Home & Garden Cleaning & Laundry

Dryer Lint Cleaning Laws

By Home & Garden Last updated Tuesday, May/21/2024

Clean the lint traps before turning on the dryer to reduce the risk of fire.laundry dial image by Sirena Designs from Fotolia.com

A 2002 study by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) concluded that buildup of dryer lint contributes to dryers catching on fire. While there are no laws regarding how often dryer owners must clean lint traps or dryer ducts, the CPSC set dryer safety guidelines as a result of this report. The Housing and Urban Department (HUD) also encourages homeowners to clean dryers regularly. Appropriate dryer maintenance can reduce the number of fatal home fires according to both of these organizations.

Clean Frequently

Always clean lint out of the dryer before putting in a new load or after a load dries, according to HUD. If your dryer is taking an unusually long time to dry your clothes, inspect the lint filter to ensure that it is free of excessive lint.

In addition to cleaning the lint out of the dryer regularly, always remove lint and fallen items from behind the dryer when cleaning the lint trap. Regularly inspect your vent openings; birds sometimes build nests in the opening to the outdoors, which can contribute to lint fires, and lint itself can build up in the opening if there is a ventilation problem. To clean the inside of the vent, hire duct cleaners at least once every two months. You should also use only metal ducts (not the cheaper plastic ducts that some dryer companies recommend because of their low price) to reduce the risk of fire.

If your clothing is exposed to gasoline or other volatile chemicals, there is an additional risk of fire during drying. To reduce this risk, wash contaminated clothing twice prior to drying, and dry these items on your dryer's lowest settings.

Professional dry cleaners risk exposing themselves to Perchloroethylene (PERC), a chemical implicated in some types of cancer when removing lint from older machines. Federal laws regulate worker exposure. Home dryers do not use PERC, so there is no risk to you when cleaning your lint traps or drying your clothes.