I’ve seen it done… but is it code for electric dryers?
has anyone used the “dryer boxes” like the washer hookup boxes but for the dryer vent keeps most of the pipe in the wall and gives you a few extra inches? at $20 a pop they look “clean”
thanks in advance
p
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Replies
I dont think so, even though I have that set up in my basement (here before me too lazy to change it). My dryer is gas but I dont think it matters. The reason I was told is that its a fire hazard.
What I finally did with our dryer was get one of those "periscopes" and screw it to the back of the dryer. The dryer's in the basement, so the vent needs to exit upward, and the periscope puts the connection where it can be reached with the dryer in place.
Up here British Columbia code is metal only as short as possible with no fasteners penetrating the inside of the pipe. But Ridgid PVC logically would work great, glued joints no groves on the elbows to catch lint. I would make sure the spec of the particular PVC is up to the possible higher temps.
The fire hazard on the restricted products somtimes used Flexible vinyl or flexible metal is mainly due to all those darn creveces that catch and build up lint. Rigid PVC with glued joints would almost 100% eliminate the lint traps.
All that said better check your local code.
Those boxes do look good I couldn't find them when I needed one I wish I did.
Have a good evening
has anyone used the "dryer boxes" like the washer hookup boxes but for the dryer vent keeps most of the pipe in the wall and gives you a few extra inches? at $20 a pop they look "clean"
I have started using them and think that they work great. They have sizes for 2x4 walls (the 4" duct is squeezed in to an ellipse to fit), 2x6 walls, and retrofit. Take a look at DryerBox Specifications. The local hardware stores and yards don't carry them so I buy from a HVAC supply house.
i was told that the pvc can build up static,spark and cause a fire with the lint. the dryer box i have used. i like it,it's only 20.00,everybody that see's it before the dryer goes in is kinda curious about it.if i remember right it allows one more 90 degree also. i will use them from now on.oh yeah gives you a couple inches clearance! larry
hand me the chainsaw, i need to trim the casing just a hair.
"i was told that the pvc can build up static,spark and cause a fire with the lint. "Nope for multiple reasons.First air flow is just to low to built up an significant static charge.Way too much moisture to builtup static charge.The 2000 IRC does limit dryr vents to metal and I believe that it is common in other codes.But not because of static.
metal it will be... i have 20 units to run some thru the roof some thru 16" of brick...
I did a web search and seems only metal is code taped not screwed... the reason for no PVC it seems is it takes longer to warm up creating moisture on the inside where lint then sticks to it... that it's not a static thing...
my web research shows....
seems most dryer fires are not in the vent pipe so much as in the dryer overheated by a restricted vent... most were restricted not my lint but by restrictions between the dryer and the wall... ie.. crushed or kinked flex vent pipe... as for causes of house fires... dryers are way down the list
I kinda knew the answer, but with this many to run and about half my runs being right at 20ft PVC sure looked good for clean smooth runs that took less skill to install
thanks
p
I betcha if you phone up yer local FD they will give you an earfull on what is safe vs what is allowed.
To be blunt, dryer fires is more common than we think. The local FD told me that they felt the flexible plastic hose should be out-lawed!
I agree that it is desireable that the washing area look "clean", It not only makes life more pleasurable for those who do laundry, but also contributes to general household safety.
Cleaning dryer vent pipes is seemingly to be an annual or at best bi-annual event, which in my experience is as far from realitly as could possibly be. Most folks NEVER clean dryer vents.
In a reno project I've seen 20' of dryer duct almost plugged solid with dryer lint (lots of fabric softner used in that house)
I've also seen townhouses where no dryer vent to the outside has been used for at least 10 years, and even, here in bone dry Calgary, where some moisture conscious town-house dwellers have even had the bone-headed idea that they could vent their dryer into the make-up air for their furnace....therby dumping all the lint as well as the moisture onto the heat exchanger of their furnace.....
Dry yer clothes in a dryer, you gotta dump that quantity of moisture and lint outside. (that was a period.) Dump it inside (in order some folks think, to recover the heat, or to utilize the moisture) and you got delayed effects on yer insulation, heating, siding, etc which can cost you more than the benifets you think you derived.
Now most dryers have a 4" vent. In order to fit that diameter of pipe into a wall, you would need a 2x6 non--load bearing partition, which in a basic laundry area would have to be 8' long. Ergo you got an extra 2" above a 2x4 wall, so you lose 2"x8'x8'high, or roughly 18k cubic inches. and that's only if yer dryer vent alignment conforms exactly. If it doesn't line up, you got at least an extra 5 or 6" of space to use up when yer flext hose connects, if not more.
But assume yer dryer lines up exactly!!!, To be blunt, who gives a hoot, cause yer washing machine ain't gonna. yer gonna need at least 2" of space behind that to allow connections and space for drains and hoses. Ergo, yer washer ain't gonna sit flush anyhow.
so for using a periscope ( I think they call them "space-saver") type ducting in the wall, you may well think that you are saving space and money, but by the time you convert square to round ducting using expensive and non-standard conversion ducts, , in order to obtain exit venting that works with yer siding etc- in other words, when you scope out the whole spectrum of costs, I doubt that you would save a dime, in fact it might end up less space effective and more costly due to the non-commodity, perhaps custom fabricated items that you would have to use to conform to the house envelope. And they got at leat two right angles in em, which I believe equates to 10' of straight duct, which, depending on yer dryer, may consume about 50% of the maximum allowable ducting you are advised to use.
Let me suggest, in my pea-brain perspective, to you what I did.
You simply opt for a traditional washer/dryer installation, and then, overtop of yer washer dryer install, just install a set of shelf supports over the unsightly gap behind the beasts wherein SWMBO can set the plethora of laundry aids (soaps, fabric softeners, etc, all of which can eat the crap out of a shelf (which is replaceable), and above that add a set of cabinets to hold the misc washing aid bric-a-brac, shoe polish etc.
You want a clean installation.......
an 8" shelf above the consoles of yer traditional washer dryer installation and cabinets over top of it is about as clean and economical as a person could wish for. Covers the unsightly gap and all the hook up sh*t , provides functional storage space, looks good to boot. Moreover is cheaply replaceable (when the soap and bleach spills or drips on it.What more can a person asque for.
That's my two-bit solution.
Three shelf support brackets and a 5' chunk of MCP shelfing is gonna cost you less that one of them "space saver" ducts anyhow.....
Eric in Cowtown
Two of the HVAC contractors we use make a metal box about 14" square with a 4" pipe coming up from the bottom, down from the top, or in from the side--depending on the location of the run. The box fits in either a 2x4 (with elongated pipe termination) or 2x6 wall.
They seem to work well, are not a fire hazard and take little time to fabricate.