Fantech Dryer Booster Fan

Thursday we both ended up having to go in to work most of the day (some vacation! at least we were able to get the leave we had requested back). However, we came home after work and knocked out a HUGE project, the installation of our Fantech Dryer Vent Booster Fan.

The last time we moved out the dryer, when we disconnected the vent, we found a big ball of damp lint inside. We cleaned this out, but it kept coming back. (I'm a religous lint trap cleaner, too- so we knew that it wasn't due to that.) I did some searching, and it turns out that if you have more than a 14 foot run of duct, you should install a booster fan on the duct.

We did a lot of analysis of different options for our situation, and ended up buying the Fantech RVF 4XL exterior mounted fan (there was no good way to mount a fan inside of the house), a Fantech Dryer Booster Lint Trap Model DBLT4 to catch any lint that made it past our dryer's lint collector), and a switch to activate the fan by sensing pressure from the dryer called the Fantech DB10 Switch kit, all from the RE Williams online site. I was very happy with them- they provided excellent tracking information and the parts arrived quickly, packed sturdily, with all instructions and everything necessary.

The hardest part of the whole process was locating where to put everything. We ended up taking out the basement window that the dryer exhaust used to go through, removing the last remaining pane of glass, stripping the window (it was so hot that I boycotted the heat gun in favor of finishing up the old chemical stripper that I had bought last year, but it stripper dried completely in less than 5 minutes! I WAS still able to get most of the old paint off of the window.), and replacing the glass with plywood on Tuesday. Then we debated for 2 days on how to run the duct (we used flexible insulated 4 inch duct for most of it (like one would use for regular HVAC purposes- this was recommended on the Fantech site, and turned out to be the easiest way to get the duct to run where we needed), with a few regular sheet metal elbows, and a straight piece in a location where the flex didn't make sense). Finally, Thursday, we bit the bullet and connected everything together. A big area of debate was where to install the pressure sensing switch. The instructions say upstream of the first elbow, but that was technically right behind the dryer where the duct went into the wall before the lint trap so we ended up choosing a location about three feet from the second elbow, but the system works fine- thank goodness! Words cannot describe how sweet the sound of that thing kicking on the first time was!!! It runs exactly as it should, and the time to dry clothes has now been cut in half! We're thrilled with it, even though it was a bear to install. And it's fairly quiet, just a small whooshing sound over the regular sound of the dryer. (If you're wondering why I'm being so specific with the model names, etc. it's because I had a hard time finding info. on this, and I want someone who googles Fantech to be able to find this, in case it might be helpful to them.)

The big white box is the Fantech RVF 4XL, I still need to paint the window.





Here is a better (manufacturer's) picture of the fan itself



Here is our new Fantech lint trap. We've been amazed at how much lint we get out of it after every load. We're wondering if the dryer's lint collection system is working properly. Please no comments on the hole from the screw that I tried to drive in a stud-less location next to the dryer vent. Ooops!





Finally, the Fantech DB10 pressure sensing switch we had such a hard time locating. Fortunately, it works. I had no clue how to turn this picture, so adjust your head to get your desired view, whatever that may be.





It's not a very good picture, so here is a picture (again from the manufacturer)
of the DB10 switch



If you're having problems with your dryer not acting properly, and you've got a long run of duct, this fan may be an excellent solution. I will keep you posted on how well it continues to perform.