Clean Your Lint Screen

As much as I love the idea of being one of those awesome off-the-grid type survivalist home makers, I am not.  I love my appliances.  I know that I probably COULD get by without them, like in a nuclear war type emergency, but barring the zombie apocalypse, I do enjoy labor-saving machines.

For instance, my dryer.

I know what you're going to say.  I should line dry clothes and save money and energy, but I'm not there yet.  We have an itty bitty little yard, and I will try to set up a clothes line this summer.  In the meantime, I am in love with the dryer.

As with anyone I love, I want to see it happy and healthy.  The lint screen is super important for this.  I clean it out after every load...but is that enough?  Some times we use dryer sheets, and I have heard that this can leave a film over the lint screen that makes air move through less efficiently.  Let's check.

That's not good.

If the water is having a hard time passing through the filter, so is the air.  That's unfortunate.  It means that the dryer is not able to work as efficiently because it is not getting proper air flow.  This can BREAK YOUR DRYER.

(I can't handle that thought.  Did I mention that I love my dryer?)

Thank God and the internet that there's an easy fix!  Coincidentally, it's the same fix for most of the build-up issues in my house: white vinegar.

I sprayed the filter down with vinegar, and gave it a quick scrub.

The water runs right through now!  My nice, clean lint screen is back in my dryer, catching lint like a boss.  Hopefully my dryer will work even better for it, and lasts for years to come.

Did I mention that dryer service calls start at $147 through Sears?  I just hopefully prevented a problem for less than a penny.  Sounds good to me.