If you live in a newer home you may be thinking everything is up to code because the home was built more recently than others in your area. Surprisingly, dryer venting and dryer exhaust systems are often improperly installed. I've seen newer homes with the dryer venting into the attic. Builders will defend this practice saying it is OK; however, the law states that a clothes dryer must be vented outdoors.
Improper dryer venting can cause serious problems in your home. The dryer exhaust removes the heat and moisture from your dryer to the outdoors. If your dryer is venting into an attic, basement or crawl space, mildew is allowed to grow. Mold and mildew cause damage to your home and problems with your health, namely, upper respiratory irritation. Worse yet, it is a fire hazard. Lint is highly combustible, making great fuel for a quickly spreading fire.
As your dryer runs the blower motor pushes the hot, moist air through the dryer duct to the vent outdoors. The problem is that there is a limit as to how far the motor can push the air. The longer the ducts and the more bends and turns they have, the more resistance there is.
Smooth metal pipe is recommended by clothes dryer manufacturers today; not the plastic corrugated venting that is so popular due to easy installation. Flexible foil and vinyl vents can easily become crushed behind the dryer, blocking air flow and creating a fire hazard.
It is OK to vent a dryer through the roof if you use the right type of exhaust hood to draw out the hot air. A hood with a wide flange is the best type for a roof-top dryer vent. A dryer should not be vented through the soffits.
If you live in an area where the climate is cooler be sure your vent pipe is properly insulated to prevent condensation from running down the pipe and leaking down the pipe and pooling under the dryer.
Sections of dryer duct should be properly joined, using metal tape, not screws that protrude into the duct to catch and trap lint.
The best dryer exhaust system is semi-rigid metal, smooth inside, joined with metal tape, as short as possible and has as few turns as possible. Professional dryer vent cleaning is recommended each year to be sure your system is working properly. A dryer vent system that is properly installed and properly maintained will increase the life of your clothes dryer, save energy and prevent a fire.
Mory Matias, owner of Dryer Vent Wizard, specializes in dryer vent and dryer exhaust. Mory provides professional inspections, dryer vent cleaning, repair and installation in the North side Chicago area in Cook 
and Lake Counties. Read more articles containing appliance maintenance tips on Mory's blog at http://dryerventcleaningchicago.blogspot.com/
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