Dryer vent cleaning in Maplewood, MN

Yes if the bushes touch the cap. Shrubs trap lint, block the flapper, and in winter hold snow against the opening. Keep 12 inches of clearance so the flap swings freely.

The flapper is the hinged door on the exterior cap. It opens from airflow when the dryer runs and closes to keep cold air and pests out. A stuck or broken flapper either leaks cold air into your house or blocks exhaust.

The exterior flapper is stuck open or missing, letting outside air flow backward down the duct. We replace damaged caps so the flap seals when the dryer is off.

No. Dryer exhaust must terminate outdoors. Venting into a garage, attic, or crawl space creates moisture, mold, and a lint fire hazard, and for gas dryers it dumps combustion gases indoors. We can advise on correct termination.

Dryer vent cleaning is the removal of lint and debris from the entire duct that runs from the back of your dryer to the vent cap outside your home. We use a rotating brush system and a high-powered vacuum to scrub the full length of the duct, clear the exterior cap, and verify airflow afterward. It is different from cleaning the lint screen, which only catches a portion of the lint your dryer produces.

The lint screen only catches about 75% of lint. The rest travels down the duct with the hot, moist exhaust air, sticks to the duct walls, and packs tightest at elbows, screens, and the exterior cap. Over a year a typical family's duct collects a few cups to several gallons of lint.

Yes. The most common result customers notice is that dry times drop from two cycles back to one. A clean vent restores airflow, lowers the dryer's operating temperature, cuts energy use by up to 30%, extends the life of the heating element and motor, and removes the number one cause of dryer fires.

Someone 18 or older needs to let us in and move anything blocking the laundry area. After that you don't need to stay in the room. For roof vents we also need access to the yard side where we set up the ladder.