Laundry dryer

Abstract

An improved laundry dryer having a novel hot air compartment structure that heats recirculated exhaust air and fresh make-up air. The novel hot air compartment structure, in preferred form, includes an attic chamber defined by the dryer's housing. The attic chamber is divided into upper and lower subchambers, a heater housing being positioned within the lower subchamber. The heat source in the heater housing serves to directly heat fresh make-up air and recirculated exhaust air simultaneously within the heater housing, and also serves to heat up the upper and lower subchambers of the attic chamber. The recirculated exhaust air is introduced into the upper subchamber, thereby pre-heating same prior to introduction into the heater housing, and is subsequently introduced into the heater housing in a vertically downward flow path fashion. The fresh make-up air is introduced into the pre-heated lower subchamber, thereby pre-heating same prior to introduction into the heater housing, and is subsequently introduced into the heater housing in a generally horizontal flow path. The vertically downward and horizontal flow path of the exhaust air and make-up air, respectively, into the heater housing provide for intimate admixing of those two air flows within the heater housing. The flow paths of the recirculated exhaust air and fresh make-up air through the hot air compartment structure is controlled by novel port structure which provides optimum contact of the air flows with the heated surfaces of the upper and lower subchambers, and the heater housing, and with the heat source itself, to achieve maximum heat transfer and, thereby, optimum energy use.