Dryer Vent Inspection in Manhattan Beach, CA

What a dryer vent inspection actually involves

First the dryer gets pulled out and unplugged, or the gas line shut at the valve. We look at the four inches behind it before anything else. That transition is where original flexible foil or vinyl duct gets crushed against the wall. Then a camera goes up the duct from the dryer end. We measure the run. We count elbows and note material changes. Outside, the cap gets checked by hand, not by eye. Last, the dryer runs while we read airflow at the termination.

Findings split by house type here. Postwar stucco homes usually have short exterior-wall runs behind garage and service-porch dryers. Coastal rebuilds and townhomes send long second- and third-floor runs through interior walls to roof terminations. Stacked interior closets in Marina del Rey and Cerritos condos vent through shared chases, so one neighbor's lint becomes yours. Garage-corner installs cross ceiling joists to a sidewall and sag between them. Lint pools at those low points.

Screened or louvered caps go lint-blinded shut. Roof caps missing a bird screen collect nests. Older unpermitted laundry conversions sometimes vent into the garage interior or attic space outright.

Short straight runs: inspect every 18-24 months. Long or multi-elbow roof runs, pets, heavy laundry: annually.