Dryer Vent Services FAQ

Why should I have my dryer vents cleaned?
Lint is highly flammable and, according to the Consumer Products Safety Commission, accounts for over 15,000 dryer vent fires a year!

How will I know if my dryer vent needs cleaning?
Is it taking you 2-3 cycles to dry your clothes? Is your dryer overheating and shutting off? (some newer dryers have a safety switch that activates when the dryer overheats.) Are your towels still wet after one drying cycle? Do you notice a lot of lint at or near the other end of the vent from the dryer? If you answered yes to any of these, you need your dryer vent cleaned.

How important is it to clean my lint trap?
The lint trap is a filter that helps prevent lint from getting down inside your dryer. Clean the lint out after every load of laundry is dried. Lint inside of a dryer is the main cause of a dryer overheating and starting a fire. This can quickly spread up the vent because lint is extremely flammable.

Can I let my dryer vent into my basement?
No. This is not recommended. Lint can be pulled into your furnace or water heater. A lot of moisture is vented out of a clothes dryer and can cause mold and mildew problems for you.

Can I use the flexible plastic vent connector to vent my dryer?
Plastic vent is a potential fire hazard. It collects lint easily and crushes readily. Rigid or flexible metal pipe is much better and safer.

I have a new home. My contractor built in the dryer vent and covered it in the wall and ceiling. How will you clean that?
We have special air cleaning tools, brushes, and rotary cleaning equipment to clean most dryer vent systems. We have testing equipment to make sure there are no separations in the vent inside a concealed area.er.

Should I turn my clothes dryer off when I leave the house?
Yes! You would never leave your iron plugged in because it’s a potential fire hazard. It’s the same with your dryer.

What type of dryer vent cleaning training do Black Goose technicians have?
Black Goose technicians carry the Certified Dryer Exhaust Technician (CDET) certification offered by The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA)

Is dryer lint flammable?
Dryer lint is extremely flammable. When it’s coating the interior of your dryer or your dryer vent, it can cause your dryer to overheat and catch fire.

What are my benefits from having my dryer vent cleaned?

• Help reduce the time and number of cycles needed to dry your laundry saving you time and money.
• Increased safety for you and your family. Dryer lint is extremely flammable.
• Increase your peace of mind.

How often do I need to get my dryer vent cleaned?

• If you have a furry pet, if you wash and dry lots of towels and bedding, or if you dry laundry every day because you have a large family, you may need to have the dryer vent cleaned more than once a year.
• If you live alone or are away seven months out of the year, you may not need to have your dryer vent cleaned as frequently.

What happens when I get my dryer vent cleaned?

• Our technician will try to take a before and after air flow reading with a tool that gauges air flow, called an anemometer.
• He will try to view the interior of your dryer with a borescope camera probe to see how much lint has accumulated beneath the lint filter.
• He will clean the dryer vent with a combination of our vacuum truck or portable vacuum, rotary tools or air whip, depending on the size, location and length of your dryer vent.

Can you still clean my dryer vent? It’s very long and it’s concealed in my basement walls and ceiling.
We can clean over 98% of the dryer vents our clients have with the specialized equipment and training we have.

Why should I clean my lint screen after I dry every load of laundry?
Lint collects on and around your lint screen and some of it may even make its way past your lint screen into your dryer interior where it can pose a potential fire hazard.

Should I let my dryer vent into my basement to get more heat?

• No. A dryer venting into a basement produces a lot of moisture that may lead to mold formation.
• Also, if a gas dryer is vented that way, it may produce carbon monoxide that would pose a health concern and may even be deadly.

Can I use a flexible plastic vent to connect to the dryer vent?

• Lint collects readily in the ribs of a flexible plastic vent, especially if any excess vent connector is left coiled up behind the dryer, as we often find.
• Also, plastic venting can melt if over-heated in a fire.

Should I turn off my dryer when I leave my home?
It’s a good idea to turn your dryer off when you are out of your home.

How much time does a dryer vent cleaning require?
We can complete most of our dryer vent cleanings within 1 to 1 1/2hours.