A dryer vent cover is very unassuming. It’s for that reason that they’re also tough to shop for. It’s easy to wonder, “What are these for, anyway? Do I need one on my home? What sizes and materials do they come in? Which one should I get?”
Like every other purchase, it’s important not just to buy a dryer vent cover based on one factor (like price or aesthetics). Instead, it’s vital to have the whole picture and know exactly what you need before running into your local Lowes, Home Depot, Menards, or Ace Hardware.
To help narrow down your choices, in this guide, we’re going to take a look at 5 of the best dryer vent covers on the market today. We’ll compare and contrast their closure styles, their cost, their materials, and their design to help you find the right outdoor dryer vent cover for your home.
What is a Dryer Vent Cover?
Before diving straight into the list, it’s a good idea to establish just what a dryer vent cover is for and how they work.
Most homes and apartments in the U.S. have a clothes dryer in them. As the dryer runs and the tumbler spins, hot air cycles through it to help dry your clothes. The hot air in the dryer gets vented out the back of the machine, through a dryer vent hose, and out of your home.
The problem, though, is that the point at which the dryer vent exits the house leaves a hole in the wall that’s perfect for wildlife to get into. It’s not uncommon to find bird’s nests and other animal debris in a dryer vent opening.
Dryer vent covers are designed to keep mice, birds, and other curious critters out of your dryer vent (and, by extension, your entire house) while still allowing the dryer to vent properly. The design, function, and cost of these covers can vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, as you’ll soon see.
The 5 Best Dryer Vent Covers
Each dryer vent cover on this list has its pros and cons. No one cover is the perfect, catch-all solution for every home — that’s why we’re listing them in no particular order.
Be sure to read the list thoroughly and consider the design, price, materials, and functionality of each cover to find the right one to fit your dryer vent.
Deflecto Supurr-Vent® Louvered Hood
Dryer vents with louvered hoods are very common, and Deflecto’s Supurr-Vent® is one of the most reliable on the market. Its brown color matches the aesthetics of many homes very well.
The one-way louvers are closed by default, held in place simply by gravity. As the dryer runs, the rushing air pushes the louvers open, allowing the air to escape. This clever design allows proper dryer venting while preventing animals from getting in when the dryer is off.
Even still, the Supurr-Vent® is made of plastic, and plastic louvered vents are still vulnerable to animals. Squirrels, mice, and rats can chew through plastic pretty easily. The louvers may act as a deterrent, but determined critters can bypass and remove them pretty easily.
Despite all that, a Deflecto Supurr-Vent® will set you back about $8 or less — a price that’s pretty hard to beat.
Dundas Jafine ProMax™ Exhaust Hood
Hood-style exhaust vents are difficult for most animals to infiltrate by design. Squirrels, mice, rats, and other four-legged critters have a lot of trouble climbing up and through the 90-degree bend of these covers. Birds have less trouble, but Dundas Jafine solves this issue by adding a slide-out mesh screen to their ProMax™ dryer vent cover.
This slide-out screen makes it easy to clean the dryer vent as well — an important feature for a dryer vent cover to have.
Dundas Jafine points out that their ProMax™ styles are paintable, which is about as good as a dryer vent cover can get in the aesthetics department. They are made of plastic, though, and as a result, they’re still vulnerable to animal infiltration.
A Dundas Jafine ProMax™ Exhaust Hood dryer vent cover costs about $14 at retail, — a very reasonable price point.
HY-GUARD EXCLUSION Universal VentGuard™
The Universal VentGuard™ by HY-GUARD EXCLUSION is a HY-C product. And even though we manufacture this dryer vent cover, we’re going to cover it fairly and objectively on this list.
One of its biggest pros is that it’s made of solid steel. While plastic can potentially be bypassed by critters, steel is a fortress. Birds, squirrels, raccoons, opossums, rats, mice — animals won’t be able to get past a Universal VentGuard, no matter how hard they try.
It also features 6 keyhole-style attachment points (3 on each side of the guard) that slide on and off of anchored screws very easily. In other words, it’s easy to remove from the home so you can clean out your dryer vent.
This may also be a con, though — if the guard accidentally falls off for any reason, your dryer vent will be completely vulnerable. A clever critter may figure out how to pull it off, too. Both of these scenarios are unlikely, but not out of the realm of possibility.
Finally, A Universal VentGuard will cost you between $35 and $45 at retail. It offers the highest level of protection, but you’ll have to pay quite a bit more than you would for a plastic dryer vent cover.
Lambro 4 Inch Exhaust Wall Dryer Vent with Floating Damper
While it doesn’t have the catchiest name, this dryer vent cover from Lambro is certainly clever and creative. It takes the tried-and-true hood-style vent cover design, flips it 180 degrees, and adds a louver-like damper to keep out the critters.
The louver-style damper can be pulled up for easy dryer vent cleaning, and it stays firmly closed when the dryer is inactive. It’s designed to mount over 4-inch dryer vent openings, too — one of the most common dryer vent opening sizes.
If your home’s aesthetics are important to you, the Lambro is a great choice. For one, it’s paintable, so you can make it any color you want. If you stick with the stock white, though, it also features a UV-inhibiting additive right in the plastic to prevent sunlight-induced color fading. Not many dryer vent covers have that kind of attention to detail.
The drawback is its price. It retails for around $30 — that’s pretty expensive for a plastic dryer vent cover. Still, its unique design and standout features make it a great choice for any home.
Chim Cap Corp Forever® Copper Dryer Vent Cover
Rounding out our list is perhaps one of the most unique dryer vent covers out there: the Forever® Copper Dryer Vent Cover from Chim Cap Corp. It’s flashy, it’s functional, and its 4-inch diameter will fit most dryer vent openings you’ll come across.
Like the Universal VentGuard, it’s made from metal, so it offers much better critter protection than a plastic cover does. It’s removable, too, for easy dryer vent cleaning. Chim Cap Corp also offers a lifetime warranty with each Forever® Copper Dryer Vent Cover.
What are the drawbacks, then? Well, because each one is made to order, these covers are non-refundable. Also, if you know anything about copper chimney caps, you’ll know that copper is expensive. A Forever® Copper Dryer Vent Cover will set you back a jaw-dropping $149.95.
Which Dryer Vent Cover Should You Get?
You may not have realized that there was this much to choosing a dryer vent cover. Between hood-style covers, louvered covers, and material choices like plastic, steel, or copper, there’s so much to consider.
At this point, though, you should have a good sense for the common features and functions of a dryer vent cover.
But the question remains: which one should you get?
That answer depends on your budget, your home, its aesthetics, and how much critter protection you’re after.
If you want a cover that looks great, the Lambro cover or the Chim Cap Corp cover may be your best option. If you’re looking for something cost-effective, Deflecto or Dundas Jafine are the way to go. If you want maximum critter protection, HY-GUARD EXCLUSION might be right for you.
To find the right dryer vent cover, it’s important to consider what you want yours to do, how you want it to look, and how much you’re willing to spend. Once you’ve established the answers to those questions, you’ll be ready to pull the trigger on a vent cover that will keep your vent protected and animal-free.
