Washing Machine Lint Traps

Lint traps are mesh screens that are designed to go over the discharge hose of a washing machine that empties into a sink, and are also known as lint snares or lint filters. They can be made of aluminum, stainless steel or nylon. They are used to capture any lint that is discharged from the water to keep it from going down the sink. Lint traps are more important today since washing machines no longer come with a built in lint filter, as a result, more lint gets washed down the drain, and stays on the clothes.

If you are anything at all like me, you realize the effect that lint from your laundry has on your pipes, sink and septic system. This lint that is discharged with the water, clogs your pipes and can harm the flow of your septic system. It took a while before I realized that there were pre made solutions out there that were easy to use and inexpensive to buy. To me time is money and searching for a old nylon stocking and finding something to attach it with onto the hose so that it wouldn’t come off when the water was coming out of the hose, was more of a pain and more expensive time-wise for me.

If I have to spend more than 15 minutes to create something, then it’s worth the $5 to just buy the solution. To create my own solution meant that I would have to find a nylon that was long enough and still had enough integrity to it to effectively filter out the lint. I would then have to find a rubber band that would twist tight enough to hold the nylon in place for until it was time to replace it. This solution worked in being able to reduce the lint, however the solution was always haphazard and took way to much time for me to spend to get it to work. Luckily I found these lint traps that are especially made for washing machine drain hoses to specifically filter the lint from the drain water. The particular snares I found are made of stainless steel and come with an attachment tie that holds the filter to the hose tight enough to keep it secure when the water discharges from the laundry machine. The great thing is that there is no additional equipment needed to attach them to the washing machine output hose. That means I don’t have to spend time searching the house for something to attach it with. Remember for me, time is money. Once the lint traps get full of lint, the best practice is to replace them when they are about 1/2 full, although I have seen them 90% full before they were changed.

5 packs of lint traps on Amazon are available for purchase or you can just search for washing machine hose lint filters on Amazon and see what comes up.

Some problems that Lint Snares keep us from having to experience:

- clogged sink drains that are caked with lint from the discharge water during the laundry machine spin cycle

- your sink filling up with water during the water discharge because the drainage screens get filled with lint over time and begin to block the water from draining out of the sink.

- globs of lint getting stuck to the side of the sink to have to be washed out time and time again… more maintenance!

Unfortunately these lint traps don't solve the problem of more lint on our clothes now after the wash cycle..... That is another problem for another solution to handle.

- Usually made in China but some are made in the USA too.
- comes in a range from a pack of 2 to a pack of 50 lint traps and ties.
- simple to install - includes ties to attach lint filters to the output hose and no additional tools are needed.
- large enough to fit almost all washer hose sizes.
- they can be made from stainless steel, aluminum or nylon
- they should be replaced when they are half full.

1. Lint Traps Help to Protect Your Septic Sewage System

Households that utilize septic systems have to especially be aware of what goes down their drains and their toilets. With many homes, their drain water flows into the septic drain field, therefore it must remain clear of debris so water can pass freely through the drainage field. Most lint from the washing machine is made of non biodegradable particles and if these particles eventually build up in the lint field, then they will eventually create enough of a blockage to reduce the efficiency of the drain field, thus causing the septic system to fail over time because the water can no long pass through it easily. Filtering out the lint from the water will go a long way over time to keep the drainage field free of non biodegradable particles, so therefore, using lint snares will keep the health of your septic system in tact.

2. Washing Machine Lint Filters Protect the Household Plumbing

I have read many stories about homeowners having to deal with clogged pipes and needing to call the plumber out to clean the out. One particular story I read was the plumber showed the homeowner some of what was stuck in the pipe and there was a lot of lint fiber that was mixed with food particles and grease stuck to the pipe. That combination of substances cause a hard layer of coating that caked on the pipes over time. This particular plumber shared with the homeowner one thing that would keep that from occurring again. The plumber told the homeowner about lint traps and how that would keep the lint out of the drainage water. The homeowner had never heard of them before so they were quite grateful and began using them right away. They have since been rewarded with trouble free plumbing. It’s great when a plumber is willing to empower their customers enough to talk them out of future work!

When lint builds up from washing machine waste water, it can create problems for homeowners. The two mentioned above and in addition, lint build up from sinks can occur as well. That is one more thing that needs to be taken care of in regards to home maintenance that these filters can help you with. The good thing is that these solutions are very inexpensive and are very simple to install. They can be found at the hardware store, or on online places like Amazon and other retailer websites.