The Dryer Guys
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What are the signs my dryer vent is clogged?

The top warning signs are: drying cycles longer than 45 minutes, clothes that come out hot but still damp, a hot laundry room or dryer exterior, a burning smell, visible lint around the outdoor vent hood, or the dryer shutting off mid-cycle. Any one of these warrants a professional inspection.

The earliest sign is usually drying time. A modern dryer should dry a normal load in 30–45 minutes. When it starts taking 60+ minutes or requires a second cycle, airflow is restricted — and the restriction is almost always in the vent, not the machine itself.

Other symptoms in rough order of severity: hot clothes that are still damp, a hot dryer exterior or warm laundry room, a persistent burning smell, lint accumulating around the outdoor vent hood, the dryer's built-in thermal sensor tripping and shutting the cycle off early, and visible lint backdrafting into the laundry room.

Any single symptom warrants a professional inspection. All of them together mean stop using the dryer until it's cleared — the fire risk at that point is significant. That's exactly the scenario our $49.99 inspection is built for: a 20-minute endoscopy of the full vent run that tells you whether you need a cleaning or a repair.

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Related questions

How often should I clean my dryer vent?

Most homes should have their dryer vent professionally cleaned once a year. Households with long vent runs (over 25 feet), pets, or more than four loads of laundry per week should plan for every six months. The NFPA cites 'failure to clean' as the leading factor in U.S. dryer fires.

When is a dryer vent issue actually an emergency?

Stop using your dryer and call a professional immediately if you smell burning, see smoke or scorch marks, find the dryer exterior hot to the touch, or have a gas dryer taking multiple cycles to dry. These are pre-fire conditions and running another load meaningfully increases the risk.

My clothes take two cycles to dry — what's wrong?

Ninety percent of the time, clothes taking two cycles to dry means the vent is restricted. The dryer's heat output is fine; the moist exhaust air just can't escape fast enough. A professional vent cleaning typically restores normal drying time immediately. If cleaning doesn't fix it, the next suspects are the heating element or thermistor.