Dryer Vent Inspection in Houston, TX

What a dryer vent inspection actually involves

The dryer gets pulled out first. The transition hose comes off the back. We look at what kind of duct is behind there. Crushed vinyl or foil flex in a shallow laundry closet is common, especially where the dryer was shoved tight to the wall. Then we count elbows and measure the run. Every 90-degree turn adds equivalent length. A run that measures short on a tape can still exceed the 35-foot equivalent limit once the turns are counted.

Next is the termination. On 1950s-70s ranch homes near the garage or utility room, that is usually a short exterior-wall hood a few feet away. On two-story subdivision homes built in the 1990s and 2000s, the run goes up into the attic and out a roof jack. Roof jacks hide the worst of it. Screens pack with wet lint. Flapper hoods jam open and birds nest inside. We go up and look rather than guess from the laundry room.

Airflow gets measured at the hood, not estimated. We also walk the attic section when it is reachable. Houston humidity condenses inside metal duct during winter fronts, and lint sticks to wet walls instead of blowing out.

Back-draft is the finding people do not expect. Humid exhaust leaking at a loose joint raises moisture in the laundry room and feeds mildew on drywall. If towels need two or three cycles, or the dryer shuts off on its thermal limit, the inspection usually explains why before anything is cleaned.