Neglected and improperly installed dryer vents are a leading cause of house fires. In addition, they are a primary cause of dryer failure and reduced performance. More so, they can cause mold in your walls, crawl space, or attic. Our air duct cleaning technicians are knowledgeable of these rules and can identify issues when cleaning your dryer vent. The following is a basic outline of dryer vent building codes:
- Dryer exhaust systems cannot be tied into another exhaust system. This means you cannot tie your dryer vent ducting to a bathroom fan duct or gas exhaust duct.
- The duct must vent directly to the outdoors. This means it can’t blow into your crawl space and needs a dedicated exterior vent.
- Dryer vent ducting should not terminate within 3 feet in any direction from openings into buildings.
Terminations should be equipped with a backdraft damper. This is a flap/flap at your exterior vent. In addition to preventing backdrafts, these prevent rodents from entering the duct.
It is not a building code, but at One Speed, we try to install dryer vents at a continuous downward angle from the dryer to the outside termination. This is often not possible, but it is important because it prevents water from accumulating inside a dryer vent duct. When water accumulates in the duct, it rusts the metal and inhibits airflow. If the dryer vent has water in it, but cannot be installed at a downward angle, we recommend insulating it to reduce condensation inside the duct. The water may also intrude from the termination, into the duct. In that event, we install an exterior vent that prevents water from going into the duct.Â
If you have concerns about your dryer vent system and would like to schedule a cleaning and/or inspection, call (503)773-4200.
