mr clean Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I know there are some guys on here that are how do you say it kindly, un OLD! 🤡 Im starting to get there also, and was not happy when the low flow alarm on my dryer went off. I have about a 15 ft run all but what comes thru the floor hard piped. I thought how am I going to keep my crusty old a$$ out from under the house. Well I went to Lowes and bought a cheap black and decker electric leaf blower and you know the rest of the story. Stuck it in the flex hose, stuffed a rag around it, and turned it on. Blew that sucker out with 160 mph of wind, and problem solved. I think it was mainly just plugged where it came thru the floor. Im sure some of you may know this but for those who don't its very handy. I needed the blower for blowing the slides off on the RV anyway. Cheaper than hiring someone , and easier than getting under the house! Best 40 bucks ive spent in a long time. Peace. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I manage a few properties and these work great. https://www.northlineexpress.com/linteater-rotary-dryer-vent-cleaning-system.html?utm_source=googlepepla&utm_medium=adwords&id=&gclid=CjwKCAiAob3vBRAUEiwAIbs5TrWeh4T7v2mZ93-MwiXAij61j2xKBcwsqD-b51H2xsHpqFP5aAAfVxoCWQUQAvD_BwE 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I have a very long dryer vent run and have used the blower method and the cleaning system - using something very similar to what is in the link above. From my experience the cleaning system works great for routine cleaning. This reminds me, I should probably do a routine cleaning! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babadono Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 Hey thanks Mr. (dryer vent) Clean 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 7 hours ago, mr clean said: Well I went to Lowes and bought a cheap black and decker electric leaf blower I think I am the last one to know the joys of a leaf blower. I know you're not supposed to fall in love with your stuff but I love my Dewalt cordless leaf blower! 😍 I am a fan of a push broom and rake but I picked up a blower a few weeks ago. It's only easier by a factor of ten to keep the driveway and sidewalk cleaned of dirt and leaves! Who knew? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I use one to blow the dust out of computer chassis. I never would have thought of it but a friend of mine uses one to blow all the loose hair of his kids after giving them haircuts (he was very careful with it, made sure they covered their faces, blah blah). Bruce 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Matthews Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 I need to clean the dryer vent, too. There's this cheap leaf blower, and then, there's this cheap manual rod and brush. Which to choose? If the leaf blower will really work well, I'm leaning toward it. The vent pipe is just under 20 feet long. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtmudd Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 8 hours ago, mr clean said: I needed the blower 8 hours ago, mr clean said: Best 40 bucks ive spent in a long time Just like downtown 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 41 minutes ago, Jeff Matthews said: I need to clean the dryer vent, too. There's this cheap leaf blower, and then, there's this cheap manual rod and brush. Which to choose? If the leaf blower will really work well, I'm leaning toward it. The vent pipe is just under 20 feet long. i have about 15 rods and deal with vents that run over 30 feet. Just chuck it in your portable drill, high speed and it will chew all the lint off that the humid, warm air basically glues to the inside of the tube. The leaf blower will only get rid of the dry clumped matter. The kit also comes with a rough bit to chew through what ever Rats have packed in the there. I had one where they chewed through the louvered cover and packed roofing paper and tons of garb in there and it was a tough one for sure. They carried it all the way to the beginning of the tube with involved a sharp 90 degree turn through the slab. That was a warm spot for them that winter. And of course the laundry area was in the center of the house which didnt make things easier. Sometimes I have to start from outside and push it all towards the the vent inlet indoors and use a shop vac to pull out the funk. Those rods are very flexible and durable. That kit has never failed getting the job done. Just dont reverse your drill as each rod section is threaded ! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr clean Posted December 11, 2019 Author Share Posted December 11, 2019 My dryer has a alarm so I will most likely just use the blower until this doesn't clear the alarm and then replace the whole run. As long as the dryer is getting good and hot your probably ok. Its when the dryer runs cool you have too much blockage. If you listen to this and your house burns down don't sue me though! This method will either get me to the grave or put me in a early one. Max 2 how often do you do the cleaning method you said you use? I hate getting in the crawlspace anymore but I would have to get under the house to use the tool Max2 uses. My pipe is like 5 years old. I will most likely just let the hv/ac guy replace it in a few years and charge me way to much. Its still cheaper than going to the laundry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 3 hours ago, mr clean said: My dryer has a alarm so I will most likely just use the blower until this doesn't clear the alarm and then replace the whole run. As long as the dryer is getting good and hot your probably ok. Its when the dryer runs cool you have too much blockage. If you listen to this and your house burns down don't sue me though! This method will either get me to the grave or put me in a early one. Max 2 how often do you do the cleaning method you said you use? I hate getting in the crawlspace anymore but I would have to get under the house to use the tool Max2 uses. My pipe is like 5 years old. I will most likely just let the hv/ac guy replace it in a few years and charge me way to much. Its still cheaper than going to the laundry. What I have seen is the back and the tops of the dryers will get extremely hot, but wont dry. These are mostly old and basic budget units. I just show up when they say the dryers arent working. Luckily, only about half of the homes come furnished with a Washer and Dryer. Also, washing the lint screen with soap and a scrub brush sometimes helps the air flow. Dryer sheets and left over softening additives to the clothes while being washed can act like wax on the screen and literally hold water on them building up and just cutting the air passing through them even more. A new hose is always best, but Im always dealing with a long run of PVC through a slab. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 3 hours ago, mr clean said: My dryer has a alarm so I will most likely just use the blower until this doesn't clear the alarm and then replace the whole run. As long as the dryer is getting good and hot your probably ok. Its when the dryer runs cool you have too much blockage. If you listen to this and your house burns down don't sue me though! This method will either get me to the grave or put me in a early one. Max 2 how often do you do the cleaning method you said you use? I hate getting in the crawlspace anymore but I would have to get under the house to use the tool Max2 uses. My pipe is like 5 years old. I will most likely just let the hv/ac guy replace it in a few years and charge me way to much. Its still cheaper than going to the laundry. 21 hours ago, Max2 said: i have about 15 rods and deal with vents that run over 30 feet. Just chuck it in your portable drill, high speed and it will chew all the lint off that the humid, warm air basically glues to the inside of the tube. The leaf blower will only get rid of the dry clumped matter. The kit also comes with a rough bit to chew through what ever Rats have packed in the there. I had one where they chewed through the louvered cover and packed roofing paper and tons of garb in there and it was a tough one for sure. They carried it all the way to the beginning of the tube with involved a sharp 90 degree turn through the slab. That was a warm spot for them that winter. And of course the laundry area was in the center of the house which didnt make things easier. Sometimes I have to start from outside and push it all towards the the vent inlet indoors and use a shop vac to pull out the funk. Those rods are very flexible and durable. That kit has never failed getting the job done. Just dont reverse your drill as each rod section is threaded ! I have had similar a similar experience. I used the blower before I had the rods that fit on the drill. I used the rods after the blower and was amazed at the amount of lint that remained after the blower approach. I clean with the rod and drill system approximately once a year. And have not had a major blockage since doing so. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStewMan Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 Where I lived, there were no trees, thus no leaves. Ah, the benefits of living in a concrete jungle. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr clean Posted December 12, 2019 Author Share Posted December 12, 2019 18 hours ago, Max2 said: What I have seen is the back and the tops of the dryers will get extremely hot, but wont dry. These are mostly old and basic budget units. I just show up when they say the dryers arent working. Luckily, only about half of the homes come furnished with a Washer and Dryer. Also, washing the lint screen with soap and a scrub brush sometimes helps the air flow. Dryer sheets and left over softening additives to the clothes while being washed can act like wax on the screen and literally hold water on them building up and just cutting the air passing through them even more. A new hose is always best, but Im always dealing with a long run of PVC through a slab. Thats what I meant as fair as the dryer not getting hot. I didn't explain it very well but, I meant not getting hot inside the dryer, to dry the laundry. Never noticed the outside getting hot but you said it was mainly old cheap ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 Dryer sheets and softeners are evil and the opposite of clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gilbert Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 On 12/10/2019 at 3:13 PM, Jeff Matthews said: I need to clean the dryer vent, too. There's this cheap leaf blower, and then, there's this cheap manual rod and brush. Which to choose? If the leaf blower will really work well, I'm leaning toward it. The vent pipe is just under 20 feet long. The leaf blower won't scrub the inner wall surfaces like the brush. And the residuals left behind will help future lint and debris to cling and facilitate re-clogging, but it's damn sure better than crawling beneath the home on your back and belly. Alternatively you might consider filling duct cavity with gasoline vapors and igniting them with a very long match.... a very long lighter will work equally as well. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polizzio Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 18 minutes ago, Gilbert said: Alternatively you might consider filling duct cavity with gasoline vapors and igniting them with a very long match.... a very long lighter will work equally as well. You need to make a youtube video to demonstrate for us......step by step. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polizzio Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 1 hour ago, oldtimer said: Dryer sheets and softeners are evil and the opposite of clean. I'm with you. My neighbor next door wanted to borrow my 16' extension ladder approx 3 months ago. No problem, he needed to get on the roof and reattach the drier vent cover and flapper. Most all of our houses (small subdivision) were built by a common developer and the dryer vents thru the shingle roof. Anyways after < 5 years (new house) he and his wife managed to blow off the cover and flapper valve, and a large ball of lint. All ended up in the yard below. He got the flapper back in and epoxied the cover back on. I observed the op from below. The previously mentioned "low exhaust flow alarm" on a clothes dryer sounds like a wonderful idea. I'm guessing most modern machines would shutdown on a high internal temp before a serious risk of fire occurred. Least I hope so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 If you can get by with the ugly and dated looks and don't have a large family, the sub $400 Roper, Amana, Whirlpool, Kenmoore (all built by Whirlpool) dryers work like a champ. Parts are cheap, cheap and anyone can diagnose any issues with a $20 meter. I have some that are over 10 years old and never been opened up. Cant say that about my fancy Samsung, but I have only swapped the tension pulley last year on it and its about 10 years old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted December 12, 2019 Share Posted December 12, 2019 45 minutes ago, Max2 said: If you can get by with the ugly and dated looks and don't have a large family, the sub $400 Roper, Amana, Whirlpool, Kenmoore (all built by Whirlpool) dryers work like a champ. I agree 100%. I'll only do top load conventional washers also for the same reasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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