# Forum Home Renovation Laundry  Clothes dryer vent for rental property

## Greentiger

We need to install some kind of ventilation in the laundry of our rental property to enable tenants to use a dryer without causing condensation issues. From a brief look at dryer venting systems it seems that some of the parts and installation are quite specific to the dryer make and model due to varying position of the outlet on the dryer. What would be the best approach? Do we just install the wall vent and say it is tenants responsibility to connect it? Is there a fire risk if they use inappropriate parts/materials?
Would installing an extractor fan be a viable alternative?

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## David.Elliott

FWIW just buy a condensing dryer, probably the cheapest /easiest option in the long term.

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## SilentButDeadly

> We need to install some kind of ventilation in the laundry of our rental property to enable tenants to use a dryer without causing condensation issues. From a brief look at dryer venting systems it seems that some of the parts and installation are quite specific to the dryer make and model due to varying position of the outlet on the dryer. What would be the best approach? Do we just install the wall vent and say it is tenants responsibility to connect it? Is there a fire risk if they use inappropriate parts/materials?
> Would installing an extractor fan be a viable alternative?

  Universal Fans can probably help. http://www.universalfans.com.au 
Condenser dryers are useless...and use way too much water.

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## David.Elliott

_Condenser dryers are useless...and use way too much water.?????_ 
It's a dryer, how does it use water?  Ours isn't even plumbed in (lol)

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## DavoSyd

> Ours isn't even plumbed in (lol)

  where does the water go?

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## Marc

Condenser dryer uses water to cool down the hot air, so it wastes water and energy but can operate in an inside room without ventilation but they are not very efficient. 
If you can install an ordinary wall or ceiling fan like the one used in toilets, that should vent indirectly the moisture produced by the dryer. Alternatively you can duct the dryer to the outside with 4" flexible duct. The dryer has the option to duct out or a flat outlet to blow the moisture directly into the room. 
A dryer is a fire hazard if the lint is not cleared every time it is used.

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## Uncle Bob

> where does the water go?

  It goes into a tank that you need to empty if it's not connected to a waste.
I don't know about Condenser dryers being connected to a water supply. The F&P ones definitely don't.

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## DavoSyd

Wow, OK, certainly ticks the box for rental situation!

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## Uncle Bob

You must be a good landlord Davo! I would've expected most landlords would just stick a window/wall fan in.

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## SilentButDeadly

> _Condenser dryers are useless...and use way too much water.?????_ 
> It's a dryer, how does it use water?  Ours isn't even plumbed in (lol)

  Most of the condenser dryers I'm aware of are washer dryers so they are plumbed in. Ive never owned a dryer so I'm not that up to date in drying technology. A line in the breeze has always worked for us.

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## Marc

A Choice analysis of Samsung’s washer dryer showed the time it takes to complete a cycle is longer than most people want to wait. Picture: Choice_Source:Supplied_   Samsung earned its hat-trick Shonky over a washer/dryer that Choice said wasn’t up to scratch. Choice said the firm’s WD16J9845KG washer/dryer was expensive at $2999, took six-and-a-half hours to dry a full load, and used 210 litres of water. Mr Godfrey said it would cost consumers an extra $400 a year just to run the appliance. “In the time it takes to dry a load of clothes, you could nab a cheap fare from Sydney to the Gold Coast and dry them on the beach every week for nearly a year instead of buying this shonky product,” he said.  Choice found this is how much water the washer/dryer uses. Picture: Choice_Source:Supplied_  Mr Godfrey said it was a shame Samsung had been invited back for the third year in a row. Samsung was named and shamed last year after releasing 51,060 potentially dangerous smartphones last August only to recall them weeks later. In 2015, Samsung won a gong again for its “dangerous” top-loading machines which sparked a huge consumer backlash. Mr Kirkland said consumers had a right to be angry when products were faulty and Samsung’s award this year was well deserved. “Most washers use 16 litres of water,” he said. “This uses 210 litres and the idea of using a dryer is to dry clothes quickly, not over 6 ½ hours.” Mr Godfrey said this was Samsung’s fourth Shonky in 12 years.

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## Marc

I don't have a dryer in Sydney but have one at the river house. It's only for emergency if the kids need their clothes and it's raining and they must travel or something like that. I hang the clothes on the line. The dryer we have is an ancient Simpson and blows the wet air in the laundry. All you need to do is to open the laundry door. 
I remember renting a cabin in Thredbo during snow season and they had a dryer in the laundry with a sign on it, "do not operate the dryer with the door closed". That's it, no ducted vent. of course a duct will make the dryer more efficient and the only reason I don't do it on ours is that the laundry has asbestos wall lining.

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## David.Elliott

Yep ours is pretty much only used maybe 6/8 times a year...but when you need it, you need it!

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## Bedford

> We need to install some kind of ventilation in the laundry of our rental property to enable tenants to use a dryer without causing condensation issues.

  Can you hang the dryer outside under an eave? 
No venting required, might need a sparky to fit a GPO to run it off.

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## Marc

That is the best suggestion so far  :Rofl5:

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## UseByDate

Vented v Condenser dryer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J977nce2L1M 
How they work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADPbjb_UOIw 
 Install drain https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6Jpj6gwglw  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6HmhtskdUg

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