energy.
We test airflow before and after every dryer vent cleaning, so you can see the difference.
What Dryer Vent Cleaning Costs
Our dryer vent cleaning is $149 fixed. Same price whether your vent goes to the roof, runs through the wall or goes straight out to the garage, and whether the job takes 30 minutes or 3 hours. Stacked washer/dryer units are $299.
If the hose behind your dryer is crushed or torn, dryer vent installation is $49 fixed for a new flexible transition hose, vent included.
Dryer Vent and Dryer Duct Cleaning Across the Bay Area
We’ve cleaned dryer vents in the Bay Area since 2015, more than 10 years now. We clean dozens of dryer vents every week in San Jose, Cupertino, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, Milpitas, Campbell and across the Bay Area.
Book online or call us at (408) 655-0609. If you’re worried, don’t run the dryer until we get there.