Every time I use my dryer, I clean out the lint screen. Unfortunately, not all the lint is captured there. According to Doug Francone, owner and President of Ductz of Walnut Creek and The Tri-Valley, some lint slips into the duct that’s used to move the hot, moist air from the dryer to the outside. Over time, that lint can build up and cause problems.
Your dryer has to work a little harder when its venting line gets clogged—it might take two hours to dry a load that used to take 45 minutes. Besides wasting energy, clogged venting lines wear out dryers sooner. On a more serious note, they’re also a leading cause of home fires. If you aren’t sure how to clean the vent, get a professional to do it—they’ll use special brushes and high-pressure air lines to push or pull all the lint out.