Info About Clothes Dryers: May Save Your Life!

[Mynewmoniker]

I found this on the internet and thought it would be really useful and cost saving info for everyone with a tumbly!

The heating unit went out on my dryer! The gentleman that fixes things around the house for us told us that he wanted to show us something and he went over to the dryer and pulled out the lint filter. It was clean. (I always clean the lint from the filter after every load of clothes.) He took the filter over to the sink and ran hot water over it. The lint filter is made of a mesh material ? I?m sure you know what your dryer?s lint filter looks like.

WELL?the hot water just sat on top of the mesh! It didn?t go through it at all! He told us that dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh and that?s what burns out the heating unit. You can?t SEE the film, but it?s there. It?s what is in the dryer sheets to make your clothes soft and static free ? that nice fragrance, too. You know how they can feel waxy when you take them out of the box? Well, this stuff builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen.

This is also what causes dryer units to catch fire & potentially burn your house down with it! He said the best way to keep your dryer working for a very long time (& keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out & wash it with hot soapy water & an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months. He said that makes the life of the dryer at least twice as long!

Blimey! I don't have a separate dryer but will pass this info to people that do. Thanks for sharing.

This is why I don't use dryer sheets! I like my towels to come out of the dryer hard and staticy anyway... ok, maybe I am odd....

Has anybody actually seen that for themselves , or is it a FOAF story?

Piglet! You must know the truth about this!

Also don't use dryer sheets but will pass this on to friend's and family... Thanks for posting op.

I have jusr cleaned mine and yes...the water did sit on top of the mesh! I put washing up liquid on it and scribbed it with a dish washer brush. I feel better for that!

PigletJohn I don't think it is a FOAF story if by that you mean it's some kind of hoax. Truly trying to be helpful.

I wasn't suggesting that you were deliberately trying to hoax us, but not everything on the net is true. FOAF means a story that is passed on as from a friend of a friend; i.e. without personal verification.

I don't know if the airflow though a dryer lint mesh is any better or worse after or before scrubbing it. Mine would detect if the filter was clogged, though it has never happened, and it can hold quite a lot of lint after drying a batch of towels.