My Dryer Outlet Is Clogged

Regular Maintenance

• Every six months to one year, you need to take the ducting off of the dryer outlet to remove the built-up lint. You also remove the back of the dryer to vacuum out the lint that builds up in the bottom of the dryer and near the igniter. The rigid metal tubing is blown to remove the lint inside. The vent housing outside must be cleaned to remove any lint that is sticking to the louvers.

Correct Venting Material

• You can use a rigid galvanized or aluminum pipe or a flexible foil hose to vent the dryer. However, the flexible foil hose has ridges inside, which is where the lint will settle and build up. The hose will sag, which can cause the lint to build up quickly and eventually clog the dryer outlet. The rigid piping doesn’t have any ridges inside for lint to settle and it doesn’t sag. Before deciding on the vent hose, you need to check your local ordinance to see if the foil hose is allowed.

Venting with Elbows

• If you use rigid metal tubing, you need to have a 90- or 45-degree elbow attached to the dryer outlet so you can connect the piping or hose to the dryer. If you don’t have the correct elbow, it will cause the lint to build up quickly in the dryer outlet. Any bends you need to make in the metal tubing must be at a 45- or 90-degree angle from the dryer to the vent housing to the outside.

Length and Diameter of the Ducting

• Whether you use a hose or rigid metal pipe to vent the dryer, you can only run the ducting so far from the dryer to the vent housing. According to the International Building Code and Underwriter’s Laboratories, the hose or pipe can only be 25 feet long from the dryer outlet to the vent housing. However, each elbow that is a 45-degree angle reduces the allowable length of the hose by 2-1/2 feet and each 95-degree elbow reduces the allowable length of the hose by five feet.