Category: Garage Repair

Having a dryer in the home is one of the hallmarks of modern convenience. However, few appreciate what a complicated machine a dryer can be.

Proper venting is a critical concern as far as safety and performance go. Often, homeowners dislike exterior dryer vents and wish to direct exhaust into garages.

This article should answer all of your questions.

Why Is It a Bad Idea to Vent a Dryer Into Your Garage?

Regardless of how your dryer is powered, venting dryers into garages is a terrible idea for several reasons.

First off, doing so will spew lint and dust into the garage.

Furthermore, venting dryer exhaust into the garage will increase humidity levels and promote rust.

Lastly, venting gas-fired dryer exhaust into the garage can produce dangerous carbon monoxide levels.

Are Indoor Dryer Vents Legal?

While indoor dryer vents aren’t necessarily illegal, they may violate local building codes depending on where you live.

Safety inspectors are stringent regarding laundry vents in multi-unit residential buildings. Most home inspectors use the International Residential Code when determining whether a laundry vent is permissible.

Simply put, outdated indoor dryer vents can earn you hefty fines from the authorities.

Are Indoor Dryer Vents Safe?

Generally speaking, venting dryer exhaust indoors is a terrible idea from a safety standpoint.

Doing so can produce carbon monoxide levels that are deadly in certain areas. If the concept of asphyxiating isn’t alarming enough, indoor dryer vents can cause fires that may gut entire buildings.

Last but not least, venting dryer exhaust into interior spaces can promote toxic mold growth.

Can You Get Carbon Monoxide Poisoning From a Dryer Vent?

There’s no question that carbon monoxide poisoning is a potential consequence of interior dryer venting. Even the latest and greatest gas-fired dryers produce a certain amount of carbon monoxide that must be vented to the outside world to ensure the health of building occupants.

Carbon monoxide can build up quickly in tight spaces and render residents unconscious or dead in short order.

Do Indoor Dryer Vents Cause Mold?

Due to dryer exhaust’s hot and humid nature, indoor vents almost always produce mold over time.

Constant moisture will eventually degrade everything from 2×4 studs to drywall and leave a black mold layer over every surface between the dryer and the vent outlet.

Frequently, the mold produced by indoor dryer vents festers in unseen places for years before being discovered.

Do Indoor Dryer Vents Cause Lint and Dust Accumulation?

Given enough time, every dryer vent produces a significant amount of lint and dust accumulation inside the home.

Sooner or later, the conduit that feeds a dryer’s vent will crack or shift and release laundry debris in unwanted areas.

In addition, indoor dryer vents necessarily spew linen fibers into places you don’t want to find them. The end result can be a fire hazard.

How Do You Reroute a Dryer Vent From the Garage to Outside?

If your dryer exhaust currently ends up in the garage, rerouting it to the outside isn’t that difficult.

You only need a suitable flexible metal conduit, a saw or two, and a few extraneous hardware accessories. A competent HVAC technician can run another length of exhaust conduit from an existing garage dryer exhaust outlet to the outside in a few hours.

Things You Should Know About Dryer Vents

First off, there are no one-size-fits-all solutions to dryer vent design. Gas-fired dryer vents and electric dryer vents are very different in terms of heat and gas dissipation.

Furthermore, dryer vents aren’t as simple as they may look from the outside. They should be installed by qualified professionals who know what they’re doing.

Lastly, dryer vents require regular maintenance to deliver reliable performance.

Are Dryer Vents Important?

Dryer vents are absolutely critical if you care at all about your health and safety.

At a bare minimum, properly installed dryer vents can be the difference between a happy home and a structure fire.

What’s more, dryer vents that are working correctly will make your laundry hardware last a lot longer. On top of that, dryer vents keep the air in your home clean and safe.

What Happens If a Dryer Is Not Vented?

Several really lousy outcomes are almost guaranteed if a dryer isn’t vented. The worst-case scenario is that the dryer will overheat, catch fire and burn your house or apartment building down.

Furthermore, a dryer that’s not vented will have a hard time actually drying your clothes. What’s more, indoor humidity levels will surge as the moisture has no place to go.

How Do Dryer Vents Work?

Dryer vents work the same way as most other kinds of ducts you’re likely to encounter in a home or business.

A flexible aluminum conduit attaches to the back of the dryer and channels hot, moist air through walls to a vent outlet somewhere on the exterior of the building.

Dryer vent outlets are protected by a cover to prevent rain and small animals from entering the ducting.

Does the Length of a Dryer Vent Affect Drying Time?

The entire point of a dryer vent is to remove heat and moisture from the dryer as quickly as possible. The longer the vent, the longer it will take to dissipate heat from the dryer.

As such, dryer vents should be as short as possible. A long dryer vent with many twists and turns will make your dryer less efficient and prolong drying time.

What Is the Best Way to Vent a Dryer?

In an ideal world, a dryer vent is less than 10 feet long and simply passes through a single wall to an exterior vent cover.

This kind of setup will ensure that a dryer is as efficient as possible while minimizing potential downsides.

If a dryer is located in a single-story home, a vent can also terminate at a vent cover located on the roof. The shorter the vent run, the better the results.

Dryer Vent Types

There are basically three types of dryer vent tubing in use today: flexible, semi-rigid, and rigid. Flexible ducting is made from synthetic materials like plastic or polyester film.

Flexible tubing is often prohibited due to its flammable nature. Semi-rigid aluminum vent ducting is both flexible and resistant to fire.

Rigid ducting is easier to clean but somewhat harder to install.

The Installation Process

Installing a dryer vent is easy if your dryer is located near an exterior wall. First, you’ll need to cut a hole through the drywall to mount a vent outlet behind the dryer.

Obviously, you’ll need to cut a matching hole through the exterior sheathing simultaneously.

After that, you simply run a semi-rigid ducting section from the dryer to the outlet.

Can Dryer Vents Go Up?

There’s absolutely no reason why a dryer vent can’t go up and exit the building either through the roof or through a wall on an upper floor.

The main problem with this approach is that it will reduce the efficiency of your dryer. In addition, lengthy vertical dryer vents can be difficult to service and clean throughout the years.

Dryer Vent Cleaning and Continual Care

For the most part, dryer vents don’t require much TLC to perform reliably for years or even decades under normal circumstances.

Generally speaking, it’s a good idea to disconnect the ducting from the dryer and vacuum out any lint or debris you may find.

Furthermore, you should disassemble and clean the exterior vent outlet at least once a year.

FAQs

What Are the Main Problems That Occur When You Vent a Dryer Into the Garage?

At a bare minimum, venting a dryer into a garage will increase humidity levels to a noticeable degree.

Higher humidity levels will take a toll on anything metal you store in your garage. Venting dryer exhaust into the garage will also shower the space with lint and dust.

Finally, terminating a dryer vent in the garage can lead to dangerous carbon monoxide concentrations.

Should You Vent Your Clothes Dryer Inside the Home?

For the most part, venting a dryer inside the home is a bad idea. While some newer models can be vented inside safely, they take longer to thoroughly dry your clothes.

Also, gas-fired dryers should never be vented inside the home because the exhaust they produce contains carbon monoxide.

Just play it safe and do whatever it takes to vent dryer exhaust outside.

How Harmful Is Venting the Air Out of an Electric Dryer in the Home?

Long story short, dryers can encourage the growth of mold and mildew if vented inside. After all, a dryer removes water from clothes, and that moisture has to end up somewhere.

People with allergies or respiratory issues can be put at significant risk by mold.

On top of that, a moist environment can damage everything from drywall to wall studs.

How to Vent a Dryer in the Middle of the House?

If your laundry room is centrally located, you’ll have to get a little creative regarding proper venting.

Most people use periscope dryer vents to drop the ducting through the floor so that it can run through joists until it hits an exterior wall.

The job is a lot easier if your dryer is on the ground floor and you have a basement to work in.

Malfunctioning garage doors can be very dangerous, especially to children. Fortunately, accidents involving garage doors can be avoided if you take the proper precautions.

Here are some good tips that will show you how to childproof your garage door.

Education

The first thing you must do is teach children how important it is to be careful around garage doors. They must know that they are not allowed to play with the garage door or the control panel.

If you have older children, you can teach them how to use the garage door properly. Your children should be taught to never go near the garage door when it is in motion. The garage door is held in place by springs and cables. If one of these parts is disturbed, it could cause the door to fall.

Safety Cables

All new garage doors are outfitted with safety cables. Most older models do not have them. Safety cables are cables that are placed in the center of the spring. If the spring does break, it will be caught on the cable and stabilized.

When the garage door is down, it causes tension in the springs. If the springs pop, the pieces that fly off can be a hazard to anyone who is around it. Make sure your garage doors have safety cables. If they do, you must make sure they are inspected on a regular basis.

Safety Sensor

Another safety mechanism that you must have is the safety sensor. The safety sensor is also known as the “electric eye.”

If your garage door does not have a safety sensor, you will need to upgrade it. This means that you will need to install a brand new garage door system. Older garage doors cannot be retrofitted with a safety sensor.

The safety sensor is a sensor is placed about 6 inches from the ground. It is positioned in a way that points it towards the opening of the garage door.

If anything moves across the sensor’s beam, the door will immediately stop descending. This will decrease the chances that someone will have the garage door close on them.

Other Safety Mechanisms

You should also schedule regular inspections for your garage door. Make sure that annual maintenance is performed by service technicians. They can check to make sure that the safety features are working properly.

If you have an automatic garage door, you will need to do your due diligence in making sure that it is completely safe.

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It is essential to check your vehicle for fluid leaks on an ongoing basis. Running your car low on oil could damage the engine beyond repair and cost you thousands of dollars.

If you find an oil leak under your car, in your garage, or on your driveway, your first call should be to the mechanic.

After the car is safely in the service bay, you can work on removing those troublesome stains from the concrete in your garage or the asphalt in your driveway.

Here are some tips to remove oil stains from your driveway or garage floor and how to clean the surfaces.

1. Soak Up the Oil

If you need to remove an oil stain from the concrete floor in your garage, the simplest method is to soak it up with kitty litter.

Use the cheap non-clumping litter, it is very absorbent and easy to use.

How to Use Kitty Litter to Soak Up Oil

• Start by laying the litter down on top of the stain.
• The kitty litter will work best if the oil or stain is still fresh, but it can work on old stains as well.
• For really tough stains, you may need to work in the litter. Get an old 2×4 and mash the kitty litter into the surface.
• Allow the kitty litter plenty of time to work.
• You may need to apply it several times to soak up all the oil.

After the litter has absorbed the oil, use a broom and dustpan to gather it up. Follow all local regulations when disposing of the oil — you may need to take it to a garage or authorized waste facility to avoid environmental damage.

Video with the Kitty Litter Method

Stronger Commercial Products

You can also purchase commercial products to soak up oil stains and remove them from your garage. Still, kitty litter is often just as practical and far less costly. You can always move on to the commercial oil-drying product if the kitty litter fails to do the trick.

Oil-Dri makes a heavy-duty absorber and is available in 25lb bags.

This product is not expensive at all, and 40 pounds should last you for a long time.

2. Remove the Stain

Detergent is a a good oil stain remover

You need to use soap or detergent to lower the water’s surface tension, allowing it to carry the detergent’s molecules deep into the oil stain.

Driveways are tough, but you should start with the least abrasive detergent you have first and work your way up if it doesn’t clean up and get the stain out right away.

First Try to Get Rid of the Spot With Dish Soap

If the oil stain is on your asphalt or concrete driveway, start with a mild dishwashing soap like Dawn or Joy.

Squirt a good amount on the driveway, then apply a small amount of water. Allow it to soak in for a few minutes and scrub the stain away with a stiff scrub brush. You may need to repeat this process a few times.

Wash the area thoroughly with a hose or a pressure washer to remove the rest of the oil stain.

Next, Try Removing the Oil Stains With Detergent

If the dishwashing detergent does not do the trick, you can try a powdered laundry detergent.

Sprinkle the detergent over the stain to absorb it, then add a small amount of water to make a paste.

Scrub the area with a stiff brush and hose the driveway to remove it.

Try Baking Soda if the Stains Still Won’t Come Clean

You can also use baking soda to absorb an oil stain on your asphalt driveway. You may need to apply the baking soda several times to absorb all the oil.

Once the oil has been absorbed and removed, you can hose it off or add water and scrub it clean.

More Extreme Measures

I have no experience using these products on old driveway oil stains, but some people swear by them.

• Easy-Off Oven Cleaner – If this can dissolve baked in cheese from 10 years ago, maybe there is something to it. Sample a bit on an out-of-the-way spot first. You don’t want to trade one stain for another.
• Microbes – These contains micro-organisms that love to eat the compounds found in oil. From what I’ve gathered, products like Terminator-HSD take multiple applications over weeks to lift stains. It may be an option when all others have failed.

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Be sure to check your driveway and garage floor carefully each time you move your car.

Spotting stains quickly make them easier to remove, but keeping a close eye on your automotive fluids can also prevent a costly breakdown.

Keeping your garage in great condition should be your number one priority if you are like me and work and relax while tinkering in the shop. Your garage door is a big part of that and should be in perfect operation at all times.

Are you having difficulty with your garage door? Can’t seem to get it to stay closed? It may be a straightforward problem that you can fix in less than a minute.

Here are some symptoms of the problem:

• The garage door goes down then back up.
• Your garage door opens immediately after closing.
• The garage door keeps going up and down.
• Your garage door opens when it hits the ground.
• Garage door opener keeps going back up.

It may be your garage door sensor. There are four common problems with garage door sensors, three of these homeowners can fix themselves.

Is your garage door safety sensor blocked?

There is a law requiring garage door installations to include a sensor. This sensor will protect you by not allowing the door to shut close if something is in the way.

Your garage door sensor works by having two photo-sensitive devices on either side of the garage door. If these can’t “see” each other when the door is almost shut, it will send a signal to the garage door motor to open back up.

A careless or rushed parking job can cause the car’s bumper to block the sensor. Sometimes the sensors will be in alignment and just as the door gets close to being shut it will vibrate enough to push one sensor off.

Is your garage door safety sensor off-track?

Sometimes while moving stuff around in the garage, like the trash can, you may bump the sensor. The bump won’t be enough to knock it completely off the track but just enough to be out of kilter.

When you look at your sensor, it appears to be in the right spot. Try to gently push the sensor with your hand to see if it moves. If so, try to see if you can snap it back into place on its track.

Having an off-track sensor can cause your garage door not to shut at all, or it can cause it to close intermittently.

Your close-limit sensor may be set too short

This issue happens less often than a blocked or off-track sensor. There may be another sensor near the motor that tells the unit how far to let the garage door go down.

If this is set too short, your garage door may not shut all the way, or it may slam hard on the ground and go back up.

Look for two screws on the motor base. One will identify downward and one upward. One turn should equal about two inches of door travel either way.

If your garage door “bounces” off the ground you will need to adjust the downward screw by turning it the direction that decreases it.

Some garage door openers have these screws behind the lens that protect the light bulb so if you don’t see it on the side look there.

The following video shows the limit adjusters and how to set them correctly.

You may have a damaged safety sensor or cut wire.

If nothing is blocking your sensor and it is lined up correctly, you may have a defective sensor or a cut wire.

If you have a broken sensor or the wire from the sensor is cut or frayed you will need to get it repaired by a professional.

You may have to leave your garage door open until you can get it repaired.

I do NOT recommend using the manual release cord to lower your garage door. Your garage door is extremely heavy and can hurt or kill you if you try to lower it by yourself.

General Garage Door Maintenance Tips

Some easy maintenance todos will keep your garage door operating for many years.

Keep the chains and tracks lubricated.
Use a specialty spray lubrication on your garage door tracks and chains so the motor will have an easier time pulling the door up.

Ideally, you should not hear any loud noise from the friction of the rollers moving along the track. If you hear squealing, it is time to lubricate.

Check and tighten up the hardware
Your garage door will open and close hundreds of times every year. All those ups and downs will vibrate and loosen some parts. Check all your bolts and brackets and tighten where needed.

Does the weatherstripping need to be replaced?
There is a rubber seal along the bottom of your garage door. This seal helps keep water out of your garage. Moisture is a common draw for pests to your garage.

Replace the weatherstripping if it is broken or chipped. This should be checked regularly.

If you have the good part of a Saturday morning to devote to replacing it, Home Depot or Lowes sells universal garage door strips.

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Garage door problems like these are fairly common, and thankfully sometimes easy to fix. Just last year my wife called and told me “the garage door keeps going up and down”.

I was able to walk her through the step of straightening a sensor. Seems the kids got a little too rowdy with the soccer ball!

I hope this article was able to help you get your garage door back “on track”.