• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
go to homepage

Search by
Category
  • Cleaning Blog
  • Automotive
  • Bathroom Appliances and Fixtures
  • Carpets and Rugs
  • Cats
  • Closets and Organization
  • Dogs
  • Electronics
  • Fabrics
  • Floor & Carpet
  • Floors
  • Food
  • Furniture
  • General Housecleaning
  • House
  • Household Appliances and Fixtures
  • Jewelry
  • Kitchen Appliances and Fixtures
  • Kitchen and Bathroom Surfaces
  • Kitchenware
  • Metals
  • Outdoors
  • Other Pets, Animals and Pests
  • People
  • Stain Removal
  • Stuff
  • Surfaces
  • Things You Own
  • Tools and Techniques
  • Walls and Ceilings
  • Windows
  • Everything Else
  • Ask us your cleaning question

go to homepage

How To Clean Stuff.net

Search by
Category
  • Cleaning Blog
  • Automotive
  • Bathroom Appliances and Fixtures
  • Carpets and Rugs
  • Cats
  • Closets and Organization
  • Dogs
  • Electronics
  • Fabrics
  • Floor & Carpet
  • Floors
  • Food
  • Furniture
  • General Housecleaning
  • House
  • Household Appliances and Fixtures
  • Jewelry
  • Kitchen Appliances and Fixtures
  • Kitchen and Bathroom Surfaces
  • Kitchenware
  • Metals
  • Outdoors
  • Other Pets, Animals and Pests
  • People
  • Stain Removal
  • Stuff
  • Surfaces
  • Things You Own
  • Tools and Techniques
  • Walls and Ceilings
  • Windows
  • Everything Else
  • Ask us your cleaning question

Home / Cleaning Guides / House / Household Appliances and Fixtures / How to Clean a Dryer Lint Screen

How to Clean a Dryer Lint Screen

Table of Contents:
  1. General Cleaning
  2. Deep Cleaning
  3. Additional Tips and Advice

Mary asked: How do I clean a dryer lint screen that is already coated with a residue? I bought a used dryer that looked great, but the dryer lint screen is almost blocked by a residue which I am assuming is from the dryer sheets. How can I get the residue off? I have washed it with soapy and water, using a brush, but that didn’t take it off. Please help.

Dryer sheets leave a film on the lint screen that can lead to problems with your dryer. This film blocks the air flow, which means the dryer has to use more energy and the heating unit is more likely to burn out sooner. Keeping the dryer lint screen clean will keep it working well and nearly double the life of the dryer. If you’ve tried cleaning with no success, you may just need to tweak your approach. Try the General Cleaning method below first and if the residue remains, use the Deep Cleaning method.

General Cleaning

You Will Need:

  • Dish soap
  • Old toothbrush or nylon scrubbing brush
  • Hot water
  • Sink, tub or bucket
  • Soft towel

Steps to Clean the Lint Trap:

  1. Begin by filling a sink, tub or bucket with hot water. Whichever you choose, it should be large enough to allow the trap to soak.
  2. Add a good amount of soap and agitate the water to mix.
  3. Remove any loose lint from the lint trap. Wipe it with your hand or use a vacuum with attachments to remove it.
  4. Place the lint trap into the hot water and allow it to soak.
  5. Use the scrubbing brush to remove the loosened residue.
  6. Rinse frequently to evaluate how much of the residue remains.
  7. Continue soaking and scrubbing until the film is removed.
  8. Rinse completely with clean water.
  9. Dry the screen carefully with a soft towel.
  10. Allow it to air dry completely before placing it back into the dryer.

Deep Cleaning

If soap and scrubbing does not work to remove the residue, follow the steps below.

You Will Need:

  • Baking soda
  • A spray bottle
  • White vinegar
  • A scrub brush
  • A deep tray
  • Water
  • Denture cleaning tablets

Steps to Remove the Residue:

  1. Sprinkle baking soda over the screen. Use enough to thoroughly coat the screen.
  2. If you have a spray bottle, fill it with white vinegar, then mist the screen. If you don’t have a spray bottle, slowly pour the vinegar over the screen. You don’t want to rinse off the powder, you only want to add enough vinegar that it will produce a fizzing reaction.
  3. Let the mixture fizz for a few minutes, then scrub the tray while rinsing.
  4. If the residue remains, find a deep tray or bucket that the lint screen can fit into. A deep tray would be better because it would require less liquid. A sink can be used instead if needed.
  5. Put the lint screen in the tray and fill the tray with enough water that the screen is covered.
  6. Add denture cleaning tablets to the water. If using a large bucket, you may need to use more tablets. Read the label on your specific product for water ratio amounts.
  7. Leave the tray in the water for as long as the product is fizzing.
  8. If the residue remains, there is one more method you can try. Fill the deep tray with water again and put the screen in the water. Pour white vinegar into the water. Using at least a cup of white vinegar will produce the best results. If using a deep bucket that holds several gallons of water, you may want to add an extra cup.
  9. Let the lint tray soak in the water for 15-20 minutes.
  10. Remove the screen and scrub it with a scrub brush.

Additional Tips and Advice

  • Dryer sheets are known for causing increased clogging on the lint screen. Clean it once every 6-8 weeks for best performance. If using liquid fabric softener, clean the screen 2-3 times a year.
  • Clean the lint screen after each load of laundry.
  • Remove all loose lint from the lint trap and ducts several times a year. This keeps your dryer in good working order and will help prevent fires.

Cleaning Guides, Household Appliances and Fixtures

Was This Guide Helpful?

+135
-5
Rating: 97%. From 140 votes.
Please wait...

Related Posts

  • How to Clean A Dryer
  • How to Clean a Blackberry Screen
  • How to Clean an LCD Screen
  • How to Clean Tar/Blacktop from a Dryer
  • How to Clean a Dryer
  • How to Clean Chewing Tobacco from a Dryer

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, conse ctetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit sed diam.


Thank you for subscribing!

Reader Interactions

About the Author

Avatar photo

Susan

I'm a stay-at-home mom who used to run a small housecleaning business. These days I consider myself more or a mad cleaning-scientist. I do most of the testing for our articles - as well as helping Mark & Melanie write them.

Leave a reply Cancel reply

Helpful comments include feedback on the recipe or changes you made.

show comments +

Comments

  1. Michael says

    November 13, 2012 at 9:30 am

    Great job! Thanks!

    Reply
  2. Yasmine says

    April 27, 2013 at 2:31 pm

    This was such a helpful post! Thanks!

    Reply
  3. Bob says

    November 9, 2013 at 3:13 pm

    My old lint screen was so clogged; I inherited my dryer when I bought this house and the lint screen never had a good cleaning. I tried soap and water and a toothbrush and a rough sponge, and that didn’t do a thing. I even thought I could use a flame to burn the clogs out – that worked a little, but not so great.

    The saving grace was my metal BBQ brush! I had soaked the lint screen in soapy water overnight and in the morning, I used the metal brush and voila! I can see through the lint screen again and don’t have pay for a new one!

    Reply
  4. Ange says

    November 10, 2015 at 4:01 pm

    Thanks for the tip! A bowl of hot water and some dish soap. Scrub with a toothbrush. Blow dry. Done in 10 min. Looks brand new.

    Reply
  5. Laddie says

    December 5, 2015 at 12:44 am

    This procedure works “like a charm!” Thanks!

    Reply
  6. Maryina says

    August 24, 2016 at 10:45 am

    It looks as though a painted coating may have been removed while scrubbing with a brush. Now, areas of the screen look like they are rusted.

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

Featured Guides

How to Clean a Hairbrush

How to Clean a Microwave Oven With ZERO Chemicals

How to Clean Every Dental Retainer

How to Clean your Macbook’s Screen

Join our mailing list.
Be the first to know about new arrivals, sales, and special events.
Thank you for subscribing!

Footer

Browse by Category

  • Automotive
  • Clothing & Fabrics
  • Floors & Carpets
  • Housecleaning
  • Kitchen & Bath
  • Outdoors
  • People & Pets
  • Household Stuff

Contact

  • Ask Us Your Cleaning Questions
  • Contact Form

Follow us on Social Media

Site Information

  • Cookie Policy
  • Guest Post Policy
  • Accessibility Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • XML Sitemap

Copyright © 2023 · HowToCleanStuff.net · All Rights Reserved · Website by Anchored Design