You know what a hassle it is to clean out the lint filter every few loads of drying. You’d think by now the manufacturers of these products would have figured out how to help us become even lazier, and hog more energy and resources….

I propose the following: A clothes dryer with an exhaust vent containing a filter that is designed to rinse during or after each cycle. Basically, the dryer senses back pressure in the exhaust stream (comparing the pressure before and after the filter), and runs a cleaning cycle every time it needs to. The airflow and heat would switch off, the filter inlet close, and a water jet would activate for a few seconds or however long needed (an optical sensor can detect water clarity exiting the filter). Dirty lint water would be drained down the same pipe the washing machine is connected to. Since such a small amount of lint is cleaned each time, there’s minimal chance of clogging the drain – same as a washing machine.

This would require a bit more plumbing, a couple of sensors and solenoids, but nothing too expensive. Well worth the price for the convenience.

Oh, and while they’re at it, why not use a counter flow heat exchanger to extract exhaust air heat and preheat the incoming air. Any condensation could now be used as a water source for the lint flushing system. This would save a HUGE amount of power.

<rant> I wish I could recall where I read this, many years back. I dunno if it’s even true: I read that GE dryers use approximately the same amount of power (nationwide) as the output of all their nuclear reactors combined. Pretty good scam if it’s true. </rant>