It’s that time of year when we prepare for the cold temperatures. We check the seals on the windows and doors. We change the vent in the heaters and stock up on them for the colder months to come. Anything we can think of to make sure that we have a warm and comfortable house or apartment while the world outside becomes a freezing environment that we try desperately to keep out.
This cold season, why not also use heat that is regularly produced in millions of homes every winter? Warm air that we invariably send outside. The heated air from our clothes dryers is a perfect way to help heat a portion of your home and help to keep your overall heating costs down.
What’s Needed
There are some options if you want to rig a homemade venting system using vacuum bags that will pump the warm air created by your dryer back into your home. But a more appropriate choice are the well-constructed attachments that have been designed specifically for dryer vent air redirection.. These pieces are home tested and if you follow installation instructions may be safer than the homemade designs.
Woodeze 5IM-VT0107 4 in. White Dryer Vent Heat Save
The Woodeze 5IM-VT0107 4 in. White Dryer Vent Heat Save attaches easily to your existing dryer hose. Instead of the hose releasing the dryer’s warm air outside, the air is deflected back into your home. This will act as a second heating system each time you use your clothes dryer. The attachment also includes a damper that can be closed when the temperature outside begins to rise so the hot air of summer stays outdoors.
The Standard
This example of a dryer vent air attachment is fairly standard in application and in installation. It uses your existing dryer hose, and like most, is compatible with most 4-inch hoses. Included with it is an additional lint screening so you are not blowing your clothing lint into your home. Some other systems eliminate lint, but for any of these attachments, the idea is the same. Heat your home more efficiently and keep your heating costs down.
What’s even better is that the price for most of these add-ons is between $8 and $20, a minor investment when you consider the amount it may save you in heating bills over a full winter. And instillation of most designs only requires the turn of a few screws to be put into place.