Heat pump dryers getting worse after 18 months, check the condenser fins

I service a building downtown and three of the same model heat pump dryers have had the same failure pattern now. At first they dry normal, no issue at all. After about 18 months they start leaving clothes damp and the cycle runs 20 minutes longer each time. The culprit is lint building up between the condenser fins, but not on the filter surface where you can see it. You have to pull the whole unit apart and rinse the fins with a low pressure hose, a toothbrush does nothing. Has anyone else seen this on other brands or is it just this one line?

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johnson.adam4d ago

Wait, is the secret handshake for owning these things that you have to disassemble them like a LEGO set just to get dry socks? I feel personally attacked because my dryer is 14 months old and I just realized the only lint I've ever cleaned is what I can see in the trap. I've got a feeling I'm about to learn way more about condenser fins than I ever wanted to, and my back will hate me for it. Good times.