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Started By
Message
Dryer burning smell
Posted on 1/16/23 at 8:25 am
Posted on 1/16/23 at 8:25 am
> This is the third dryer I’ve owned. My last dryer was doing the same sort of thing but also had a strong gas leak odor so I trashed it. I bought this Maytag sometime in fall of 2020 so not old. I know I clean the lint screen every time I use it and believe my wife does as well.
The other day I noticed a burning smell when it was running. I got a chance to take it apart last night and found a lot of lint in the guts of the dryer. If you look at the photo you will see the burnt lint in the bottom corner.
The vent out of the back was mostly clear. I had just deep cleaned that about a month ago.
How often should you have to take apart a dryer to clean the inside like this? Again, this has happened on a previous Speed Queen and now this newer Maytag.
This post was edited on 1/16/23 at 8:29 am
5
Posted on 1/16/23 at 9:28 am to nolanola
"I had just deep cleaned that about a month ago"
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Is the vent to the outside blocked?
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Is the vent to the outside blocked?
Posted on 1/16/23 at 9:41 am to ItzMe1972
quote:
Is the vent to the outside blocked?
I’m going to take a deeper look at the vent. It’s on a 2nd floor so difficult to evaluate.
This post was edited on 1/16/23 at 9:42 am
Posted on 1/16/23 at 9:54 am to nolanola
I had a similar problem recently so started reading a lot about it. Now I know that the lint screen only catches about 60% of the lint. You're doing the right thing by opening it up to clean the inside. Also seems there are a lot of fires that start from this! The smell is link getting around the heating element.
This post was edited on 1/16/23 at 9:55 am
Posted on 1/16/23 at 11:15 pm to nolanola
I’ve taken apart several and never seen this after many years of use. I’d check the vent pipe to make sure its clean and flowing properly. That’s a scary situation. I also take my screen and wash it with Dawn every year or so to clean the screen.
Posted on 1/17/23 at 7:26 am to zippyputt
Yep, I’m going to work on improving the flow to the vent. That must be the issue.
Posted on 1/17/23 at 11:20 am to nolanola
They make booster fans which are recommended if the length of your vent pipe is over 25 feet.
Yesterday I had a service come out to clean the vent pipe at my place. Just moved in 7 months ago and have no idea what shape it was going to be in. My set up is a bit different. it goes up the wall in laundry nook into a cabinet and then into the ceiling between the first and second floor, exiting above the overhang over my front door. I could see the flaps opening when in use and it had a critter guard over the flaps that had lint laying in the bottom.
For 169 bucks this dude rotor rootered it both directions with this brush contraption mounted to flexible poles driven by a cordless drill. Well he said he'd seen a lot worse but it was time for a cleaning for sure. Now the vent flappers upen full blast, so that ought to help the drier breathe correctly, increase efficiency and help dry stuff faster. I live in in Jeff Parish if you want the name of the company ill give it to you. Highly recommend.
Yesterday I had a service come out to clean the vent pipe at my place. Just moved in 7 months ago and have no idea what shape it was going to be in. My set up is a bit different. it goes up the wall in laundry nook into a cabinet and then into the ceiling between the first and second floor, exiting above the overhang over my front door. I could see the flaps opening when in use and it had a critter guard over the flaps that had lint laying in the bottom.
For 169 bucks this dude rotor rootered it both directions with this brush contraption mounted to flexible poles driven by a cordless drill. Well he said he'd seen a lot worse but it was time for a cleaning for sure. Now the vent flappers upen full blast, so that ought to help the drier breathe correctly, increase efficiency and help dry stuff faster. I live in in Jeff Parish if you want the name of the company ill give it to you. Highly recommend.
Posted on 1/18/23 at 7:46 am to choppadocta
quote:
They make booster fans which are recommended if the length of your vent pipe is over 25 feet.
Just installed one of these in my house.
I also have a Speed Queen gas dryer that has done the same as yours - lint buildup inside that ends up burned (scares the heck out of you when you see it). Removed the duct up the wall (which ended up being flex duct and was collecting tons of lint) and replaced with aluminum rigid duct. Then the put in a secondary lint catch and the booster.
The thing dries like a beast now but I’m curious to see how much the extra airflow grabs lint. If it can prevent that bad lint buildup inside the unit, that is the main thing I would be hoping for.
If you want any pictures let me know and I’ll take/post some.
This post was edited on 1/18/23 at 7:47 am
Posted on 1/18/23 at 8:54 am to choppadocta
If you have a drill, you can order a kit off Amazon for those flexible extensions and do it yourself. Not hard or technical at all. Did this after I paid roughly what you paid on a rental and have used it at several properties/configurations without issue
Posted on 1/18/23 at 9:01 pm to Butch Baum
quote:
If you have a drill, you can order a kit off Amazon for those flexible extensions and do it yourself.
Agree.
My dryer vent is 23' long. I purchased a shop vac and 24' drill attachment and cleaned a clogged vent from just the dryerside of the vent. I set a WiFi camera on the outside of the house and watched the drill attachment come out. My 10 gallon shop vac had about 4 gallons of lint in it when I emptied it. This was from a house we bought that was 20 years old. Vent was likely never cleaned and they were lucky there was no fire.
Posted on 1/21/23 at 6:51 pm to nolanola
quote:
How often should you have to take apart a dryer to clean the inside like this?
I usually get around to it once a year or so. But that’s occasionally because a thermal fuse blew, which I’m surprised didn’t happen in your case. The fuse is designed to fail/open before anything gets hot enough to catch fire. I suppose lint could have gotten directly on the heating element, but that component should be completely enclosed to prevent that from occurring. Have you checked the insulation on the wiring?
Edit: Based on the picture, it looks like you have long haired ladies and pets in your house. I have the same, and I make a habit to inspect the entire system every year given the amount of laundry that is done. Houses can and do burn down because of this.
This post was edited on 1/21/23 at 6:59 pm
Posted on 1/22/23 at 12:20 am to nolanola
Posted on 1/22/23 at 9:24 pm to 22jctiger22
quote:
Edit: Based on the picture, it looks like you have long haired ladies and pets in your house. I have the same, and I make a habit to inspect the entire system every year given the amount of laundry that is done. Houses can and do burn down because of this.
No pets but a lot of long hair in the house. I think this may be a every 6 month or so check for me now.
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