Why Your Gas Dryer is Imparting a Gas Smell to Your Clothes

The smell of clean clothes is a soothing one. Do you know what is slightly less soothing? When your clothes smell a little like lighter fluid. If you have a gas dryer, you may be concerned that you have a leak somewhere, which should be highly concerning. However, if you cannot smell gas unless the door is open or smell it on your clothes, a gas leak is less likely.

In most cases, a gas smell on the interior of your gas dryer or on your freshly laundered clothing is a sort of ventilation problem. It can be caused by dirty filters or a breach in the exhaust system. When there is an exhaust system breach, essentially the dryer intake may be pulling in some of the dryer’s own exhaust which commingles with your clothing and makes them a bit smelly.

This issue can also be caused by an igniter in your dryer going out. If you happen to open your dryer early in the cycle and smell gas, that is a sign that an igniter may be going bad. Typically, this releases gas, but the gas smell goes away in a few seconds once ignited. If it is slow to light, the gas smell lingers longer and has time to mingle with clothing.

As one would expect, any issue with a gas appliance where you smell something that might remotely be gas, it can be worrying. While it is very likely a vent or filter issue causing the smell, but you may still want to contact a professional appliance repair technician just to be safe. If you ever smell that smell when the dryer is off, you will want to take action immediately. This can be a sign that the gas valve is not shutting off. You want to turn off the gas to your home and call the appropriate services right away.