Fire Starter
Since I was a young boy, I’ve always loved nature - still do! I remember running home from school, hoping the mailman brought the latest issue of Field and Stream to our mailbox. Its glossy pages were filled with beautiful pictures and stories of wilderness and adventure. Soon it would become dog-eared, as I read it over and over again, searching for treasures of information. One such treasure comes to mind - How to Start a Fire in The Rain. The secret it seems was to gather lint from the dryer, to be rationed away for future use. Dryer lint, was the perfect fire starter - who knew! And with that, the article ended by guaranteeing that no-matter what Mother Nature threw your way, "dryer lint, nothing burns better!"
Fast forward to today. We’re in the business of insurance restoration. If you have a fire, we’re the guys you call to help. Fixing the home and property is only a small part of what we do. We love our work, but more importantly we love the people we help even more. And it's because we love the people, when we come across a fire that could have been prevented - it truly breaks our heart. The good news is that dryer vent fires are preventable. The bad news is that dryer vents are ticking fire starters and you guessed it - dryer lint is the villain in the story. Think about it, when’s the last time you cleaned your dryer vent? After all, it continues to chug along load after load - out of sight, out of mind.
First let's start with a basic understanding. Drying clothes produces lint. The lint is exhausted from the home via a dryer vent - which consists of a vent pipe and an exhaust hood. But it's what is happening inside the vent that matters. Irrespective of whether the vent pipe is smooth or flexible, over time lint will collect and needs to be removed - period. To make matters worse, flexible vent pipes which are prevalent in the construction industry and a favourite of the home handyman/woman are even worse. Your local building store is full of flexible vents - truth is they’re easy to install. However, what makes them easy to install - they’re flexible - makes them extremely dangerous. Flexibility results in friction, and friction is what allows lint to build up on the inside of the vent pipe - rapidly. The picture below is a “typical” dryer vent that we cleaned/replaced. Better than most, it consisted of a short section of flexible vent pipe attached to a longer section of smooth vent pipe. At this point, I’m hoping you remember the Field and Stream article referenced above “dryer lint, nothing burns better!"
While both vent pipes need to be cleaned regularly, in our opinion flexible vent pipes should be banned from use. Whenever we come across one as part of our hassle free home risk analysis - we strongly recommend replacing it. It's a cheap and easy fix that will bring peace of mind to you and your family. No Fire Starter = no fire.
The Restorer
Need help with a dryer vent or just have a question. Call emergency1 Property Rescue 204-727- help (4357)