Dryer Duct Vent installation, from the inside?

[JimVonBaden]

I have three vents on my house, all the same, one for the dryer, and one each for the bathroom vents. They are cheap white plastic, but all more than 30 feet in the air. I can't reach them, no ladder big enough, and I am unwilling to climb that high anyhow.

That said, they are accessible from the attic. Are there any ducts that are installable from the inside? Or do I have to call someone to come replace them?

This is what I have:

2 of 3 have broken vents vanes, so I want to replace all three before the birds discover them.





Thanks,

 

[6768rogues]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

None that I know of.

 

[jetnow1]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Perhaps a better question would be the availability of a better quality vent so if you have to call someone it will be once and done.

 

[gnpenning]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Do you have any idea what caused them to fail?

There are several styles that you can use. I prefer the type with a hood over the top. I don't know of any you can install from the inside, since the vent part acts as somewhat of a wind stop.

I think I would replace all three with a different style while someone is there working on it.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Thanks guys, the "duct" vents likely failed from high winds and UV. I am going to replace them with SS ones. Now to find a company to do it. No way I am going up a ladder that high with my bad knee.

 

[Marctrees]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

SS is overkill and gonna be tough to find, AL more than adequate.

What you want is not just to get away from plastic, but also to look into better design and quality vents.. been some years now that I bought some, but they are available if you search.

Not saying no such thing, but I do not recall any that will totally install from inside.

At least not if you want to properly weatherseal the install.

Marc

 

[JRC3]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I can't believe the junk they sell for vent hoods. Even when those plastic louvered ones work as they are designed to, birds stil nest in them. Junk.

This is what I put in for my dryer last year. Was 20 bucks. All heavy steel with a nice metal sealed damper and decent metal screen (not pictured).

https://www.menards.com/main/heatin...011-c-9502.htm?tid=8444443222005988298&ipos=4

 

[Dirtydan69]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Sure doesn’t look like 30 feet up.

 

[jeffmattero76]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

What do they cost?

I looked for quite a while for a replacement of the cheap aluminum builder-grade pos. I finally installed one of these Dryer Wall Vents. A little pricey, but I'm very pleased with the quality and looks. I like the flush mount.

https://dryerwallvent.com/

Sent from my SM-G530T using Tapatalk

 

[Done That]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Super expensive ($187 on Amazon) but Kozy Kollar Ev-4 is a real roof vent for bath fans that installs from the inside a roof.

 

[kbs2244]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Paint them to match before they go up.

 

[SALIV8]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

My extension ladder goes up higher than 30'?

How do you inspect your roof and roof vent flashing, etc.?

Regardless, I would replace those with a painted metal alternative and they need to be removed from the outside since the exposed body is larger than the hole through your siding.

Oh and I see 4 of those.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Thanks guys, the "duct" vents likely failed from high winds and UV. I am going to replace them with SS ones. Now to find a company to do it. No way I am going up a ladder that high with my bad knee.

How bad can your knee be if you ride sportbikes. Mine doesn't bend enough to ride sportbikes comfortably anymore, but I can do ladders no problem. Of course, having limited motion and have a mechanical problem are two different things.

If I was local I'd come do it for ya.

Tommy

 

[mjeff87]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Jim,
I just replaced 2 bathroom vent hoods on the north side of my house, much like yours. The builder grade cheap plastic ones crumbled apart from UV and weather exposure, just like the dryer vent on the east side of my house did. I replaced the dryer vent one because I could reach it from my deck on a ladder, but the bath vents are like yours....too high up for me to get to safely. I have a service contract with the HVAC company that contracted with my house builder, so on a whim I called them and asked if they did vent replacement. Long story short I supplied the new vents and they supplied 2 guys and a big ladder for about $120 to do the work. It took one guy inside the attic and one outside on the ladder about an hour to replace both...I went with the metal ones similar to the one posted above from Menards, but I ordered them direct from the manufacturer and had them pre-painted to match my trim for an extra $10 each.

Tl/DR: try calling an HVAC company if you use one, you might be surprised how economical it might be. I use Automatic Climate down here in the Richmond area, and can't say enough good things about them. Not sure if they have offices or do work up in NOVA though.

Jeff

edit to add: I learned that standard clothes dryer vents are 4.5" diameter, but my bathroom vents are only 4.0". All the big box stores around me only carried the 4.5" vents (both in plastic or metal). You might want to make sure of your duct sizes before buying any replacements.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

SS is overkill and gonna be tough to find, AL more than adequate.

What you want is not just to get away from plastic, but also to look into better design and quality vents.. been some years now that I bought some, but they are available if you search.

Not saying no such thing, but I do not recall any that will totally install from inside.

At least not if you want to properly weatherseal the install.

Marc

Actually, SS is not hard to find, or particularly expensive.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FDVM8SS/?tag=atomicindus08-20
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0784LGGHD/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Yeah, inside install was a pipe dream. I will find someone willing to install them.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I can't believe the junk they sell for vent hoods. Even when those plastic louvered ones work as they are designed to, birds stil nest in them. Junk.

This is what I put in for my dryer last year. Was 20 bucks. All heavy steel with a nice metal sealed damper and decent metal screen (not pictured).

https://www.menards.com/main/heatin...011-c-9502.htm?tid=8444443222005988298&ipos=4

Not bad, shipping a little high.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Sure doesn’t look like 30 feet up.

in the attic, above the second floor. 25-30 feet up.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

My extension ladder goes up higher than 30'?

How do you inspect your roof and roof vent flashing, etc.?

Regardless, I would replace those with a painted metal alternative and they need to be removed from the outside since the exposed body is larger than the hole through your siding.

Oh and I see 4 of those.

I don't inspect my roof on a ladder, nor do I need to inspect roof vents. I don't have any.

Definitely going metal, several good choices presented.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

How bad can your knee be if you ride sportbikes. Mine doesn't bend enough to ride sportbikes comfortably anymore, but I can do ladders no problem. Of course, having limited motion and have a mechanical problem are two different things.

If I was local I'd come do it for ya.

Tommy

No cartilage on the inside of my left knee. I ride a BMW R1200GS, no sport bikes for me.

Thanks!

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Jim,
I just replaced 2 bathroom vent hoods on the north side of my house, much like yours. The builder grade cheap plastic ones crumbled apart from UV and weather exposure, just like the dryer vent on the east side of my house did. I replaced the dryer vent one because I could reach it from my deck on a ladder, but the bath vents are like yours....too high up for me to get to safely. I have a service contract with the HVAC company that contracted with my house builder, so on a whim I called them and asked if they did vent replacement. Long story short I supplied the new vents and they supplied 2 guys and a big ladder for about $120 to do the work. It took one guy inside the attic and one outside on the ladder about an hour to replace both...I went with the metal ones similar to the one posted above from Menards, but I ordered them direct from the manufacturer and had them pre-painted to match my trim for an extra $10 each.

Tl/DR: try calling an HVAC company if you use one, you might be surprised how economical it might be. I use Automatic Climate down here in the Richmond area, and can't say enough good things about them. Not sure if they have offices or do work up in NOVA though.

Jeff

edit to add: I learned that standard clothes dryer vents are 4.5" diameter, but my bathroom vents are only 4.0". All the big box stores around me only carried the 4.5" vents (both in plastic or metal). You might want to make sure of your duct sizes before buying any replacements.

Good advice. I will check the sizes. I suspect they are all the same since they are visually identical, and almost certainly HD **** like a lot of the stuff installed on my house when it was built 7 years ago.

 

[mjeff87]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I got mine from Fresh Air Manufacturing Company (FAMCO). Here's a link, if you're interested:

https://www.famcomfg.com/products/wall-vents/exhaust.html?size=30

 

[Milton Shaw]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Don't try calling A/C companies in a heat wave like this summer has been. Wait until the rush is off if you want anything done that is not strictly HVAC work. Even HVAC work now has a 2 week or more waiting list here for normal service...

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Don't try calling A/C companies in a heat wave like this summer has been. Wait until the rush is off if you want anything done that is not strictly HVAC work. Even HVAC work now has a 2 week or more waiting list here for normal service...

Not here. Besides, I am far more worried about an open hole in my wall with all the rain we are having.

 

[tjpavlov]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I don't know about installing any of these from the inside, but check out Seiho vents. They make some really nice ones, although they aren't cheap.

https://www.seiho.com/product/index6.html

 

[Jeepster04]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I bought a no pest vent cover and Im pretty happy with it so far. Cant install it from the inside though....

https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&k...d=kwd-300598567906&ref=pd_sl_65qc8s1g0z_e_p37

 

[AffableCurmudgeon]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I had to do that once. I went to a construction site nearby and asked if there was someone who would stop by with a ladder on his way home. Cost me $20 per vent. It was done in 5 minutes.

 

[6768rogues]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I would spend the money to rent a boom lift before I would hire someone. Then I could do other fun things while I had the lift, like trim some trees, etc.

 

[johnnyradiant]

I have three vents on my house, all the same, one for the dryer, and one each for the bathroom vents. They are cheap white plastic, but all more than 30 feet in the air. I can't reach them, no ladder big enough, and I am unwilling to climb that high anyhow.

That said, they are accessible from the attic. Are there any ducts that are installable from the inside? Or do I have to call someone to come replace them?

2 of 3 have broken vents vanes, so I want to replace all three before the birds discover them.

Thanks,

These are have worked well on my house for a number of years the first one I put on is about 10yrs old and apart from some dust from air moving through the duct it still works fine. My second one is only about 6 years old. Never seen an inside installable one.

 

[engineer2]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

You can do it without a ladder, but it's not ideal.
1. Replacement should fit the siding exactly like the old one.
2. In the attic, box the opening with 2x2's
2. Let a rope out from the attic opening.
3. Attach the rope to the new vent.
4. Caulk the flange on the vent. OSI Quad is best.
5. Pull it up into place.
6. Run some screws through the 2x2 frame into the duct to hold it in place.

 

[Marctrees]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

You can do it without a ladder, but it's not ideal.
1. Replacement should fit the siding exactly like the old one.
2. In the attic, box the opening with 2x2's
2. Let a rope out from the attic opening.
3. Attach the rope to the new vent.
4. Caulk the flange on the vent. OSI Quad is best.
5. Pull it up into place.
6. Run some screws through the 2x2 frame into the duct to hold it in place.

This is the kind of thinking I like.

I will add...

Drill free clearance holes for screws through 2x2 so you have full control over pressure to start screws into flange.

May not be necessary, but self drilling screws may work best.. just be very very easy to tighten, will strip the AL in a heartbeat.

Do final tighten w fingertip feel by hand, NOT drill.

All told, very doable.

Even safer (less caulk mess possible) is to hoist it up w NO caulk, loose secure into place, remove screws and drop to ground.. helper applies caulk.. hoist up again and put to bed.

Marc

 

[vtcat]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

You don't want any kind of screen on ones connected to a dryer, they tend to plug with lint.

 

[Marctrees]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

The only problem that I have waited to be addressed... is how the hell are the Ducks going to fit through these vents?



Just yanking yer chain OP.

It's all good.

Marc

 

[GTO]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Unless you have 10' ceilings in both the first and second levels,I find it hard to believe that is 30' off the ground.
Do you have a raised foundation ?

 

[yeldogt]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

The best ones IMO are the ones made by "the dryerbox" -- go online and click on the dryer vent (top right). It's all I use .. metal and dead simple.

You can not use anything with an obstruction on a dryer (like the screen in some) -- possibility of lint build up makes it a no-no.

Check out the dryer box as well -- great idea. They also sell duct 90's that are very smooth -- I use them for both dryer and when doing exhausts with Fantech bath exhausts. Get it all together and and foam in place with rest of job

 

[chase237]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

You don't need to change to whole thing out, the louvers come out pretty easy. You just need a replacement cover to take the louvers off. Yes you still need someone to climb the ladder and fix it but no need to dismantle everything.

The louvers are keyed at each end and fit into the slots on the housing. I just repaired a couple on my house.

These things are about as cheap as you can get for such an important purpose.

 

[Sawdustmaker]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Check out Broan for dryer and fan vents/ I picked up a nice steel one for my bath fan. I Googled Broan dryer vent when I was looking. About the 25-30 ft..scary! Hire someone with the right equipment.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

I would spend the money to rent a boom lift before I would hire someone. Then I could do other fun things while I had the lift, like trim some trees, etc.

Not a bad idea. Hmmmm

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

The only problem that I have waited to be addressed... is how the hell are the Ducks going to fit through these vents?



Just yanking yer chain OP.

It's all good.

Marc

I tried fixing the title, autocorrect, but it didn't work.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Unless you have 10' ceilings in both the first and second levels,I find it hard to believe that is 30' off the ground.
Do you have a raised foundation ?

Raised foundation of about 2.5'.
The top of the door is just over 10 feet, then 1' between floors. The horizontal window is eye level in the upstairs shower. , then the vents are 4' above that.


But what difference does it make? They are far too high to reach with a 17' extension ladder, so I sure can't do it myself.

 

[JRC3]

Re: Dryer Duck Vent installation, from the inside?

Not a bad idea. Hmmmm

Looks like you have at least 3 vents to replace and it would easily pay for itself. Get the JLG as it has a nice joystick controller.

35' 1-Man Trailer-Mounted Boom Lift - Electric $190.00/Day

I rented on last year to do some trees. Piece of cake.