DryerRepair.center (844) 314-5837Mon–Sat, 8am–8pm Book a visit
An exterior dryer vent hood on the painted siding of a US single-family house, its flap half open and a mat of gray lint caught around the edge.

Dryer
Vent Clogged

Weak airflow outside, long drying times and a hot laundry room: the vent is not carrying the air away.

(844) 314-5837

Mon–Sat, 8am–8pm

  • 5 checks before you book
  • 5 questions that narrow it
  • 5 causes, cheapest first

Book a visit

Three short steps, about a minute.

or call (844) 314-5837

What it
usually means.

Everything a vented dryer does depends on moving a large volume of hot, damp air out of the house. Lint that gets past the screen collects along the duct, especially at elbows, low spots and the hood outside, and each layer narrows the path. As the flow drops, drying slows, the cabinet runs hotter, the thermostats and thermal fuse work harder, and lint in the warmest spots moves closer to igniting. A clogged vent is not an appliance failure, but it causes more dryer repairs and more dryer fires than any part inside the machine.

A technician's hands test a small thermal fuse on the blower housing at the back of a dryer pulled out from the wall in a US home laundry room. The 5 causes, cheapest first

Answer these first

01

With the dryer running, can you feel strong airflow at the outside hood from a short distance?
02

Does the hood flap open fully, or is it stuck, painted over or blocked by a nest?
03

Is the duct behind the dryer foil or vinyl, crushed or kinked?
04

How long is the run, and how many turns does it make before it leaves the house?
05

Is there lint on the ground or on the siding around the vent outside?

Check these
before you book.

Dryer vent clogged: 5 checks, and none of them costs anything.

01

Go outside with the dryer running and feel the airflow at the hood; it should be strong and warm.

02

Make sure the hood flap moves freely and there is no screen, nest or lint mat over it.

03

Pull the dryer out and replace a foil or vinyl transition duct with a semi-rigid or rigid metal one.

Also worth checking

  • Clean the lint screen after every load, and wash it with soap when dryer-sheet film builds up.
  • Note the length and number of turns in the run; it tells us whether cleaning or rerouting is needed.

How soon does it need a visit?

Not an emergency until it causes heat, but it is the leading cause of dryer fires. If the dryer or the laundry room smells hot, stop the dryer, unplug it and have the vent cleaned before running another load.

The causes,
cheapest first.

5 things dryer vent clogged turns out to be, from blocked hood or screen outside to disconnected duct inside the wall.

The cost guide
  1. 01 lowest

    Blocked hood or screen outside

    A hood with a screen catches lint on the outside of the house, and nests and stuck flaps block it completely. Dryer hoods should not have screens.

    Fixed by vent cleaning and inspection
  2. 02 low

    Lint along the duct run

    Years of lint coat the inside of the duct and collect at elbows. Cleaning the full run from the dryer to the hood restores the flow.

    Fixed by vent cleaning and inspection
  3. 03 low

    Crushed transition duct

    The short flexible piece between the dryer and the wall is flattened when the dryer is pushed back. A semi-rigid or rigid metal piece holds its shape.

    Fixed by vent cleaning and inspection
  4. 04 moderate

    Run too long or too many turns

    A duct that runs through a basement, up a wall or into an attic may exceed what the dryer's blower can push. Rerouting it is the lasting fix.

    Fixed by vent cleaning and inspection
  5. 05 varies

    Disconnected duct inside the wall

    A joint that has come apart in a wall or ceiling fills that cavity with lint and moist air. It needs locating before cleaning is enough.

    Book a diagnostic visit
  6. What it costs

    Every repair on the site's cost scale, side by side

    Open the cost guide

The makes
it happens on.

14 makes on this site; dryer vent clogged can show up on any of them. Each mark opens that make's own page.

All 14 brands

Dryer Vent Clogged,
where we come out.

9 metros, each with its own page.

All service areas

Tampa BayFL · 31 areas

OrlandoFL · 30 areas

Miami / South FloridaFL · 47 areas

New York MetroNY · 75 areas

HoustonTX · 36 areas

ChicagoIL · 50 areas

Los AngelesCA · 95 areas

San DiegoCA · 31 areas

San Francisco Bay AreaCA · 74 areas

A parent and a child folding warm towels together on top of a front-load dryer in a bright laundry room
For the heart of your home.

Questions about
dryer vent clogged.

Can I clean the vent myself?
The transition duct and the hood are reachable owner jobs. Long runs through walls, roof exits and runs with several turns are harder to clean fully, and a brush pushed too far can separate a joint inside the wall.
Why is a roof vent harder to keep clear?
Air has to push lint upward the whole way, and roof caps often have screens or flaps that catch lint and bird nests. Roof-vented dryers tend to need cleaning more often.
Will a vent booster fan help?
On very long runs a booster fan designed for dryer exhaust can help, but it does not replace cleaning, and it has to be installed and wired to the manufacturer's instructions.
My dryer vents into the garage or the attic. Is that a problem?
Yes. A vented dryer should exhaust outside the house. Venting into a garage, attic or crawl space fills it with lint and moisture, and on a gas dryer with combustion gases.

Back to your everyday

Still seeing dryer vent clogged?

Book with what you checked above — 5 answers save the technician the first part of the visit.

Schedule a repair Call (844) 314-5837
(844) 314-5837 Schedule a repair