laundry pet peevs

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Reply #18

Um, I hope it's not maintenance's responsibility because if so, I'm screwed. These are the same people who left myself and my wheelchair-bound wife without AC during the hottest part of the summer, and who haven't replaced our broken pressurized toilet tank in a whole year despite my frequent complaints and even talking to the housing authority, or fixed my leaking kitchen sink, or even repaired simple crap like my broken towel rack.

That's why I'm trying to figure out if there's anything I can do about my dryer vent, because I don't trust them to take care of it. Probably nothing at all I can do about the outside portion on the roof, but surely there's something that can be done from my unit itself. My dryer is taking much longer to dry than it used to and I'm almost positive the vent is the issue.
 
I’m sorry to hear of your terrible maintenance staff. Unfortunately these days that seems to be the norm. It’s also unfortunate that if the vent problem isn’t solved you will be the one incurring the costs to either repair the dryer or replace it. Either way if the vent problem isn’t addressed it doesn’t matter whether the machine is fixed or replaced when the vent is bad enough the dryer won’t make it through a cycle without the safety tripping hopefully preventing a fire.
 
Reply #20

Oh yes, I will be most seriously upset if I have to replace the dryer because I just replaced my washer this past summer. Moreover, if the vent is clogged down the line, correct me if I'm wrong but a new or repaired dryer would make no difference.
 
You are exactly right about a repaired or new dryer making no difference if the vent problem isn’t corrected. Also imagine how much more electricity is costing you to have to run a dry cycle for the same load more than once.
 
"Is there something I can do, short of relying on pitiful maintenance or accessing the roof myself?"

You'll most likely have to pay a vent cleaning service to clean whatever access they have to the pipe. Call maintenance first and ask if they'll give rooftop access to the cleaning service.

What make/model dryer do you have?
 
Whirlpool 29-inch. Model number is WED5300VQ0.

Yeesh, well it could be that air duct I was talking about on the other forum. It's most likely getting clogged at the moment if the vent pipe from the wall to the roof is clogged. All of that stuff has to go somewhere and it generally accumulates at the lowest point.
 
Clogged air duct

Ok, well, in that case, would it be possible for me to clean the air duct in the meantime while I wait for a cleaning service to clean the pipe to the roof? Or should I just pay the cleaning service to do it all at once?

This is why I figured maintenance wouldn't do anything. Since part of the job requires cleaning out the actual dryer, they will say they only provide the connections but upkeep of the machines is the tenant's responsibility.
 
It's a pretty easy fix but you mentioned in the past about vision issues so it's up to your discretion. Not sure if we have a member in your area that could give a helping hand.

 
Vision issues

Yes, I am blind but some home maintenance tasks are within my ability level as long as I have verbal instruction to guide me. I'll take a gander at the video and see if I feel like I can handle it. If not, my sister is coming into town next week so I might see if my bro-in-law can do it.
 
Pet Peeves

Mixing colors and every type of fabric in one load.
People using spray rinses (not selecting fabric softener option).
Using cheap detergent
Washing loads in cold when it is inappropriate.
Using every additive under the sun, but still washing in cold.
Refusing to use any other cycle than Normal.
Homemade laundry detergent
Using too much fabric softener
 
Too much soap - when peeps stay here if they use a top loader - I tell them not to bother with soap on the first load as they dont realize how much soap their machines leave in their clothes. In almost every case there is so much I'll come close to suds lock.

Improper or no sorting - classic college load, or people who constantly look like their stuff is all grey.

Everything mixed then washed cold - mixing rancid underwear, socks, animal cleanups, with kitchen rags, napkins, face cloths. It's ok to mix these things if you can sustain high temps, or use bleach if you cant but otherwise thats just gross.

Too much softener - people use way to much and it can start to gum up machines.

Scent beads - wife loves this crap and her test of cleanliness is one metric - smell. Could be completely dirty but to her if it smells good its clean.

I hate dryers that don't reverse - king duvet balls up frequently.

Washers that use too much water.
For every drop I use I've got to pump it, filter it, soften it, filter it again, then pump it again using a transfer pump to the sewer system. I have excellent water, but need to maintain this system, and waste is expensive.
On a front loader if I can see water pool during the wash it's too much.
Rinsing - sure go to town with the water.

Cheap Bad Soap - I have dry skin as it is, crappy ineffective soap really lets clothes build up grime.

I could go on and on, but Im a total laundry snob.
 
The few times I have had to use a laundry mat the waste of time waiting and the yuck factor. Can't get out of there fast enuff. A washer that had lots of dog hair would be a big no but pubic hair would make me gag.
 
Clogged dryer vents?

Hi Ryne

I think I asked before but did you ever try running your whirlpool dryer without the vent attached to see if it dries properly?

It’s very unlikely that there’s any significant clogging in a 29 inch whirlpool dryer it almost never happens, it’s also very easy to clean the lint filter housing with a long brush just shove a brush 36 inches down there and it cleans the entire housing out without any disassembly.

You can also try cleaning the vent to the roof yourself if you decide that that is the problem, very easily by using an electric leaf blower pull the dryer away from the wall hook the electric leaf blower to the exhaust duct and let it run for a few minutes, it’s fun to go outside and see all the lint flying.

I did that in a two-story apartment building one time down in DC and I looked out the back window and saw all these kids playing outside with the dust coming down they thought it was snowing lol.

Sometimes you just have to do things yourself.

John
 
Here are my modern laundry disgruntlements, not listed in any order:

*Trying to get good results washing in a thimble-full of water
*Lack of a lint filter in the washer
*Impeller top loaders that do a good job, but are harder on clothes than short, fast, stroke agitator machines
*Inaccurate moisture sensing dryers that are useless unless one is drying a full load
*Front loaders with seals and bearings not robust enough to survive high speed spins of 5 or 6 years of use. (Are ya listening Electrolux/Frigidaire?)
*Tubs in high-capacity, top loading machines that are too deep for short folks like me to reach to the bottom (I have to use barbecue tongs.)
*WP/KM Giving up too soon on the very effective, but troublesome Calypso design (they coulda fixed it, doncha know?)
*Lack of spray rinses in front loaders

Well, that's the input from my personal opinion. I could be wrong.
 

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