At American Chimney & Masonry, we often hear from our customers that they had no idea that they should get their dryer vents professionally cleaned once a year. Unfortunately, many homeowners neglect this maintenance task. Not having your dryer vents cleaned can lead to a devastating house fire. In 2012, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported that 5,100 residential fires were caused by dirty clothes dryer vents. Lint is extremely flammable, and when your dryer vents are clogged with lint, your dryer overheats, which can easily lead to an accidental fire. We are proud to provide professional dryer vent cleaning services to the residents of the Portland area. Not only does this service reduce your risk of a clothes dryer fire, but it also prolongs the life of your dryer and reduces your utility bills. We would like to share with you some tips from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) that can help your clothes dryer venting properly to keep you and your family safe from a house fire.
NFPA Dryer Fire Prevention Tips
- Always have your clothes dryer installed and serviced by a trained professional.
- Never try to set up your dryer and its vent by yourself. At American Chimney & Masonry, we have experienced dryer vent technicians that can safely install and service this appliance for you.
- Never use your dryer without a lint filter.
- Your lint filter helps to trap this flammable residue to keep it from clogging the vent. You should always clean off the lint filter before or after drying each load of clothes.
- To ensure proper air flow, your dryer vent should be made of rigid or flexible venting material.
- Our dryer vent technicians always use the proper vents, and we make sure that the air exhaust vent pipe is not restricted and that the vent flap on the outside of your house opens when the dryer is in use.
- If you notice your dryer is taking longer than normal to completely dry a load of clothes, you most likely have a clogged vent.
- To keep your dryer working efficiently, contact us at American Chimney & Masonry to schedule a dryer vent cleaning. We will have your clothes dryer working even better than it did before!
- Have your gas clothes dryer serviced regularly.
- To reduce your risk of a carbon monoxide leak from your gas dryer, we will check the gas line and connection to ensure there are no leaks present.
- Follow the instructions in the owner’s manual of your dryer.
- You never want to overload your clothes dryer, and you also never want to leave your dryer running when you leave your home or go to bed.
If you cannot remember the last time you had your dryer vents professionally cleaned, contact us at American Chimney & Masonry to make an appointment for our service. We want to reduce your risks of an accidental fire or carbon monoxide leak.
