Clothes dryer: Where do you prefer the lint filter?

[me]

Had a friend tell me that clothes dryer's with the lint filter built into the top pf the unit rather than down by the door are much more problematic.

Any truth to that?

[Mark]

I've had both. Keep them clean and I think they are equally good or bad. The ones on the door might be easier to remember to clean if you see them each time you open the door, where as the ones on the top might get covered with junk and more easily forgotten.

[DerbyDad03]

I've always had dryers with the lint trap on top. The only problem that I know of is that when the clothes get piled up on the top, the kids (and sometimes the wife) don't bother moving them to clean the trap.

If it was in the door, I'm sure it would be cleaned every time.

[Jeff]

Our Whirlpool gas dryer has a top lint filter. We bought the dryer in 1974, raised three kids, and it is still working fine. Replaced the belt twice and the igniter once. Nice when stuff lasts longer than expected.

[Phisherman]

I've been using the top-access kind for 20 years--no problem at all. Quick and easy to clean.

[Mark Lloyd]

My grandmother replaced a dryer in 1995. It was one (Maytag) my mother bought in 1960 because of my diapers. It could have been fixed in 1995 if parts were still available. It has a lint filter in the door.

[me]

OK..maybe this is what my friend was referring to

[RickH]

The door filters are better IMHO. They get cleaned each load and they are farther away from the gas flame.

[Andy Asberry]

Probably more important than top or door is whether the air is drawn through the filter or blown through it. The latter "leak" lint all under the dryer. Sorry, I don't recall which brands are which.

--Andy Asberry--

------Texas-----

[Manster]

I have a top filter and a few years ago I decided it would be smart (safety-wise) for me to pull out my dryer, pull the back off and clean out the lint I thought would be all over the place. To my surprise there was very little. A few cobwebs but nil on the lint.

[hallerb]

I have one dryer of each design, the front door type is easier to keep clean.

[Jeremi102]

i have 2 dryers one at my office and one at home. both are over 10 years old and work perfectly and have had little issues. this years both units had a the belts replaced due to age both dryers are whirlpool. one is a cabrio steam dryer bought 10 years ago it has the lint screen in the door. the other whirlpool dyer is actually a Maytag centennial dryer which we all know is actually a whirlpool with the lint screen on top. onl issue it ever had is the thermostat went bad last year and dryer would cut the heat off early and never heat up this is after the dryer is 10 years old. both dryers are electric. only thing i have noticed is the dryer with the lint screen on top cost me slightly less to run and dryes the clothes much faster then the one with the lint screen in door the dryer with lint screen on top also you can hear the diffences in the vent noise the one with lint screen in door sounds like a hair dryer that whine kind of noise and airflow is slightly less yes dryer vent is clean. the dryer with lint screen on top has so much more airflow come out the back of dryer and sounds more like a jet engine it also heats up so much faster. within a minutes the exhaust is so hot you can put your hand over the vent. the one with lint screen takes a good 5 - 10 minutes to get hot. its always been like this even when new. the dryer with lent screen in door when set to less dry cloths are still damp when set to normal dry they come out dry but take longer. with the dryer with lint screen on top if i set the timer to normal dry it actually will over dry clothes if i set it to less dry everything comes out perfectly dry even towels ive actually had that dryer beat the washer which cycles are bout 35 minutes. so to conclusion both dryers are pretty reliable in my eyes but the dryer with the line trop on top seems to be slightly more efficient then the one in the door. i would have to say the dryer with lint trap in door is less of a pain because its cleaner and it is in the door if your like me and most people you pile things on the dryer then you cant get to the lint screen if its on top you would have to move everything or risk dropping things down the lint shoot. dryers with lint screen on top are messy every time i pull the screen out a bunch of lint particles build up on top of the dryer around the lint shoot. so at this point its about performance where do you want the lint screen. i like the fact that the dryer with the lint screen on top drys fast and doesn't cost me a lot to run had i know this when i bought it i would have bought one like it for home but i wanted a steam dryer back then steam dryers where not as plenty as they are now.