dadoes: "Fault 6 refers to the inner sliding door panel and latch/release mechanism on the drum, not the outer loading lid." Hmm, well I never saw the fault code displayed on the LCD panel and the dryer never refused to start up, so I have no idea when this problem occurred, and certainly did nothing to correct it. dadoes: "E-mail sent again. :-)" And received, thank you very much! kcred: "I've only done one load since the cleaning, but I like to think the dryer is now more efficient, but it also might be wishful thinking on my part. I'm just glad it's clean as I'm a firm believer in preventative maintenance." I never thought about dryer maintenance before I had this no heat problem with my dryer. I emptied the lint bucket after every load, cleaned out the indoor lint trap water reservoir, but that was about it. Now I know to religiously check the vent for lint build up (once I get a "real" one installed especially,) as well as removing the lint bucket housing from time to time to clean out the lint from there as well. kcred: "BTW, I use that flexible-foil dryer vent hose. Haven't ever had a problem with it." I never thought there was a problem with it, either, and many, many people use the foil vent hoses. I don't believe any dryer manufacturers recommend using this sort of venting, however, and it certainly isn't UL listed, if that is important to you; Fisher & Paykell's user manual, (which I have finally read thoroughly :-o ) specifically says not to use it (and to never vent your dryer indoors, either - good thing I never needed warranty service because I bet my entire set up would have voided the warranty!) I have now read many articles as well as posts on various DIY, etc., forums written by people that also recommend against using the foil vent tubes. From what I have read, the problems caused by these foil vents is primarily due to air turbulence/resistance caused by the ridges in the foil ducting cutting down on the dryer's efficiency; even more important, the ridges - and the potential sagging or kinking of the aluminum foil venting - can also lead to a build up of lint, which can cause both a significant blockage of the vent and maybe even a fire. I'm not sure how one goes about cleaning out an aluminum foil vent tube, either; I would think one of the "normal" vent cleaning brushes would catch on all of the metal wire spiraling through the tube as well as tearing the foil itself. I think it all depends upon your venting configuration. In the picture, you can see that dadoes uses an aluminum vent, but it is just barely extended, there can be little air turbulence, it doesn't sag at all and is probably very easy to clean out. My vent will need to go about 8-10 ft to get to an outside wall so I intend to use rigid metal pipe for my vent. Holly Here is a link that might be useful: Reasons why foil vent should not be used

gordonr, If there's nothing else I've learned during the course of my renovations, I've learned that everything ends up being more complicated than you expect. Once you open up the ceiling or the wall, there always seems to be something in the way of what you want to do. A floor joist where the tub drain needed to be, pipes where I wanted recessed lights to go, and now the recessed light over the tub is where it would make sense to run the duct. I can hardly wait to get to the kitchen renovation! I spoke with a rep in Miele's technical service group yesterday. Initially he was telling me he thought what I wanted to do entailed too long a stretch of duct - that it would reduce the performance of the dryer. I told him I expected that it would not be optimal performance, but what I was trying to determine was whether it would reduce it to the extent that a condenser dryer would have the same performance. He didn't seem to understand what I was getting at, so I gave an example: If the vented model has 15% better performance than the condenser model and the venting I'm doing reduces performance by 15%, then the condenser model would be generally equivalent, but if the vented dryer's performance is 50% greater, the same 15% reduction in performance would still mean the vented dryer was a better choice. I asked if he could give me any information about how much better the vented dryer's performance was than the condenser model and how much the venting I was considering would reduce the vented dryer's performance. At that point, he said he wanted to talk with one of the senior technical reps and put me on hold. When he came back, he told me that the dryer was rated for up to 60 feet (which I already knew) and that I should be fine with what I was planning on doing. He also told me that the sr. rep had indicated that having a condenser dryer in a closet could be problematic because it puts off a lot more heat than a vented dryer - you'd need a lot more air circulation into the closet with a condenser dryer. The closet I'll be putting the w/d into is 68" wide by 29" deep, so the extra heat and air circulation need may not have been as much of an issue for me as it might be for others with a more confined space. One learning that I took away from this: if you start to get the sense that the technical or customer service person you're talking to may not be as knowledgeable as you'd like, ask to talk with a senior rep. Like anywhere else, initial phone calls will be answered by more junior staff who will route the more complicated issues to more experienced staff. I've decided to go with a vented dryer, and now just need to decide between the Miele and the Asko. I'll let everyone know which one I end up with. Jan

My Family has severe drop-itis, but I have it too. Also, I have more hobbies than they do and like many women, more of the stuff in the home is seen as "mine." Also, I am more likely to make a mess but EVENTUALLY pick it up ( I get organizing and cleaning spurts) , rather than create the archeological piles my other family members accumulate. Very frequently I want to rant at DH or DD about their mess. But, if I look around, I see, my laundry is not put away, I have a pile of mag's here, some gardening stuff there... I have made up my mind to work through all of my own clutter, habits, zones--whatever--meanwhile picking up others' stuff as much as I wish, or not, and just not say ANYTHING until I think I am in control of my own habits and stuff. I mean, I want to be able to look at a room and honestly see nothing there that I caused, did, bought, dropped, causing a problem. Because I know that that is what is bothering me the most--my own habits that I would like to change. In my family, there's not a big fuzzy feeling of "let's get organized together." And I don't feel comfortable spilling the blame out of frustration with my own problems. I also am taking a hard look at all my "homemaker" jobs and streamlining them ruthlessly--simpler groceries, meals, hobbies--so I don't blame someone else for my "complicated" life. I am lucky that my family also, to their credit, does not sit around expecting Betty Crocker or Martha Stewart. Instead, I'm the one who likes to cut and arrange flowers, or change the throw pillows, or cook, and then I find, maybe I took on too much for all of what else we've got going on, and no one to blame but me. This doesn't mean that DD or DH would not have their own chores or responsibilities or that I can't say to DD, please pick up your stuff from the den, we're trying to tidy up today. It just means I've decided not to aim any "we're such a mess!" at them at this point, because I don't feel I'm a good example myself, yet. For me, I need that feeling of personal control to have credibility to ask someone else to try to do more to help.

You can conceal that pipe with a bulkhead and maybe a shelf on top if you want or inside a cabinet as others mentioned. It is smooth rigid and it looks like you have all the fittings going the right way (so no lint gets caught in it). Make sure you tape all the joints well so all the moisture goes outside. Do not put decorative duct tape on it... the only tape should be aluminum tape. Remember the pipe gets hot, duct tape is not meant for that, wish we could rename it something other than duct tape. I call it duck tape. What you were worried about and cant conseal is flexible pipe (rigid or non-rigid, because of lint buildup and fire risk), and what you cant use is plastic flex (melts). Not sure why you cant have a washer/dryer in your condo. I guess there is a water damage risk and also a fire risk but isnt a condo your house...? Or do you expect him to use public washers and dryers like he is living in an apartment still. He probably just needs it inspected. Butterfly4u is right about cautioning an electricity risk, that outlet is GFCI and will be fine for the washer BUT the dryer outlet cannot be anywhere near that sink because it is 30A non-GFCI that requires a metal double pole box. So imagine a living room with a ton of items powered on being supplied by a 15A breaker, then double that and that is what the dryer uses. Another question is where is the washer draining to? I would assume the sink. Put a lint catcher on the end of the drain tube and empty it frequently so the sink doesnt get clogged and overflow causing water damage to you and other tenants. I wouldnt recommend venting inside in a 500sqft home. You would still need to run a duct so the dryer isnt blowing into the wall behind it and its going to get hot and moist real quick unless you get one of those condensing dryers. In conclusion: 1. Fire risk = looks ok and yes you can conceal it 2. Electric risk = Need dryer outlet farther behind the dryer away from the sink 3. Water Damage risk = Assuming sink drainage, put a lint catcher on the end of the drain tube and empty it frequently so the sink doesnt get clogged and overflow causing water damage to you and other tenants.