Apart from heating and cooking equipment, home appliances account for over 700 residential fires across Canada each year¹. In the US, the vast majority of fires (92 percent) involve clothes dryers².

Here’s a safety checklist for your clothes dryer, which will also help increase its efficiency and extend its lifespan.

Clothes Dryer

Ducting

• If your vent ducting is plastic, replace it with an approved aluminum vent.

Before every use

• Empty out the lint trap. Lint is highly combustible.
• Check the exhaust hose for kinks and obstructions.
• Do not overload with clothes.

Every Month

• Check the interior exhaust hose for lint build-up and clean it out.
• Make sure the hinged exterior vent pops open when the dryer runs. The dryer must be able to exhaust its heated air.
• Check the exterior dryer vent flaps for lint buildup.

Every 3 Months

• Wash the lint filter with detergent to get rid of chemical residues from dryer sheets.
• Wipe out the interior of your dryer with soapy water.

Every Year

• Remove and clean out the entire duct line from the dryer to the outside of your home.
• For gas dryers, consider having a qualified inspector ensure your gas line and connection are free of leaks.

Other Fire Safety Tips

• Install a smoke alarm in the laundry area.
• Install a carbon monoxide detector if you have a gas dryer.
• Don’t run the dryer before bed or when no-one is home.

---

¹ Statistics Canada, Fire statistics in Canada, 2005 to 2014
² National Fire Protection Agency Report. Home Fires Involving Clothes Dryers and Washing Machines

© The Boiler Inspection and Insurance Company of Canada. All rights reserved.
This article is for informational purposes only. All recommendations are general guidelines and are not intended to be exhaustive or complete, nor are they designed to replace information or instructions from the manufacturer of your equipment or software. Contact your equipment service representative or manufacturer with specific questions. Under no circumstances shall BI&I or any party involved in creating or delivering this article be liable for any loss or damage that results from the use of the information or images contained in or linked to in this article.