The Dryer Dilemma

Dryer vents can be easy from the basement. All you need is a 4" hole saw for your drill and you can go through the wood sheathing above the sill plate on top of the foundation. Barring that, you can remove a basement window and replace it with a piece of PAINTED plywood. Just cut as many holes as you need vents.

I don't share vents because of a situation when I was in grad school. I was living in the dorms for my 1st year at the Savannah College of Art & Design (MFA in Historic Preservation) and my dorm had 6 gas Maytag dryers. They all shared 1 huge duct and vent. The problem was that whenever only one or some of the dryers were running, the exhaust would flow back through the inoperative dryers and into the room. This put a lot of moisture through the non-running dryers, put LOTS of moisture into the room, and piped gas exhaust right into the building. After an hour or two of this, the air conditioner would be unable to handle the humidity and would start blowing fog, with a constant stream pouring from the condensation drain tube. The exhaust would give me terrible headaches, and I doubt the depleted oxygen made the gas burners burn any more efficiently or cleanly. I got an apartment the next year.

Electric dryers can be vented inside if the humidity is needed, but gas dryers must ALWAYS vent outside.

Powering dryers can be more difficult than venting. For lots of dryers, I think gas is easier jut so long as you don't go over the capacity of your gas supply line.

Electric dryers each require their own circuit. This can be accomplished by adding big 240 volt breakers to your existing circuit panel or you can add 1 huge 60, 80, or 100 amp breaker to your panel and run a new line to a sub-panel in your laundry room with individual circuits to each dryer socket. Just don't draw more amperage than the master circuit can handle (usually 200 amps on the main for recent construction or updates, and how ever many amps the big breaker that feeds the sub-panel is rated).

Whenever I do electrical work, I tend to over-engineer things. If what I am doing calls for 14 gauge wiring, I usually use 12. My theory is that old electrical systems that historic buildings have (I am a historic preservationist, so I live for this stuff) are inadequate for modern demands and have often deteriorated due to being pushed past their designed capacity. Replacing a 15 amp fuse that constantly blows with a 20 amp fuse or a coin allows the wiring to carry more amperage than it was intended to, which overheats the wires, making the insulation brittle and failure prone. The problem is not the 15 amp fuse, but people trying to pull more than 15 amps through the circuit. To fix the problem, people need to use less power or add new circuits. By over engineering my work, I hope to avoid this problem by using wiring that can handle higher loads than are presently in use.

That was longer than I intended,
Dave


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Post# 392779 11/12/2009 at 11:51 (5,271 days old) by cadman (Cedar Falls, IA)
Checkrate/Likes I'm faced with a problem I think many of us have experienced…what to do with the dryers? Not only do they take up floor space where (some may argue) a more valuable washer could go, but they also pose a logistical problem with venting multiple machines and in some cases adding a row of gas hook-ups, too. I've taken the route of sticking with all electric and combined venting for 3 machines (4 if in a pinch) but the layout ends up segregating matched sets. So what do you guys do? Put matched sets side by side? Break up the pair and part with the dryer? Keep the mates in storage or just avoid 'em at all costs?? And if you do keep a bank of the beasts hooked up, what's your preferred venting "solution"? -Cory

Post# 392795 , Reply# 1 11/12/2009 at 13:03 (5,271 days old) by turquoisedude (.)
Checkrate/Likes *Intresting that you brought this up...* because I am in a similar dilemma! I have two working and one to-be-restored dryer that I just don't know how to hook up... My initial thought had been to move all the dryers to one wall (where venting would be easier) but I am not sure I like the idea of breaking up a set either. At the moment the laundry area in Ogden has NO dryer vent (can you believe that??). Is it considered heresy around here to break up a matched washer/dryer set?? LOL

Post# 392798 , Reply# 2 11/12/2009 at 13:20 (5,271 days old) by unimatic1140 (Minneapolis)
Checkrate/Likes I'm down to four matching sets now, '58 Frigidaire, '55 Westinghouse, '57 Lady Kenmore and '59 Philco. I still have the 2005 GE Harmony set, but the washer is unhooked and I'm going to sell it. I used to have the matching Filtrator dryer to my WO-65 Frigidare washer, but when the Apex came, something had to go. While matched sets can be absolutely stunning, in my opinion washers are much more fun to have and use so they will always get the space over a dryer. Dishwashers as well would beat out dryers in the long run. Fred and I are talking of moving the Westinghouse Laundromat set up into the kitchen in the spot where the Youngstown Jet-Tower dishwasher is currently located which will make for one more open spot in the basement.

Post# 392801 , Reply# 3 11/12/2009 at 13:38 (5,271 days old) by volvoguy87 (Cincinnati, OH)
Checkrate/Likes *Dryers.* Dryer vents can be easy from the basement. All you need is a 4" hole saw for your drill and you can go through the wood sheathing above the sill plate on top of the foundation. Barring that, you can remove a basement window and replace it with a piece of PAINTED plywood. Just cut as many holes as you need vents. I don't share vents because of a situation when I was in grad school. I was living in the dorms for my 1st year at the Savannah College of Art & Design (MFA in Historic Preservation) and my dorm had 6 gas Maytag dryers. They all shared 1 huge duct and vent. The problem was that whenever only one or some of the dryers were running, the exhaust would flow back through the inoperative dryers and into the room. This put a lot of moisture through the non-running dryers, put LOTS of moisture into the room, and piped gas exhaust right into the building. After an hour or two of this, the air conditioner would be unable to handle the humidity and would start blowing fog, with a constant stream pouring from the condensation drain tube. The exhaust would give me terrible headaches, and I doubt the depleted oxygen made the gas burners burn any more efficiently or cleanly. I got an apartment the next year. Electric dryers can be vented inside if the humidity is needed, but gas dryers must ALWAYS vent outside. Powering dryers can be more difficult than venting. For lots of dryers, I think gas is easier jut so long as you don't go over the capacity of your gas supply line. Electric dryers each require their own circuit. This can be accomplished by adding big 240 volt breakers to your existing circuit panel or you can add 1 huge 60, 80, or 100 amp breaker to your panel and run a new line to a sub-panel in your laundry room with individual circuits to each dryer socket. Just don't draw more amperage than the master circuit can handle (usually 200 amps on the main for recent construction or updates, and how ever many amps the big breaker that feeds the sub-panel is rated). Whenever I do electrical work, I tend to over-engineer things. If what I am doing calls for 14 gauge wiring, I usually use 12. My theory is that old electrical systems that historic buildings have (I am a historic preservationist, so I live for this stuff) are inadequate for modern demands and have often deteriorated due to being pushed past their designed capacity. Replacing a 15 amp fuse that constantly blows with a 20 amp fuse or a coin allows the wiring to carry more amperage than it was intended to, which overheats the wires, making the insulation brittle and failure prone. The problem is not the 15 amp fuse, but people trying to pull more than 15 amps through the circuit. To fix the problem, people need to use less power or add new circuits. By over engineering my work, I hope to avoid this problem by using wiring that can handle higher loads than are presently in use. That was longer than I intended, Dave

Post# 392803 , Reply# 4 11/12/2009 at 13:41 (5,271 days old) by volvoguy87 (Cincinnati, OH)
Checkrate/Likes *Robert,* If you're so short of space, I would gladly look after your 1958 Unimatic and matching dryer for you. Just drive them out to Cincinnati and we can take them right down to the basement. I'll even make y'all a nice meal for your trouble :) Dave

Post# 392814 , Reply# 5 11/12/2009 at 14:20 (5,271 days old) by unimatic1140 (Minneapolis)
Checkrate/Likes *lol* Why how sweet of you Dave, isn't that nice and I even get a meal out of the deal. :-)

Post# 392816 , Reply# 6 11/12/2009 at 14:24 (5,271 days old) by volvoguy87 (Cincinnati, OH)
Checkrate/Likes *Ok, where did you get the light switch plate?* I need several of those. Dave

Post# 392859 , Reply# 7 11/12/2009 at 19:09 (5,271 days old) by yogitunes (New Jersey)
Checkrate/Likes Well you always have so called options, depending on space available, or even storage space to move machines around and pick a few daily drivers, like changing of the seasons, not always possible but nice to keep machines together, but whats simpler, or convienent as far as venting, plumbing, electrical...you could line washers on one wall and matching dryers across, or on one all alone all the washers and then all the dryers, everyone available set up is different.... here I have my FLEET of neptunes, and I like their all lined up, 1 and 2 are washers, 3 and 4 are the dryers, taking clothes from machine 2 to 3 not much of a problem, but from washer 1 to dryer 4, and now I'm running a marathon, would be nice actually to have them across from each other, that way once I stoop down all I have to do is pivot...and also by machine design, I prefer a drop down door on a FL washer and dryer, easier to load/unload, rather than a side swing door, to keep clothes from falling on the floor

Post# 392870 , Reply# 8 11/12/2009 at 20:21 (5,271 days old) by toggleswitch2 ()
Checkrate/Likes I made a 20 foot (6 meter) 220v 30a extension cord. When the heat and humdity can be saved, the chosen dryer gets fired up. When one has no need for the heat and humidity, magic-sliders allow one to push it to the existing vent and connect it to vent out.

Post# 393011 , Reply# 10 11/13/2009 at 13:47 (5,270 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill Home of the RailwayTrials Merseyside,UK)
Checkrate/Likes *Well.....You Know What To Do..???* Go Euro..!!Lol..you never know you may like it..!!! now for once I`m glad our units are smaller, it does enable us to cram more in!!! I couldnt imagine the stress of having to ditch & seperate matching sets!!! Heres Mat getting a fix in "Hoover Central"...

Post# 392976 , Reply# 9 11/13/2009 at 09:24 (5,270 days old) by cadman (Cedar Falls, IA)
Checkrate/Likes *I think we're all on the same wavelength....* Yogi, now that really is a fleet! Sounds similar to my problem, I like the 806's and was on a kick to get one of each color. Lining up the washers is a lot of fun, but a row of HOH's is a little...boring? Especially with other makes waiting in line. Togs, that's a good idea with the extension cord- I have a dedicated sub panel for the washers/dryers with dryer supplies along my vent wall, why not go "remote"? A pair of HOH's are venting inside right now anyway. (machines are in a dry, unheated 'living space') Neat to study everyone's "MO" : )