Electric clothes dryer question

[NetWareHead]

I just moved into an apartment that has an electric clothes dryer. I was wondering if it is possible to disconnect the exhaust vent and use it to heat my home when the dryer is in operation. To clarify, the dryer exhaust would discharge into to living spaces rather than being vented outside. Unlike a gas dryer, there is no combustion product that needs to be vented outdoors, rather, just "waste" heat. Seems like a waste of money to throw that heat away and at the same time have my heating system running to heat the place up. The only downside I can think of is my apartment would smell like dryer sheets...


So...can someone find fault in my thinking? Safe?

 

[Jeff7]

Text

Never used one, but I did happen to notice them at a hardware store once.

 

[Newbian]

Make sure you see if it's ok with the apartment owners first.

 

[xSauronx]

Originally posted by: Newbian
Make sure you see if it's ok with the apartment owners first.

this. youre gonna blow hot air and humidity into the walls :-/

 

[natto fire]

When I did this, I made some ductwork to throw the hot air away from the wall, and covered the outlet with panty hose to catch lint. It worked fine with no mold or anything.

 

[summit]

humidity fail

 

[EagleKeeper]

If you have low humidty, then the warm moist air will feel good.

As others stated, you need to direct the air flow and be aware that you will increase the humidity and possibly encourage mold

 

[RU482]

if/when there is a method to regulate Humidity, AND there is a way to reduce particulate, then this is a great way to get "free" heat.

i wonder why this isn't adopted on a mass scale...
Just like corn stoves and WVO/diesel conversions....too much work for the average Joe.

CAN it be done...yeppers! Are you going to get a month or a year into it and say, fuck this.....YMMV

 

[lxskllr]

I always wondered if you could run it into a tub of water like a bong. It would filter the lint, and reduce the humidity somewhat.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: lxskllr
I always wondered if you could run it into a tub of water like a bong. It would filter the lint, and reduce the humidity somewhat.

The back pressure on the air might decrease the air flow enough to reduce the effectiveness of the dryer.


Also, OP, as above, yes you can. However, you'll also want to monitor the humidity in your house. In the winter, a lot of heated homes have too low of humidity. And people use humidifiers to add some moisture back into their air (increasing slightly their utility bills.) Your solution is perfect, however if you do a lot of laundry, it'll be far too much humidity for the house.

 

[Engineer]

Throw a pair of pantyhose over the end of the hose and let it rip. Oh, and a dehumidifier might be good too.

IIRC, you can buy a valve-Tee that you can place in the middle of your hose and redirect the air into your house or straight out the hose at the turn of the flap.

Edit: Just noticed that jeff7 posted exactly what I was talking about in the 2nd post...that's what I get for not reading! 😱

 

[us3rnotfound]

Originally posted by: Engineer
Throw a pair of pantyhose over the end of the hose and let it rip. Oh, and a dehumidifier might be good too.

IIRC, you can buy a valve-Tee that you can place in the middle of your hose and redirect the air into your house or straight out the hose at the turn of the flap.

I believe that putting a filter such as pantyhose would burn up the dryer lol

 

[Engineer]

Originally posted by: us3rnotfound

Originally posted by: Engineer
Throw a pair of pantyhose over the end of the hose and let it rip. Oh, and a dehumidifier might be good too.

IIRC, you can buy a valve-Tee that you can place in the middle of your hose and redirect the air into your house or straight out the hose at the turn of the flap.

I believe that putting a filter such as pantyhose would burn up the dryer lol

Well, if you let it get stopped up it would, lol! 😛

I've seen people do this for years. As long as it doesn't stop up, it's fine and you can see the hose fill up. 😀

 

[boomerang]

Cut a leg off the pantyhose at the crotch and tie it on. You'll get to look at a leg projecting out into the room every time the dryer runs.

Perfect for leg men.

 

[l0cke]

Originally posted by: Jeff7
Text

Never used one, but I did happen to notice them at a hardware store once.

I've got something like this, it is very nice. It keeps lint out of the air so your house doesn't catch on fire, and if it gets too hot you just switch it so that is blows outside.