The short answer: at least once a year for most households. The right schedule for your home depends on how much laundry you do and how your vent is built.
Clean more often if
- You run the dryer every day or have a large family
- You have pets that shed
- Your vent run is long, with several turns, or goes through the attic
- The vent exits through the roof (lint has to travel upward and settles faster)
- You live in a condo or villa with a shared or hard-to-reach vent
Warning signs your vent is clogged
- Clothes need two or more cycles to dry
- The dryer, or the laundry room, gets very hot
- You smell something burning when the dryer runs
- The outside flap barely moves when the dryer is on
- Lint collects around the outside vent or behind the dryer
Why it matters
Lint is very flammable, and a clogged vent traps heat. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, failure to clean is the leading cause of home clothes dryer fires. A clogged vent also makes the dryer run longer, raising your electric bill and wearing out parts.
What about the lint trap?
Clean it every load, but it doesn't catch everything. Fine lint still gets past it and builds up in the vent line, which is why the line itself needs professional cleaning.
Florida-specific problems
Humidity makes lint clump and stick inside the line. Birds also like to nest in warm dryer vents, and salt air near the coast corrodes exterior caps so the flap sticks. We check all of this during a dryer vent cleaning, and can install a bird guard or new vent cover if needed.