PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

[ptschram]

Had a little excitement this morning.

Smoke detector went off, clothes dryer shooting flames out from beneath.

In spite of my having cleaned it out since we lived here (no, I didn't write on the outside cover with a sharpie to indicate when I'd done it last!) there was enough buildup of dog hair and lint to ignite.

Go clean your dryer ducts and check your fire extinguishers (dry chemical units should be inverted and banged with a dead-blow hammer to break up caked dry chemical) and your smoke detector batteries.

Another in a long line of tragedy songs, this one a tragedy narrowly averted.

 

[knewsom]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

glad you guys are ok! A good reminder for anyone.

 

[scottsdalerrc]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

holy crap...another thing to put on the 'to do eventually'

 

[ptschram]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

holy crap...another thing to put on the 'to do eventually'

Do it sooner rather than later.

I'm very confident that had I not been home, I'd be crying over the loss of my dogs, cats and guns.

 

[toadermcgee]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

That is one of the reasons I have a condensing drier , but mostly I don't have a good way to vent to the outside. Good to hear the dogs and guns made it. Cats...eh I could live without.

 

[JohnB]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

My wife lets it go so long you can nit a sweater out of the lint. That being said I don't mind checking them every few days. At least I don't have to do laundry.

 

[I HATE PONIES]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Is it even legal to put a dog into a dryer?

 

[Two Cold Soakers]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Is it even legal to put a dog into a dryer?

In some states, yes.

 

[az_max]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Gas or electric dryer?


Harbor freight has a nice flexible dryer vent cleaning kit cheap. I think it was $10 last time I was there.

 

[flyfisher11]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Had a little excitement this morning.

Smoke detector went off, clothes dryer shooting flames out from beneath.

In spite of my having cleaned it out since we lived here (no, I didn't write on the outside cover with a sharpie to indicate when I'd done it last!) there was enough buildup of dog hair and lint to ignite.

Go clean your dryer ducts and check your fire extinguishers (dry chemical units should be inverted and banged with a dead-blow hammer to break up caked dry chemical) and your smoke detector batteries.

Another in a long line of tragedy songs, this one a tragedy narrowly averted.

And clean your chimneys! Glad you are okay PT. This time last year I was living in a rental due to a house fire. Oh my flashbacks! http://www.discoweb.org/forums/showthread.php?t=54623&highlight=House+fire

 

[ptschram]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

And clean your chimneys! Glad you are okay PT. This time last year I was living in a rental due to a house fire. Oh my flashbacks! http://www.discoweb.org/forums/showthread.php?t=54623&highlight=House+fire

My supervisor in PDX damned near lost his house to a dryer vent fire.

I consider myself lucky.

 

[Mantaray]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

had this happen when i was in high school. vent caught fire and destroyed the laundry room. kitchen had heat damage and the whole house had smoke damage. plus water from the hoses to put it out. luckily everyone made it out uninjured and we were home to see it start. this is why i never leave the house while the dryer is running.

sounds like you made out better in the situation than we did, which is good to hear. dryer fires can get out of control fast.

 

[ptschram]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Gas or electric dryer?


Harbor freight has a nice flexible dryer vent cleaning kit cheap. I think it was $10 last time I was there.

Gas. I'd love to clean the entire vent, but it's at least 40' long! I'm gonna have to replumb it sooner rather than later. The way the house is laid out and where the laundry room is makes it really difficult to effectively vent the dryer AND meet code.

 

[RVRSRVC]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Thanks, PT. I'm leaving the country for three months in less than 24 hours, I'm already running a wee tad bit behind, and I'll have to add one more item to the ToDo list!
See ya all in the spring!

 

[apg]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Is it even legal to put a dog into a dryer?

Well, I had a squirrel climb down the chimney liner pipe at Christmas, as the chimney top had blown off in high winds a week earlier. He made it all the way into the wood stove, which hadn't been fired in a while. He did a damn good job cleaning out the creosote in his many attempts to escape.

It was just too weird: National Lampoon's "Christmas Vacation" was on at the time....

Cheers

 

[Two Cold Soakers]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Chimney flue brush is the tool to use for long ducts. Tehy come sized for different diameter tube. I believe flexible handles are available.

Or hire it done.

 

[JohnB]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Oh shit I should read before I post. I've never dreamed of checking the actual vents that trail through my crawlspace. Since I live in a Condo I wonder if I can pass that onto the HOA. LOL

 

[ptschram]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

Oh shit I should read before I post. I've never dreamed of checking the actual vents that trail through my crawlspace. Since I live in a Condo I wonder if I can pass that onto the HOA. LOL

I wish I could! I was told last night to remove the second fridge and bore a hole in the brick wall as I'm moving the dryer ot where it can have a direct exhaust. Just what I needed, another task.

 

[toadermcgee]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

I wish I could! I was told last night to remove the second fridge and bore a hole in the brick wall as I'm moving the dryer ot where it can have a direct exhaust. Just what I needed, another task.

Just get a vent less drier (condensing drier) Bosch makes'em and Sears sells them. No need to cut a hole and pump conditioned air (heated or cooled) outside.

 

[knewsom]

Re: PSA-check your smoke detector batteries and clean the lint out of your dryer ducts!

...bore a hole in the brick wall...

Oh, is THAT ALL? Good lord, what a PITA.

Be thankful you just have lint in your vents though... in once house we rented in Sacramento, rats had used the dryer vent to gain entry into the house, chewing through it and using it as a ladder. Then they would skulk behind and under the washing machine, making an unbelievable mess. Many a night I would sit at the kitchen table, pellet gun in one hand, scotch in the other, waiting... waiting... patiently.... waiting..... then, a nose would poke out, and go back in... then a head would poke out, sniff sniff, look look... then back in... then he'd come out, and then run back in.... and finally... finally.... he'd come out and start chowin' on my dog's food. Amazingly, she didn't seem to give a shit that she was sharing her dinner with a rodent, but I sure as hell did. It was when he was complacent and filling his gulliver that I'd let 'im have it! Though, truth be told, my wife got 6 of them with traps, and I only shot two. Even despite pulling out the washing machine and dryer, cleaning everything out, and replacing the vent with ABS plastic with serious adhesive and steel wool plugging the gaps inbetwixt it and the floor, we still kept hearing them and seeing their droppings on the kitchen floor - they had gotten in, and were hiding all over the damned house... it was at that point we decided to move.

Fucking useless dog.