Is your long-trusted LG dryer not drying completely? Dry, clean clothes are a necessity for the modern world, but sometimes the appliances that provide them start to fail entirely. Other times, however, the device is functioning, but not as well as it should. If your dryer is still drying, but not as much as it should, there are a few possible reasons:
A clogged lint filter or exhaust vent, faulty moisture detector, failing heating element, or dirty dryer hose may be keeping your dryer from properly drying your clothes.
Let’s examine each of these reasons and how you can repair them in order to use your LG dryer for its intended lifespan rather than cut short your relationship.
1. Clogged Lint Filter
An obstructed lint filter is the most common cause of a dryer vent becoming clogged. Lint is made up of small fibers that fall off of garments as they tumble inside the dryer drum. The machine’s lint filter efficiently absorbs most of the lint that goes through – but not all of it.
Over time, lint will build up inside the LG dryer screen and eventually, once the screen runs out of room, the vent. That’s especially true if the dryer vent has many turns or large seams of clothing residue inside the dryer machine.
Excessive lint in the filter can therefore create a domino effect of excess lint and debris elsewhere, creating a fire hazard. Clean the lint filter screen often, preferably after each drying cycle.
If cleaning the screen does not solve the problem, however, it may be caused by a lint buildup elsewhere:
2. Dryer Vent Blockages
Blockages can be the culprit of your LG dryer machine not working correctly. If there is a lint buildup of dirt, both the dryer vent interior and exterior exhaust vent will have difficulty regulating airflow. It would be best if you cleaned LG dryer vents to avoid blockages regularly. As a user, it will help you a lot to know why they get blocked and how they affect your drying experience.
The following symptoms indicate a blocked dryer vent:
You Wait Longer for Your Clothes to Dry
Typically, your LG Dryer produces heat that helps remove moisture from your clothes while they are tumbling. The heating element then blasts used air out of the dryer through the exhaust vent. When the exiting airflow decreases due to a blocked vent, moist air has a tougher time escaping the LG dryer. As a result, drying your garments takes significantly longer than usual.
Clothes Are Unusually Hot After Drying
The dryer and the clothes are usually warm when you complete drying, but if they come out feeling hotter than usual, the exhaust vent may be to blame. An obstructed exhaust vent won’t allow excess heat to escape the drum and can cause the LG dryer to overheat, producing excessively hot garments.
You cannot detect an overheating unit right away since it cools down when you empty it. But you can catch it by paying attention to the subtle clues, such as clothes that take longer to dry.
Also watch out for a burning smell, which can be caused by the vent itself warming overheating. Unfortunately, this smell is often overlooked, and the overheating can create a fire hazard.
Poor Airflow at the Vent Cover
The LG dryer vent extends all the way from the dryer to the the outside of the building near the vent cover, where it can receive and eject air. When the dryer is on, you’ll normally observe air flowing out of the exhaust vent through the vent cover, regardless of the type of vent you have. However, if the vent is clogged, it may reduce or eliminate that airflow and create a fire hazard.
Remove the vent at both the LG dryer end and outdoor end. Clear the clog with a vacuum cleaner and a long brush. You can also hire a professional service technician to clean the vent if you’re unable to or are uncomfortable doing so.
Lint is supposed to be collected by the lint filter, but a significant number of particles still pass through the filter and out of the vent cover. Clean these vents at least once a year to prevent accidental fires and successfully dry your clothes.
The exterior vent hood is frequently overlooked. This cover properly prevents dirt, dust, and other objects from entering the vent from the outside. Nonetheless, small particles of debris inevitable infiltrate the vent and can accumulate, interfering with airflow and making a fire hazard.
Some vent louvers units, for example, may become caught in the open position, exposing the entire vent to the environment. A vent cover can also fail to block dirt, dust, and other debris due to being broken or defective.
How to Clean Your Electric LG Dryer Vent
A clogged dryer vent is one of the most dangerous fire hazards in the home. Even if your obstructed dryer ducts don’t cause immediate damage to your home, diagnosing and fixing it can still use up much of your precious time, energy, and money. But there are ways to maintain a clean dryer vent.
For a visual step-by-step guide, you can watch this video.
1. Find the Start and End of the Duct
To clean your dryer’s ventilation system effectively, you must first understand where it begins and ends. This short exhaust system is located at the back of most dryer machines, at an entrance about 4 inches in diameter.
Through an aluminum elbow or other pipe, this exhaust links to dedicated ductwork inside the wall. Hot air goes through these metal pipes before emerging through a hole in your home’s outside wall. A louvered plastic cover conceals this opening, which allows warm air to exit the system but remains closed to keep animals and debris out of the dryer and dryer vents.
2. Disconnect the LG Dryer Exhaust Carefully
It’s time to disconnect the dryer now that you know where the start and endpoints of your duct are. If you have an electric dryer, it’s an easy process. First, remove the machine’s power cord from the outlet. Next, get rid of any metal tape or clips holding the dryer vent pipe to the exhaust pipe. It is much better if you can also eliminate any other metal that connects the exhaust to the duct within your wall.
Gently remove the vent pipe and place it far from the duct in the wall. If you have the electric type, you should easily move it out of the way. You will have more areas to work on if you follow this step.
If you own a home with a natural gas dryer, you take additional preventive measures. When you do move the dryer, be careful not to disrupt the gas line. Like gas ranges, the fuel hookup usually comes with an adjustable steel nozzle. Secure the hose tightly to cut off gas flow to the dryer.
Leaks of natural gas can be life-threatening. If you’re uncertain at any point, ask a technician or call your service provider for assistance.
3. Brush Out the Debris
You should be able to see the dryer duct opening on the laundry room wall at this point. You can also remove the duct flap or duct cover to access the exit point outside your house. You can buy a dryer vent cleaning kit at your local shop.
These kits include a lint brush or flexible extensions. Put these pieces together to make a rod that’s about 12 feet long. You may easily place the contraption’s end into standard power drill chucks. You’ll be able to spin the brush by doing this and more efficiently clear the ducts.
Expect a lot of lint to come rushing out of the duct. Make sure to empty your vacuum so that it doesn’t collapse from the large amount of debris. You may need to empty the vacuum twice or more. Clear any excess dust that reaches the floor using a simple broom or dustpan.
5. Reattach the Pieces
After tidying up, return everything to its original location, except for any soft-foil vents you may have previously used. Get rid of any soft foil that was connecting your LG dryer to the wall duct and find replacements, as these soft-foil hoses are known to cause fires.
You can instead try using a set of 90-degree metal elbows to replace the original semi-rigid venting. These elbows robust, adjustable, and allow for the best airflow.
6. Conduct a Test Run
Cleaning your dryer ducts thoroughly is a sweaty and nasty job, and now it’s time to see if your labor paid off. If clearing the vent successfully fixed your LG dryer, then you have not only avoided buying a new one but also saved yourself from a future dryer fire.
If cleaning the vent did not save your dryer, however, then read on.
4. Dirty Dryer Hose
A clogged dryer vent hose not only creates a fire hazard but also traps and redirects the heat back into your home. And considering just how much heat your dryer produces through various components in order to dry your clothing effectively, recirculating that heat into your home can be quite uncomfortable. Depending on your household and LG dryer usage, dryer exhaust vents should be inspected, cleaned, and disinfected at least once a year, preferably more often.
Unplug the LG dryer from the outlet or other power source. Take the lint trap out of the way and grab the lint. Replace the trap, and discard the excess lint and debris. Examine the dryer hose.
If the hose is worn or broken, replace it as soon as possible. You can bend the hose if needed to make it run in a straight line. Remove anything stored near the dryer regularly. If a fire does break out, placing boxes and other items near the appliance will only add fuel to the fire.
5. Heating Element
Before the air reaches the dryer drum, the heating element conditions it. The dryer may not heat if the heating element is burned out or if any other part of the unit is not working properly. Use a multimeter to check for continuity in the wires leading to the heating element to see if the element is broken. Inconsistent or nonexistent continuity warrants replacing the heating element entirely.
6. Moisture Detector
When the clothes are dry, the moisture sensor detects their moisture level and delivers a signal to the control panel of your appliance. If the moisture sensor fails, the dryer may think that the garments are still damp, causing this dryer to run even when the clothes are already dry.
This rarely happens. Check all of the more usually defective parts first before inspecting and replacing the moisture sensor. Replace the moisture sensor only if you’ve established that all other components are in good operating condition.
Bonus: Clearing Error Codes on Your LG Dryer
If you’ve checked all these components and your LG dryer still isn’t functioning properly, you can see if the machine shows an error code. Different dryer codes correspond to different complications and can help you diagnose what’s faulty.
The good news is you can resolve three of the most common sets of error codes:
Error Code TE1: this code means checking the thermistor of your LG Dryer. Unplug it and press the Start button for a good five seconds to reboot the whole system.
Error Codes D80, D90, and D95: these three codes mean a lint build-up in the exhaust duct. You can adequately inspect and remove the lint by following the steps stated at the beginning of this article.
Error Code P5: this code indicates incorrect voltage supplying your dryers’ power cord. Test this by switching both wire connections located on the terminal block.
LG Dryers: How Long Do They Last?
Washers and dryers have an average life expectancy of 10 to 15 years. Front-loading washers are extremely efficient, and the LG dryers are one of the world’s dependable, user-friendly brands of dryer.
LG Dryer Still Won’t Dry
Some homes have dryer vent systems that are larger. Unfortunately, these can be far more challenging to entirely clean up on your own, which could be why your LG dryer is still not drying properly after everything you have done. If this is the case, then calling a professional dryer vent cleaning service is the best thing.
It’s also possible that one or more addition elements have failed and need repairing or replacing. For example, you could have a defective heating element or gas ignition coil. In this case, it’s better to ask a professional for assistance since they have the knowledge and skills to resolve any LG dryer issues safely and efficiently.
