Commercial Dryer Vent Cleaning

How Often Should Commercial Dryer Vents Be Cleaned?

Whether you are a laundromat, hair salon, care facility, or sports facility chances are that you will have a commercial laundry facility onsite that requires regular maintenance.  

Commercial dryers are typically larger and have larger venting requirements depending on the machine or machines that are hooked up to the main dryer vent ducting that is going to the termination point of the building. 

Cleaning these dryer vents requires powerful equipment, camera systems, and knowledge of how they work. This is typically better left to professionals that know how to deal with these situations.

Average furnace and duct cleaning companies are not usually set up for cleaning this type of equipment. 

The importance of regular maintenance for efficiency and both customer and staff safety can not be underestimated here.

So how often do commercial dryer vents need to be cleaned? Read on for a few signs that you should be watching for.

 

Signs That Your Commercial Dryer Vents Need To Be Cleaned

While there are multiple signs to watch for telling you that you require commercial dryer vent cleaning the main sign is longer drying times. When the venting from dryers starts to get plugged up the first thing that happens is increased drying times. 

If you are operating a service that always cleans the same items over and over then it is a good idea to set up a timer to know exactly how long the drying cycle should take, once you know this number you can set parameters that will tell you that your venting is getting clogged up. 

Remember it’s not just lint that plugs a dryer vent system, you could have birds nesting in the venting or other critters that have made it their home. If you notice that the drying times increase suddenly this might be the problem.

Does your dryer seem to be exceptionally hot? This is another sign that the venting may be clogged. Your dryer is always going to be warm or slightly hot, but if you notice that it is to hot to touch, then you have a problem. A good idea as part of your regular maintenance is to use a temperature gun and consistently check the temperature at the same spot every time, if you notice an increase in the temperature then you might have clogged venting. 

Lastly, if you can smell a burning smell then it is definitely time to shut off this equipment and call in the professionals. Lint is incredibility flammable and not something that can be ignored.

 

Check With Your Insurance Company

Did you know that you might be at risk of not being covered in the case of a dryer fire if you can’t prove that you have been getting your commercial dryer vents cleaned on a regular basis? that’s right, some insurance companies will have how often you must get your dryer vents cleaned right in your policy. If you let this slip you could be at risk of having no insurance coverage.

Contact your local municipality and make sure that you are up to code in your area. For Edmonton go here: City of Edmonton

How Often Should You Have Your Commercial Dryer Vent Cleaned

Due to their size commercial dryer vents typically don’t need to be cleaned as often as residential dryer vent cleaning, but they do still require attention at least every other year or more depending on usage. residential dryer vents are 4″ in diameter and require cleaning once per year, and as a homeowner, you should be checking and cleaning the lint screen as well as down inside the dryer below the lint constantly, every load for cleaning the lint screen and once per week for vacuuming below the lint screen area. 

Your typical self-serve laundromat is going to use more of a residential-style dryer and should have the system at least checked every six months to one year due to usage and small venting systems. And the investment of setting up a laundromat is significant so protecting that investment and keeping the machines operating at max efficiency is very important.

It is truly amazing the small amount of lint that is required to put a great deal of strain on a dryer to get rid of the damp lint-filled air through the exhaust system. This strain is felt in increased electrical fees and higher maintenance costs, so keeping the system as free as possible is a good idea financially as well.

 

A Few Tips For Knowing When To Call In The Professionals

Draw a small circle on your dryer that you can use to track a temperature reading in a log book. This will let you know that the machine is under greater stress and the time has come to call a professional dryer vent cleaning company

If you are operating a service where the same items are being dried every time then you can have a log book that will tell you how long it is taking to dry the items, if the dry time increases suddenly then you know that you have some maintenance to do.

This tip is meant for systems that operate on 4″ venting. After the dryer vent system has been cleaned have the company install a pressure switch system that has a audible alarm that will inform you that the system is getting plugged and it is time for service.

Conclusion

As you can see from the article above it is not hard to know when you require commercial dryer vent cleaning, you just need to be aware of the signs. Keeping your staff, clients, and the public safe is a major concern for property and business owners that operate commercial dryer systems. We hope this article helps you in your decision-making process.

If you require a free estimate you can reach out to us here: commercial dryer vent cleaning Edmonton 

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