Dryer Venting

Mar 01, 2005 7 Replies

My question is, is it a violation of any kind of code to put a dryer vent that vents to the front of my house? I have a spot I can put it inconspicuously and then a little paint would blend it right in. My house has a dryer "stack" that runs through the roof and I suspect that it is clogged and probably not the best way to vent in the first place. Any help is appreciated. Thanks. B


I suggest you ask your local building department. We certainly have no way of knowing.

As for safety, it makes no difference whether the vent is on the front, back, or side of the house. There may be some asthetic issues, however. One thing to keep in mind -- the hot exhaust may not be good for vegetation around the vent.

Shorter the run the better, whatever you do, but as the other poster said, talk to the county/city building code people.. And I should guess that horizontal runs vent better as there is less clumping, backpressure, and fall-back vs a stack arrangement. I also avoid the plastic/fabric corrugated ducts, as they catch all kinds of crap in them. On mine, since I was remodelling the utility room anyway, I punched a hole directly thru the wall that lines up with the dryer vent exit on the machine, then ran smoothe galv duct straight out. Total run is only 3 inches, plus wall thickness. Dryer runs efficiently, no backpressure, no clogging along the line.

No building codes. If you live where you have one of those busy body Home Owners Associations or other communist organization, there may be some regulation. Call the town hall or building inspector.

It all depends on your local building codes or other local restrictions.

AS long as you keep it away from windows and doors, and don't stick it somewhere where the outflow is going to be trapped under a deck, eave, or roof, you should be safe from the generic codes.

But I think you should get this guy

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build you a gargoyle with a 4" hole, and mount it someplace ostentatious, with your dryer vent feeding through it.

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