Whole-home duct cleaning
Dryer vent cleaning
Camera inspection
Sanitizing & deodorizingWhole-system duct and dryer vent check with before-and-after photos - you see exactly what came out of your vents
That "$99 whole-house special" is a bait ad - the real number appears once they are in your hallway, or the "clean" is a shop-vac at the register. We photograph the inside of your ducts before and after instead.
Trusted Air Duct Cleaning for Charlotte Homeowners
Dust that settles on your furniture an hour after you wipe it down is usually coming from the ducts, not the room. In Charlotte’s older bungalows and newer builds alike, a forced-air system recirculates the same air every hour, and whatever has collected inside the trunk lines and branch runs keeps cycling through the house. We’re Stratford Air Duct Cleaning, and we’ve been serving Charlotte since 2017 under owner Pete Lowry, using contact-cleaning equipment built for remediation work rather than the blower-and-hose setups behind most discount quotes. Same-day visits are often possible when you call before the day fills. Call (833) 962-6967 and we’ll tell you straight what your system needs.
Air Duct Cleaning Services
Air Duct Cleaning Services from Stratford Air Duct Cleaning cover the whole duct system, not just the registers you can see: trunk lines, branch runs, plenum, boots, and the return side where dust tends to build up first. You likely need this if the house smells musty when the air handler kicks on, if anyone in the home has allergies that flare indoors, or if the ducts haven’t been opened since the house changed hands. We run a Rotobrush rotary brush through each run to knock deposits loose, then pull them out with Nikro HEPA-rated vacuum capture so fine particulate doesn’t land back on your floors. A typical whole-home visit in Charlotte runs $350-$700 depending on the number of runs, system size, and how much has accumulated. Call (833) 962-6967 for a free estimate.
What Contact Cleaning Actually Does
A rotary brush physically agitates the duct wall, which is the only way to break loose the stuck film that a vacuum alone passes right over. The HEPA vacuum stays connected the whole time so what the brush frees gets captured instead of drifting into the room.
How We Handle Returns and Plenums
The return side carries the dirtiest air in the system back to the handler, so it gets the same treatment as the supply runs. The plenum and coil cabinet get inspected for buildup that a simple vent cleaning would leave behind.
Styles & brands we work with
- Whole-home duct cleaning
- Dryer vent cleaning
- Camera inspection
- Sanitizing & deodorizing
HVAC Duct Cleaning
HVAC Duct Cleaning focuses on the ductwork as part of your heating and cooling system rather than as a standalone set of tubes. That distinction matters: dust loading on the supply side pushes your blower to work harder, and a clogged return can starve airflow to the coil. We recommend it when you’ve had HVAC work done recently (construction debris and drywall dust migrate straight into open runs), when airflow at some registers feels weaker than others, or when the system has run several seasons without a look inside. Our technicians use Abatement Technologies equipment when the job involves heavier contamination, because that gear is built for remediation-level particulate rather than routine dust. HVAC duct cleaning in Charlotte typically runs $400-$800 for a full system, with the written estimate setting the final price. Call (833) 962-6967 to book a free estimate.
Where Systems Wear First
Flex duct in attics and crawlspaces is where Charlotte homes tend to show trouble: sagging runs, disconnected collars, and kinks that cut airflow. We flag those before cleaning so you know what you’re dealing with.
Working Around the Air Handler
We isolate the handler and protect the coil before any brush goes in. That keeps debris out of the equipment and means the cleaning helps your system rather than straining it.
Vent Cleaning
Vent Cleaning handles the registers, grilles, and boots where supply air enters each room, plus the short runs behind them. It’s the most visible part of the job, and it’s usually where homeowners first notice the problem: dark streaks on the ceiling around a diffuser, dust shadows on the wall above a vent, or a visible film on the grille fins. Vent cleaning is also the piece most discount services skip, because pulling a grille and wiping it takes time that a quick blower pass doesn’t. We remove the covers, clean them properly, brush the boot and the run behind it, and reinstall with the seal intact. As part of a full visit, vent cleaning in Charlotte generally falls within the $350-$700 whole-home range. If you only need the visible vents addressed, ask for a scope-specific quote. Call (833) 962-6967 for a free estimate.
Reading the Grilles
A grille that’s uniformly dusty is normal. One with heavy streaks on one side usually points to a leak or a poorly sealed boot, which we note and can repair.
Ceiling and Floor Registers
Floor registers collect more grit in a Charlotte home with pets, and ceiling diffusers collect more fine dust from attic-side runs. Both get cleaned the same way, just with different attention to the source.
Ductwork Cleaning
Ductwork Cleaning covers the hard-piped trunk lines and the flexible branch runs that carry conditioned air through the house, and it’s a bigger job than register cleaning because most of the surface area is out of sight. When a run is disconnected, crushed, or full of construction dust, cleaning alone won’t fix it, so we inspect before we clean and pair the work with air duct repair when something is broken. Ductwork cleaning makes sense after a renovation, after a pest issue, or when you’ve bought a home and don’t know its duct history. Our approach is contact-based, using the rotary brush system and HEPA capture rather than compressed air, which just moves the problem. Whole-system ductwork cleaning in Charlotte typically runs $400-$800. Call (833) 962-6967 with your square footage and we’ll give you a free estimate.
Hard Pipe Versus Flex
Sheet metal trunk lines clean up fast with a rotary brush. Flex runs need gentler handling to avoid tearing the inner liner, which is a big reason equipment choice matters.
Sealing Gaps We Find
Loose joints and unsealed boots leak conditioned air into attics and crawlspaces. We point those out during the visit so the fix happens in the same trip where possible.
Air Duct Inspection
Air Duct Inspection is the look-before-you-clean step: a camera run through the trunk, branch lines, and coil area so you see what’s actually in there. It’s worth doing when you’re buying a home, when a previous cleaner gave you a vague report, or when symptoms don’t match what a routine cleaning should fix. During the inspection we check for debris depth, moisture, mold-like growth, disconnected runs, crushed flex, and pest activity, then walk you through what we saw with photos. Inspections are quoted per job and often folded into a cleaning visit at no extra line-item cost; ask when you call. If we find contamination beyond routine dust, we bring in Abatement Technologies equipment suited to that environment and tell you plainly what it means. Call (833) 962-6967 to schedule a free estimate.
Camera Work and Photos
We use a camera on branch runs so you see the before condition, not just a verbal description. Photos of the actual ducts in your home are part of every report.
What the Inspection Covers
The inspection follows the whole air path: return grilles, trunk, plenum, coil access, and supply runs. That’s where contamination hides and where a thorough inspection earns its keep.
Residential Air Duct Cleaning
Residential Air Duct Cleaning is built around how a home actually lives: pets that shed, kids who track in pollen, HVAC systems that run most of the year in North Carolina’s long cooling season. We recommend it when you notice musty smells, visible dust near vents, or allergy symptoms that get worse indoors, and after any major remodel where drywall dust found its way into the returns. A residential visit covers every register, the trunk and branch ducts, the return side, and the air handler cabinet access, cleaned with the Rotobrush contact system and HEPA capture so the fine dust is removed rather than stirred up. Typical residential pricing in Charlotte runs $350-$700 for a full home, with square footage and run count driving the number. We agree one flat price per system before any work starts. Call (833) 962-6967 for a free estimate.
Homes With Pets
Fur and dander accumulate in return plenums faster than most people expect. Brushing those surfaces out makes a noticeable difference to what the house smells like.
Older Charlotte Housing Stock
Houses that have seen several HVAC changes often have a mix of original and newer runs. We map the system before cleaning so nothing gets missed.
Commercial Air Duct Cleaning
Commercial Air Duct Cleaning handles offices, retail spaces, clinics, and light-industrial buildings where the duct system runs long hours and often serves more people per square foot than a home ever will. It’s a sensible call when occupants complain about stale air, when a previous tenant’s use left odors behind, or when a build-out released construction particulate into the returns. Commercial work runs on a scheduled basis and gets quoted per job after a walkthrough, since system volume and access vary so widely; the written estimate sets the final price. We bring the same contact-cleaning equipment and HEPA-rated vacs we use residentially, sized for larger ductwork, and coordinate around your operating hours so business keeps moving. Call (833) 962-6967 to book a free commercial estimate.
Scheduling Around Business Hours
Commercial jobs get planned so the work disrupts your operation as little as possible. Tell us your hours when you call and we’ll build the schedule around them.
Documentation for Facilities
Facility managers usually need a record of what was cleaned and when. We provide photos and a summary of the work as part of the visit.
Brands We Service
The equipment we buy says more about the work than a marketing line ever could. Rotobrush rotary contact systems are the standard for knocking deposits off duct walls, and Nikro HEPA vacuums are what we connect to capture the fine particulate that shop vacs push back into the room. Abatement Technologies gear goes with us on jobs that need remediation-level handling. Guardsman products round out the finishing side, treating surfaces and components after extraction so the visit ends with a protected system, not just a cleaned one.
On the air quality side, we work with Honeywell and Aprilaire filtration products and know where a home’s filtration is falling short. We’re not a dealer for these brands, but our familiarity with them lets us recommend the right upgrade for your system. Whether you have a Rotobrush-cleaned duct system or any other setup, we can help.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterSigns You Need a Pro Right Now
- Dust returns within a day of cleaning. If a freshly dusted room has a visible film by the next morning, the source is upstream in the returns. That’s a duct problem, not a housekeeping one.
- Musty or stale smell when the system starts. A smell that only appears when the blower kicks on points to buildup in the plenum or a moisture problem in a run. Both are worth inspecting before the next season.
- Visible dust streaks around registers. Dark shadows on the wall or ceiling around a vent usually mean the boot seal has failed. Cleaning without fixing the seal wastes the visit.
- Unexplained allergy symptoms indoors. If symptoms improve when you leave the house and return when you come back, the air handling system deserves a look, especially in a home with pets.
- Recent renovation or move-in. Drywall dust and debris migrate into open runs during a remodel, and a home you just bought has a duct history you can’t see. An inspection settles both.
Our Process, Step by Step
- 1
Walkthrough and inspection. We map the system, check the air handler, returns, and branch runs with a camera, and note anything disconnected or crushed before cleaning begins.
- 2
Protect the living space. Drop cloths and HEPA vacuum connections go in before any brush does, so the work stays contained to the ducts.
- 3
Contact cleaning with the Rotobrush system. Each run gets the rotary brush to loosen deposits from the duct wall, working from the trunk toward the registers.
- 4
HEPA-rated extraction. The Nikro vacuum pulls the loosened material out and captures fine particulate down to a level a standard shop vac can’t reach.
- 5
Reinstall, report, and photograph. We reset the grilles and seals, walk you through what we found with photos of your own ducts, and flag any repair that should happen next.
How Much Does Air Duct Cleaning Cost in Charlotte?
Most Charlotte homeowners can expect a whole-home air duct cleaning to run $350-$700, and a system with heavy contamination or a larger run count lands closer to $700-$900. Commercial and multi-unit work is quoted per job after a walkthrough. A single visible-vent cleaning is cheaper than a full-system visit, which is why we ask about square footage and run count before quoting: the price should match the work, not a headline number.
What moves the number: square footage, number of branch runs, whether the return plenum is accessible, how much debris has built up, and whether a repair is needed along the way. Older homes with flex runs that have sagged or disconnected take more time. A thorough inspection upfront prevents surprises, and any repair is priced separately and only after you approve it.
The best way to avoid overpaying is to get one flat price per system in writing before the van shows up. Bait-and-switch duct cleaning is a real problem in this trade: a low teaser number becomes a much larger invoice once the work is underway. We agree the price, we do the work, and we show you before-and-after photos of your own ducts so you know what you paid for.
Our estimate is free and no-obligation. Call (833) 962-6967 and we’ll give you an honest range over the phone, then confirm it in writing.
Our Service Area Near Charlotte
Stratford Air Duct Cleaning serves Charlotte and the surrounding towns. We work regularly in air duct cleaning across Locust, and we cover Enochville and Lake Norman of Iredell with the same equipment and approach. Homes in Cramerton, Lake Park, Lowell, Midland, Fairview, Ranlo, Lowesville, and Stanley are within our normal range. Our team is based out of Charlotte and dispatches across the region. Call (833) 962-6967 to confirm timing for your address.
Serving Charlotte, NC – Our Local Coverage Area
We serve Charlotte and nearby communities. Use the map below to see the area we cover. If you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
Frequently Asked Questions About Air Duct Cleaning in Charlotte
Air duct cleaning is the process of removing accumulated dust, debris, and contaminants from the inside of your HVAC duct system, including trunk lines, branch runs, registers, and the plenum. It goes beyond wiping a register on the wall: a rotary brush agitates the duct wall while a HEPA-rated vacuum captures what gets loosened. The goal is to remove what’s there, not just redistribute it. Call (833) 962-6967 if you’d like to know what your system needs.
A typical whole-home cleaning takes about two to four hours, depending on the size of the system and how many runs there are. Homes with heavy contamination or a mix of hard pipe and flex can run longer. We’ll give you a realistic window when we quote. Call (833) 962-6967 to schedule.
Whole-home cleaning typically runs $350-$700, and larger or heavier jobs run $700-$900. The final price is set by the written estimate, agreed before any work begins. That number is one flat price per system, not a per-vent tease. Call (833) 962-6967 for a free estimate.
Low quotes usually come from services that run a blower and hose through the vents without contact cleaning, so deposits stay stuck to the duct walls. Some use shop vacuums that blow fine particulate back into the room. A price that seems too low often gets revised once work starts. We quote honestly, agree one flat price per system, and show before-and-after photos of your own ducts. Call (833) 962-6967 to compare.
Yes. We use the Rotobrush rotary contact system and Nikro HEPA vacuums on every job, and we bring Abatement Technologies equipment when a job needs remediation-level handling. That’s a different standard than a truck-mounted blower. If your current provider can’t tell you what equipment they use, that’s worth asking. Call (833) 962-6967 with any equipment questions.
Same-day visits are often possible. We answer 24/7, and fast dispatch runs from 7am to 7pm, Sunday through Friday. We are closed on Saturday. A call outside dispatch hours gets booked into the next opening. Call (833) 962-6967 to check availability.
Clear access to your registers and the air handler, and move breakables away from vent locations. If you have pets, secure them in a room we aren’t working in. We’ll handle the rest, including drop cloths and containment. Call (833) 962-6967 if you have questions about your specific setup.
Schedule Your Air Duct Cleaning Service in Charlotte Today
Ready to deal with the dust at its source? Stratford Air Duct Cleaning brings contact cleaning, HEPA-rated extraction, and honest pricing to every Charlotte job. Call (833) 962-6967 for a free, no-obligation estimate. We answer 24/7, with fast dispatch from 7am to 7pm, Sunday through Friday. Owner Pete Lowry and the team are ready to help.
Written by Pete Lowry, Owner at Stratford Air Duct Cleaning, serving Charlotte since 2017.