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Surprising Fire Hazard Which is Often Overlooked by the Home Owner or Apartment Complex Owners

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Fires which destroy a family's home are often an easily preventable occurrence. Should a fire blaze up in an apartment complex the results can be devastating to much more than one family. House fires, especially this time of year, are usually thought of as a fire in the fireplace that burned out of control. Surprisingly the cause is often the unsuspecting clothes dryer.

Clothes dryers are a modern convenience which most families take for granted. After each dryer load the lint screen is cleaned and the home owner is off and drying again. Even though the clothes dryer is a plug it in and leave it type appliance, regular maintenance needs to be performed in order to prevent a fire. The culprit is most likely the exhaust vent, not the dryer itself.

Despite every dryer having a lint screen, lint does pass through and around to be channeled into the exhaust vent. Over time this extra lint will build up first on the exterior vent cap where the heat is released to the outside and then throughout the exhaust vent itself. With these restrictions diminishing or even downright blocking the hot air flow from escape, the internal temperature will begin to increase.

The other problem is condensation in the exhaust duct. As the temperature cools in the duct the humidity will cause the lint to collect at the lowest points in the ductwork. From there lint attracts more lint providing prime material for igniting. Left unchecked and restricted the lint fibers will begin to become dangerously hot. If the dryer is hooked up to a flexible vinyl exhaust hose the service company should always direct the home owner to replace the vinyl hose with either flexible aluminum hose or rigid ducting for safety.

The wisest action the home owner should take is to clean out the dryer vent ducts periodically. For many owners this may require strong arming the dryer away from the wall and dealing with the frustration of trying to reconnect the duct to the dryer exhaust once the ducting has been cleaned. Should the dryer vent ductwork not be a straight pass through to the exterior of the building, it can be a laborious project to clean the entire ductwork. The most convenient method is to call a dryer vent cleaning specialist like Dryer Vent Wizard. In addition to cleaning the dryer vents, these service professionals may also be able to improve the safety of the exhaust vent by altering the ductwork in order to reduce the amount of bends and turns in the ductwork.

For more information or to request dryer services, visit Dryer Vent Wizard.

Article independently authored by Dan Elliott. The content herein may or may not reflect the views and opinions of Dryer Vent Wizard. Click for search engine optimization and search engine marketing or visit WebDrafter.com's Blog.
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