The dryer in your home plays a big role in your day-to-day life. It is because of these dryers that you can dry your washed clothes quickly and save valuable time and effort. But this equipment sometimes faces a lot of issues. Among these issues, one of the most common is them taking a long time to dry your clothes.
So, why does the dryer take so long to dry clothes? It can have quite a few reasons. For instance, the power the machine is receiving may not be sufficient for the machine to run at its peak. The dryer vents as well as the lint screen might also be blocked. In addition to that, overloading the dryer can cause it to take longer to dry.
Let’s take a detailed look at why your dryer takes longer than usual to dry.
Why is my dryer taking forever to dry my clothes?
The role of dryers is to take the washed and damp clothes from the washer and dry it quickly by tumbling the clothes and passing hot air over them. This equipment plays a big part in maintaining the punctuality, hygiene, and health of the inhabitants of a house. So, when the dryer faces issues, naturally, it becomes a matter of big concern.
One of the questions we face the most often is “ why my dryer takes too long to dry? You might need your clothes to go somewhere, but because they take forever to dry, you can’t do so. A dryer taking a long time to dry clothes will also consume a lot of energy, causing energy inefficiency.
So, let’s take a look at why your electric dryer takes too long to dry.
1. The energy input is too low
Whenever we face questions like “why my clothes aren’t drying in my dryer?”, we first suggest you take a look at your power outlet. A standard electric dryer needs to run at 240V. But the outlets you have in your home, usually provide only 120V.
As a result, the machine isn’t getting enough power, so it can not perform at its peak. This causes it to take a lot longer to dry your clothes than usual. So, how long should a dryer take to dry clothes? Usually, it should not take more than 45 minutes to do so. So, if you see your dryer is taking more than this amount of time, then you should check your outlets.
Solution:
The solution to this problem is quite easy, to be honest. All you have to do is upgrade your power outlet connecting to the dryer from 120V to 240V.
2. The lint screen is clogged
When you dry your clothes, the hot air passing over them causes the clothes to lose a few small pieces of fabric. These tiny fabric pieces are called lint. There is a lint screen inside your dryer that catches all this lint. When the screen is clogged by too much lint, it prevents the hot air flow, lengthening the drying time of clothes.
Solution:
To ensure all the hot air from inside of your dryer can flow outside, you need to clean the lint screen regularly. Once you see your dryer is taking too long to dry clothes, take the lint screen out of your dryer. Then either use your hand or a paper towel to clean it and then place the screen back into its place.
3. The dryer vent is clogged
If you wonder “why is my dryer not drying well?”, then check the lint screen and the power outlet. If you find both of them to be fine, then it might be caused by a clogged dryer vent. Dryer vents are metal pipes that connect the dryer to the exterior walls. These vents take the moist, hot air as well as lint from the dryer and release them to the outside.
When the dryer vent is clogged due to the accumulation of lint, growth of mold, or any other reasons, the air from inside the dryer can not flow outside. As the air has a lot of moisture in it, when it is passed through damp clothes, the clothes don’t dry as quickly as they should.
Learn How Often Do I Need To Clean My Dryer Vent?
Solution:
If you see your dryer vent is clogged, don’t try to clean it yourself, but rather call a professional dryer vent cleaning service. We provide top-quality dryer vent cleaning service, so that your dryer vents are clean, unclogged, and pose no threat to you and your home.
4. The dryer has been overloaded
Suppose your power outlet is fine, and so are your lint screen and dryer vents. So, what causes a dryer not to dry? The reason for this may be very simple and easy to avoid. When you are in a hurry, you often can load your dryer to the brim. As dryers dry your clothes by passing hot air over them, the air needs a bit of space to be able to pass.
If you overload your dryer, the hot air has no space to pass. This causes the dryer to take longer to dry your clothes, consume more energy, and take up more time than required.
Solution:
The solution to this particular problem is actually quite easy. All you have to do is to load your dryer to two-thirds of its capacity and run it. As a result, the hot air will have more space to pass and dry your clothes.
5. The clothes are too wet from the washer
Sometimes the dryer taking a long time to dry clothes isn’t the dryer’s fault. When you wash your clothes, taking them out when they are too wet causes the dryer to take a long time to dry them. This happens when there are no spin cycles in the washer, or when you select a spin cycle that is not sufficient enough for the water to be squeezed out of the clothes.
When there is too much moisture in the clothes, regular drying cycles will not be enough to dry them. You will need to pass more hot air over them and run the dryer for longer than before to dry your wet clothes.
Solution:
To ensure your clothes aren’t leaving the washer too wet, you have to check your washer for the spin cycle. Ensure you set a spin cycle that is enough to squeeze as much water out of the clothes as possible.
6. The machine has damaged parts
The final answer to your question “why aren’t my clothes drying in the dryer?” is your dryer has damaged parts. The part that gets damaged the most in the case of electric dryers is the heating element. On the other hand, gas-powered dryers might have their gas valves damaged, which causes them to take longer to dry clothes.
Solution:
If you find out that your dryers have damaged parts, you should replace these parts instead of trying to repair them. Most of the parts that cause a longer drying time when damaged can’t be repaired anyway. Even if some parts can be repaired, they won’t serve you for a long time, causing you to eventually replace them.
FAQ
1. How can I speed up the drying time on my dryer?
There are quite a few ways to make your clothes dry faster. These are:
- Cleaning the lint screen and dryer vents
- Not overloading the dryer
- Tossing a dry towel in the dryer for 5 minutes before the drying cycle
- Using dryer balls with the clothes.
2. Can a dryer dry clothes in 30 minutes?
Yes, although a dryer needs around 45 minutes to dry clothes, it can dry clothes in half an hour. This can happen if there are fewer clothes in the dryer, or if you are using dryer balls.
3. What dryer setting is fastest?
Among all the settings is your dryer, and the ‘heavy/regular’ setting is the fastest one. It is also the hottest setting and is suitable for either white or light-colored clothes.
