What's the difference between lint trap cleaning and vent cleaning?
The lint trap (or lint screen) is the small mesh filter inside the dryer itself — clean it every load. The vent is the four-inch duct that carries exhaust out of the house — it needs professional cleaning roughly once a year. Cleaning the trap does not clean the vent, and vice versa.
The lint trap is the user-serviceable filter that sits inside the drum door or on top of the dryer. Every manufacturer tells you to empty it after every load, and they're right — a clogged trap cuts airflow by 30%+ immediately and raises drying temperature.
The vent is the 4-inch metal duct that connects the back of the dryer to the exterior of your house. Depending on the home, it's anywhere from 4 feet to 35+ feet long, often with multiple elbows, and it's where the fine lint that escapes the trap accumulates over months and years.
Cleaning one does nothing for the other. We meet a lot of customers who say 'I clean the lint trap every load, so the dryer vent must be fine.' Then we put an endoscope in the vent and find 2 inches of compacted lint along a 15-foot run. The trap catches most lint, but not all — and 'most' adds up over hundreds of loads.
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If this is beyond DIY, here's what we'd recommend:
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