dryer venting

[pgebe]

my gas dryer vent goes thru the wall in the in the first floor utility room, down to the basement than outside. the problem is that the wall is 2 x 4 and I can not get a 4" duct into a 3.5" space. I have been using plastic as it is the only thing i can squeeze in the space but have been told it is not code.
if i use 3" duct from the dryer thru the wall - it would be a run of about 3 feet - and than go back to 4"
what would be the effect on dryer performance.

[HayZee518]

Try using 4 inch aluminum duct

[LazyPup]

When comparing pipe diametes we have so consider total cross sectional area rather than diameter, therefore the mathematical formula is Large Diameter squared divided by Small Diameter Squared.
Thus when comparing a 4" line to a 3" line it would be..

(4x4) / (3x3) = 16/9= 1.77

thus a 4" line has the capacity of 1.77 3" lines..

Or we could convert it to a percentage by dividing 9/16 = 0.5625

The end result is a 3" line would only have 56% of the volume of the 4" line.

In all probablility reducing the line by that much would restrict the air flow and cause the "HIGH LIMIT" switch to shut the burner off.

[Dan O.]

quote:Originally posted by pgebe
if i use 3" duct from the dryer thru the wall - it would be a run of about 3 feet - and than go back to 4", what would be the effect on dryer performance.

Probably considerable. If you only have 3.5" depth to deal with, you may be able to get something like at the following link to work with. I wouldn't suggest you reduce the duct size (and especially not squish flexible duct!).

Periscope Dryer Vent Duct
LINK > http://tinyurl.com/6crcq

You can read a bit more about dryer venting at this link:

How long can my dryer vent be?
LINK > http://www.appliance411.com/links/jump.cgi?ID=778

JFYI

Dan O.

https://www.Appliance411.com/?ref411=Dryer

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