Washing machines and dryers come with lint collection systems to collect and manage loose threads, fibers, and particles from our clothes during the wash and dry cycle.
Ideally, this collected lint should stay in the unit until you clean it out.
But what does it mean when lint spews from your machines and spreads throughout your laundry room? Here’s a possible explanation.
- Laundry machines have efficient lint-management systems that prevent clothing fibers from spreading.
- If lint is escaping into your laundry room, there might be a problem with your washer or dryer.
- A misplaced lint trap in a washer could result in the escape of lint.
- With a dryer, the main culprit would have to be a broken or backed-up dryer duct.
It is not normal for lint to escape your washing machine or dryer. That’s because lint collection and management systems are designed to keep these accumulated fibers secure until you open and clean the unit. If the lint seems to escape your machine, there might be an issue.
Reasons Why Lint Might Escape Your Laundry Units
1. Absent Lint Screen
You’ll find a small screen inside if you check the lint trap. This is called the lint screen. Its purpose is to provide lint something to cling against so that the accumulated fibers don’t spread and escape your unit.
When cleaning your lint trap, you will have to remove the screen. But because it’s relatively small and lightweight, it’s possible to forget to put it back in when reassembling the lint trap.
2. Broken or Clogged Dryer Duct
Another possible reason your laundry room is covered in lint is a broken dryer duct. The silvery, flexible duct extends from behind your dryer and passes through the wall behind it.
This duct facilitates the movement of hot air and lint outside of the system and your home.
If the dryer duct is broken (especially somewhere near the dryer itself), hot air and lint that should ideally escape the system are forced back into your room through a crack or a break in the duct.
This can cause lint to pour into your room during every dryer cycle. A clogged dryer vent can cause a similar situation, leaving lint nowhere to go, so it backs up into the system and breaks into your laundry room.
Summary
Washing machines and dryers are designed to keep lint secure as it waits for you to manually clean the system. So if lint seems to escape your laundry units without your intervention, there may be a problem.
Consider these reasons to resolve the issue and keep your laundry room lint-free.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Causes Laundry Lint?
Clothes naturally produce fibers during a wash. These loose cloth particles rub off the clothes and accumulate to produce laundry-specific dirt.
Heat and friction cause these fibers to detach from the clothes, but certain fabric types don’t produce lint.
How Do You Prevent Lint From Covering Your Laundry Room?
It’s pretty simple — make sure the lint management systems installed in your washer and dryer are functional and maintained.
Clean and properly replace the lint trap in our washer, and keep an eye on your dryer duct so you can stay on top of potential damage.
