Hey Humble Readers...
When was the last time you cleaned your dryer vent? Be honest now.
I'm not talking about the lint trap, I'm talking about the actual exhaust hose and vent that goes outside your home. It's a task that's easily missed in your annual home maintenance schedule.
We are fairly sure that it had been done just before we moved, a little over four years ago. Over the past couple of years, my Beloved and I have talked about having someone come out to take care of it for us, but something more pressing always came up... like a new furnace, a new hot watertank, a baby or two needing car seats and all.
We finally bit the bullet and had a guy out to tackle this ooky job... And man oh man, it's a good thing he did.
(A bit of background... we live in an small older condo-ized apartment building in which every unit has stackable washers and dyers. We live on the second floor, and the length of the exhaust tubing from the dryer to the outside is too long and too high for us to manage this task ourselves. Hence the need to hire a professional.)
Humble Readers... there was a bird's nest in there. And I'm not talking figuratively. An actuall honest-to-goodness bird's nest. Just imagine all the lint and gunk that was trapped in there along with birdy ickies. It makes me shudder to think about it. Beyond the grossness factor, the risk of fire associated with blocked dryer vents is substantial.
So, my advice to you all... find out when you last had your dryer vent cleaned, and if it's been more than a couple of years, GET IT DONE!
We now return you to your regularly scheduled head-cold.
Ew! LOL. Glad you got that done. I actually really need to have mine done as well, it's also too long to do by ourselves... but right now we're stretching to pay hubby's tuition out of pocket. Ugh. But very soon, I need to make it a priority to get that thing cleaned out! If you lived closer I'd make you some of my roasted red bell pepper soup... it's the best thing ever for a cold. Mmmm. I haven't posted that recipe yet, perhaps I should share it with the world. :)
ReplyDeleteThis on my list of to dos....It should actually be done annually with your annual furnace/air conditioning check. The risk of gunk is bad...and making sure to have a bird reflector cover on your exhaust outlet is probably a good idea....but the risk of fire is great...Good thing you had it done...
ReplyDeleteYikes! I'm glad you got it done before it caused any major issues.
ReplyDeleteWow!! I dunno?! But we were talking about getting our vents cleaned! Prob should!!
ReplyDeleteOh. My. Goodness! A bird's nest?!?! I had no idea that one even needed to have the dryer vent cleaned. Much less actually find an actual bird's nest in one's dryer! I cannot thank you enough for this very informative PSA. I have just spoken with my hubby and we are going to attempt to clean our dryer vent tomorrow night after work.
ReplyDelete