Is there a better solution than a lint trap for venting a clothes dryer indoors?

Question

My condo association does not allow installing a dryer vent to outdoors, so I am forced to vent my dryer into a lint trap. Unfortunately the trap I have does not catch all the dust, and the rooms adjacent to it gather visible dust within 2-3 weeks. I make sure to change the water in the trap after every load. Are there traps available that perform better? Are there any additional filters/gadgets that may help with this?

Some additional notes: As much as I would like to set up a vent to outside, it is not an option for me. Humidity is not an issue, as I only dry clothes with no or lowest heat setting, and I do have an a/c register nearby to help provide dry air.

Edit: The dryer is electric. I live in a suburb of Chicago, which may have a different building code than the city itself.

Answer 1

According to Chicago Building Code

18-28-504.1 Installation.

Clothes dryers shall be exhausted in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. Dryer exhaust systems shall be independent of all other systems and shall convey the moisture and any products of combustion to the outside of the building.

Exception: Where the make and model of an electric dryer is known and the manufacturer’s installation instructions do not require exhaust, see Article 4, Ventilation for room exhaust requirements.

Venting a dryer inside is a potential fire and mold hazard, and can negatively affect indoor air quality causing sickness (and/or death, maybe).

You should bring this up with the condo association, the building owner, and potentially the building inspector. A possible down side to this action is, the condo association could ban the installation of dryers altogether. So you'll want to try and suggest some alternatives.

I'm going to guess, the condo association is worried about the appearance of vents sicking out all over the building. A potential appeasement would be to select a nice looking vent (voted on by the condo association), and force anybody who installs a dryer to use the same vent.

They may also want all vents to be installed in similar locations, so the vents are uniformly placed on the building. A good way to insure this would be to install all the vents at once, including installing vents for units without dryers (in which case they should be sealed until in use).

Answer 2

Just get an electric condenser dryer, we have a Bosch WTW84560GB that is great, it also uses a lot less power than the older models that need venting.

Answer 3

Both comments on your question are correct. Bring this up with your condo supervisor. If he refuses to do anything about it, I would call the city building inspectors and find out what you can do about this. All ventilation for dryers should be directed to the outside, because(like what has been said by Tester and Greebo) this promotes a big fire/mold hazzard. As well, if it gets too bad, and there is enough particulate floating in the air, this can cause a static discharge that could start the fire without there being any danger of having an open flame source in the room where it is venting into. Call your city building inspector.

Answer 4

As already stated, venting a dryer indoors is illegal and extremely dangerous (especially if it's a gas dryer)...as well as just a huge annoyance (you end up with a humid, dusty room).

What you can do is invest in a Washer/Dryer combo unit that doesn't require venting. It works via dehumidification. It takes longer to wash and dry, but works great:

And I'd do as others have suggested as well...you don't want ANY of the dryers in the building venting to the inside. Force the association to fix this issue for everyone.