We recently installed a new exhaust duct from our drier to the outside outlet. Because we decided to cover the outlet with a grate at the end of the duct before to plastic outdoor cover it is capturing lint the drier doesn't catch. Not thins grate is getting clogged causing air not to flow. Should it be removed? If our drier is not catching the lint is something wrong. Or is it normal for lint to still escape?
replying to Renee, Grampy wrote: Remove the grate. Some lint being blown out is normal. Just clean up around the outlet 1 or 2 times a year. If grate was needed, the mfr. would have provided one.
Does your dryer have a removable lent catcher?
Why did you add the grate? Critters? The outdoor cover should close when not in use, so a grate shouldn't be needed.
Yes, lint will be blown out of the exhaust vent. Not only can it clog the outlet, it can build up on the internal ductwork of the drier, especially if there is reduced airflow at the outlet.
Remove the grate and check the exterior vent a couple of times a year.
If you are worried about critters getting into the dryer, remove the grate and use 1/2 inch or 1/4 inch hardware cloth over the opening.
Clean the grate monthly. Removing the grate lets critters in (starling and chipmunk so far) - Now I just clean the grid/grate
The manufacturer of my vent DID supply the grate. We bought it after a starling and a chipmunk got caught in the duct.
The "grate" on ours is plastic but very similar to 1/2 inch hardware cloth.
My dryer vent exhausts to the outside on a north-facing wall of the house about 18" above the ground. There's a light weight metal flap, hinged at the top recessed about 1" from the exterior edge of the brick facade of the wall. When the dryer is on, the exhaust blows the flap open. When the dryer is not on, gravity causes the flap to drop, obstructing the opening. The only barrier between the flap and the interior of the dryer is a removable lint screen inside the dryer which I clean after each load. Maybe an ant can crawl through a crack where the flap closes the vent pipe, but I've never had a problem with invaders although we've got loads of chipmunks, squirrels, and field mice in our area. Every few months, when I inspect the exterior foundation for evidence of termite mud tubes I manually open the hinged flap and run my hand around the edge to remove whatever small amount of lint has accumulated to ensure free motion and total closure of the flap. Easy.
+1
I've got 2 almost-ground-level vents - dryer and basement bathroom. Ask my cat how many critters we have. They keep her busy day and night. Maybe she's what keeps them out of the vents, but I've never had a need for a grate.
YCMV
Remove the screen. Stuff is going to get through the lint filter and just as well blow it outside. Mine goes to a flapper outside but even so birds have managed to get nesting material around it and I bought a cage type barrier at Lowes that fits over it.
Mentioned here that I just put on new metalized flexible piping because plastic coated one was not code and found the old one full of lint. These things need to be checked periodically.
Many years ago we rented a house with a basement drier vented at ground level and a rabbit got in and got dried to death. We did not know what the problem was and owner called repairman but in the few days it took to get him the blow flies got to him and it was a real mess. Ruined the drier.
I have the same set up you have and I let a neighbor use my dryer and after she cleaned the lint screen she forced it back in and caused it to be bent and that some lent by pass it.
The drier vent on mine is the same except it is all plastic and has the grid on the exit. The previous one was all aluminum and the flapper would open up just a bit depending which way the wind was blowing. It is south facing and almost a foot from the ground..
Solid aluminum ductwork, connected with aluminum tape instead of screws, and installed with the joints with the pipe from the drier fitting inside the next piece, and so on all the way to the vent preventing the lint from catching and building up.
No matter what you do, there will always be some build-up of lint, so just get used to the fact you should clean it no less than when you change to/fr om daylight savings time. If you don't observe daylight savings, think of something else that happens twice a year as a reminder to clean things out.
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