After getting a hoax email on the fire danger of dryer sheets (see Consumer Reports’s refutation), I remembered that I need to replace my flexible dryer hose with a rigid type. Apparently, rigid hoses are less of a fire hazard because they don’t collect lint.
My flexible hose setup:
Notice the nice sag in the middle to (theoretically) catch lint:
In fact, closer inspection showed the entire duct was pretty clean despite 3 years of use. The worst part was actually near one of the ends:
Far from clogged!
The inside of the dryer and the outside vent were clean:
So much for the dire warnings of dryer lint fires!
Next I installed the rigid vent. All I needed were two elbow connections and a 2 foot straight section. This is the first elbow, inserted into the outside vent:
Then I cut the middle section to fit, using about four test fits to get it right:
The tubing is thin, so I was able to cut it with traditional, black-handled scissors. (It comes in a sheet; you snap the the length side together along a seam.
A picture of the top, with the seam visible on the bottom right:
Then, with a little coaxing and finagling, I got it in place:
In only 40 minutes, I eliminated a trivial fire risk! Yay.
I think the dryer may run more efficiently. The exhaust no longer goes through a long, snaking tube.