Laura Corin Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I used it to start the wood stove this morning: it flared up really well, with an intensity that you don't get from paper. I'll be saving the lint from now on. 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I have a gallon size zip lock in my laundry room and lint goes directly in there. We save it for the boys scouts to take on their campouts. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I made some fire-starters for my FIL one year with dryer lint. THey might be overkill for a wood stove but are great for camping. You just get an egg carton, and stuff the lint in the little holes. Then you fill the whole thing with melted paraffin. When you want a fire, you rip off one of the egg chambers and use it as a starter. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I have a gallon size zip lock in my laundry room and lint goes directly in there. We save it for the boys scouts to take on their campouts. Yes, we save it in a bag too. We use it when we're burning brush and leaves to get the fire started, and also for when we have a fire in the pit outside. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I've been thinking I should used drier lint for camp outs. I usually use stuff from my paper shredder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 BTW I was a little worried, when I saw the title, that you made this discovery with bad consequences. I'm glad that's not the case. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I am obsessive about cleaning the lint trap (thanks mom) after each use of the dryer because so many home fires start with the dryer. It never occurred to me to keep the lint to use as a fire starter. New hobby for me. I am also glad you did not make this discovery because you were not cleaning the lint trap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 Who was it on this board that had a relative who got upset when she cleaned his trap? He thought it was necessary for the dryers function. She was very worried. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 Laura, so glad you didn't discover it the 'the hard way'! Now that someone has pointed out that they make little fire starters with dryer lint and wax, I think I'll do that for my charcoal grill. I buy those little wax starters but these will be cheaper...and will surely cause my adult children to roll their eyes at me. My 'mindful spending' sometimes really annoys them. Wait until I tell them to save the dryer lint... 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted October 25, 2015 Author Share Posted October 25, 2015 Laura, so glad you didn't discover the 'the hard way'! Didn't mean to cause alarm - I'll change the title. Our dryer is not vented to the outside, so there aren't lots of hidden places for lint to end up. A lot of British dryers are like that, because they were retrofitted into older houses where there wasn't a sensible outlet. I suspect that this makes dryer fires less common: I asked a local fireman (decades of experience) and he hadn't come across one. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I've always heard about fires caused by dryer lint but never knew anyone who actually had that happen. But if it is a common thing caused by the venting, I'd be all for not venting mine to the outside. I do a couple of loads a week so not venting wouldn't add a lot of heat/humidity to my house. Our house is 135 years old and you're right- no good path to vent- so ours is a rigid vent that runs through a wall, into our mudroom, around three bends, then outside. Pretty sure there's plenty of lint in there even though we try to clean it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted October 25, 2015 Author Share Posted October 25, 2015 I've always heard about fires caused by dryer lint but never knew anyone who actually had that happen. But if it is a common thing caused by the venting, I'd be all for not venting mine to the outside. I do a couple of loads a week so not venting wouldn't add a lot of heat/humidity to my house. Our house is 135 years old and you're right- no good path to vent- so ours is a rigid vent that runs through a wall, into our mudroom, around three bends, then outside. Pretty sure there's plenty of lint in there even though we try to clean it. The UK ones are a special design with a condenser - the steam is cooled within the machine, and you empty the reservoir when you clean out the lint before each load. I wouldn't just fail to vent a standard dryer - mould is nasty stuff. Info here: http://knowhow.com/article.dhtml?articleReference=3345 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 That was an interesting article. How much water accumulates after a load is dried? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 We save it, and stuff it into old toilet paper tubes as we go. Great fire starters. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 We save it, and stuff it into old toilet paper tubes as we go. Great fire starters. This is what we do too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Peregrine Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 We save it, and stuff it into old toilet paper tubes as we go. Great fire starters. Us, too! It works great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajag Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 Yep. My husband used to be an appliance repairman and would ask when the last time their dryer had been taken apart and vacuumed out. People would look at him like he was a special kind of stupid since "it's just lint". Then he would take a tiny piece and light it in their sink so they could understand the danger. Pretty much everyone watched what he did with their dryer and vowed to start doing it yearly or scheduled him to come out and do it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymonster Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I made some fire-starters for my FIL one year with dryer lint. THey might be overkill for a wood stove but are great for camping. You just get an egg carton, and stuff the lint in the little holes. Then you fill the whole thing with melted paraffin. When you want a fire, you rip off one of the egg chambers and use it as a starter. We love making these (ok, I love making these! DH thinks I'm nutters, but that's nothing new)! I just leave an egg carton on the dryer and stuff the lint in it as I pull it out of the dryer filter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 My dryer caught on fire from lint. We cleaned the trap regularly but never vacuumed out the guts. One day something sparked and Floof! Oh- the smell is ghastly and I had to throw out some of the clothes bc on the smoke smell. No tragedy but it could have been much worse. Now DH puts Vacumn The Dryer on the calendar on the first of every other month. And he does the outlet vent every four months (we waited ten years to do it the first time) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted October 25, 2015 Author Share Posted October 25, 2015 That was an interesting article. How much water accumulates after a load is dried? Depends on the load: maybe a pint if I've dried towels; less for clothes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsuga Posted October 25, 2015 Share Posted October 25, 2015 I used it to start the wood stove this morning: it flared up really well, with an intensity that you don't get from paper. I'll be saving the lint from now on. We have a huge supply that we save for camping. It's getting unreasonably large since there was a burn ban this summer. We stuff it into old toilet paper rolls with the used dryer sheets and call them dryer bombs. Put them under a wee bit of kindling and POOF! Instant fire. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbutton Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I've heard you can do the drier lint/wax thing in an empty tuna can for an improvised stove--not sure how hot or long it cooks, but I am guessing it would heat a can of soup in an emergency. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I know a rocket team, thankfully not mine, that found out the hard way that dryer lint while free and soft is NOT good wading to place between the motor booster section and the payload. Oh it was a interesting spectacle, such a nicely built, beautifully painted rocket going up in flame as it ascended a couple hundred feet and descended as sizzling confetti. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I know a rocket team, thankfully not mine, that found out the hard way that dryer lint while free and soft is NOT good wading to place between the motor booster section and the payload. Oh it was a interesting spectacle, such a nicely built, beautifully painted rocket going up in flame as it ascended a couple hundred feet and descended as sizzling confetti. ouch. that is a painful lesson :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Live2Ride Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 Love lint :), just not in the dryer. And boy I got a giggle on the rocket payload mishap, but I feel bad for their utter shock I'm sure of watching it go up in flames. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I made some fire-starters for my FIL one year with dryer lint. THey might be overkill for a wood stove but are great for camping. You just get an egg carton, and stuff the lint in the little holes. Then you fill the whole thing with melted paraffin. When you want a fire, you rip off one of the egg chambers and use it as a starter. When ds was in Camp Fire USA they made fire starters this way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Florida. Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 I made some fire-starters for my FIL one year with dryer lint. THey might be overkill for a wood stove but are great for camping. You just get an egg carton, and stuff the lint in the little holes. Then you fill the whole thing with melted paraffin. When you want a fire, you rip off one of the egg chambers and use it as a starter. When ds was in Camp Fire USA they made fire starters this way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 This thread has inspired me, LOL. We've been burning yard debris this week and it is slightly damp and the fire didn't want to start. My oldest DD was impressed by the "dryer lint bombs" (lint stuffed in empty toilet paper rolls) that I made -- as well as the quickness that they got the fire started. :thumbup1: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TX Native Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 Now I know what yo make for Christmas and give to my friends that like to camp. Tx. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxbridgeacademy Posted October 27, 2015 Share Posted October 27, 2015 Doesn't work here, we have pets. Dog hair smells really gross when burned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halftime Hope Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 Adding my two cents' worth: dh and I both are fanatics about emptying the lint trap and about unclamping the flexible hose from the wall and cleaning between our dryer and the wall fixture. So , it's not for lack of effort that we had a build-up. I noticed that the lint trap wasn't seating properly in its slot just inside the dryer door. I let it go for a couple of weeks, and the fit was getting worse and worse. Finally one washday I looked at it closely, and --holy cow! -- there was such a wad of lint, several handsful, just past the dryer filter. I cleaned everything I could reach and pry out, and then dh took the front off the dryer and vacuumed everything. My word, what an accumulation! I'm so glad we didn't burn the house down by accident. So that's your PSA: look at more than just the filter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 28, 2015 Share Posted October 28, 2015 One would think they would make them easier to take apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajag Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 One would think they would make them easier to take apart. Many of them it's just a couple of screws or bolts and the whole front comes off. Googling "service manual brand model dryer" results in good information usually. These are the manuals the manufacturers send their techs. There are also appliance repair forums where you can ask the easiest way to disassemble your model dryer to clean out the lint and techs will answer. With some dryers there are shortcuts not in the manual. Not all, but some of the bigger PITA models will have these real world workarounds. For example, the service manual for my old whirlpool recommended a complicated procedure that involved removing the circuit board. The forums had a shortcut that involved 4 bolts and some wiggling of the face plate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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