Common questions
What New Yorkers ask before they call
Short answers about dryer vents, air ducts and replacement in rowhouses, co-ops, condos and towers: timing, building rules, and what changes the price. Something missing? Call and ask. The quote is free.
Dryer vents
Dryer vents
Timing, warning signs, fire risk, roof and wall exits, gas or electric, and what to do about a ventless machine.
In a city apartment or house, how often does the dryer vent need cleaning?
Once a year is the floor. A big household, or a dryer that runs most days, should be cleaned sooner. City layouts add to it: a laundry closet deep in the floor plan or a basement machine often has a long vent with several bends, and every bend is a place for lint to settle. If yours has never been done, book it now instead of waiting for a date.
My clothes need two cycles to dry. Is that the vent?
Very often, yes. A dryer that cannot push its air out keeps the heat and the damp inside. Other signs: a laundry closet that feels hot, a burning smell, lint around the outside flap, a flap that stays shut while the machine runs, and a lint trap that fills quicker than it did last year. Any single one is worth a call. The dryer vent page lists all six.
Can lint in the vent really cause a fire?
Yes. Lint burns easily, and a vent packed with it traps heat right behind the drum. The government figure is in the band just below this section, from the U.S. Fire Administration. A vent that gets cleaned on a regular schedule removes the fuel. Stop using the dryer if you smell something burning.
My vent comes out on the roof, or through the front wall. Does that change the job?
It changes how we get at it. A roof termination usually means going up through the super or the managing agent, and the run to it can be long. A wall hood is easier to reach, but on a landmarked facade the rules can limit what you may change outside, so we flag it before anyone touches an exterior hood. Tell us which one you have, or send a photo with the form.
Does a gas dryer need anything different from an electric one?
The vent is cleaned the same way, but a blocked vent matters more with gas, because the machine also sends combustion gases out through it. If you ever smell gas, leave the apartment and call the gas utility first, then call us. Both kinds of dryer need a clear run all the way to the outside.
I have a ventless dryer. Is there anything to clean?
Many newer stacked and heat-pump machines are ventless, or condensing. They have no vent to the outside, so there is no dryer vent for us to clean, and if that is what you have we say so rather than book a visit. Their lint filter and condenser are cleaned the way the maker's manual says. If you are not sure which kind you own, ask when we call.
2,900
home clothes-dryer fires are reported to U.S. fire departments every year, and a dryer that was never cleaned is the top cause, at 34% of the total.
Source: U.S. Fire Administration
Air ducts
Air ducts
How often, how it is done, what is checked first, how long it takes, and what about older buildings.
How often do air ducts need cleaning?
Plan on every three to five years. Move that up if the building has pets, if someone has allergies, or if dust keeps showing up around the registers. Dust building up on a grille is the practical cue that it is time, even before the five years are over.
What actually happens during an air duct cleaning?
We open the system at the registers and access points, loosen the debris with rotary brushes and other agitation, and pull it out under negative pressure so it leaves the building. Supply and return are treated as one system, and the grilles are cleaned last. The air duct cleaning page walks through a whole visit.
What do you check before you start?
The entire duct system, before any equipment comes off the truck. The technician traces the runs, notes how many registers there are and how hard they are to reach, and agrees the scope with you. The duct quote comes out of that look, and the quote is free.
How long does it take?
One to three hours for most systems, depending on size: more runs and more registers mean more time. The first look tells you where your system falls. Dryer vents are usually about an hour, and a replacement is a day or more.
Can you clean ducts in a rowhouse, a prewar apartment or a shop?
Yes, where there is a duct system to clean. Rowhouses, apartments and commercial spaces all get the same first step, a look at the entire system, and the same free quote. Many older apartments have no central ducts at all, and if that is your case we tell you plainly.
What changes the quote
What sets the price, on any of the three jobs
How long the run is and where it goes
A vent that climbs from an interior closet to the roof is more work than a short hop through an outside wall. On a replacement, how much ductwork has failed sets the length of the job.
How packed the buildup is
Long runs with several bends pack lint down hard. A vent cleaned every year is quicker than one nobody has touched, and ducts with visible dust at the registers take longer than clean ones.
Size of the system and how easy it is to reach
For air ducts, time depends on how many runs and registers there are, and effort depends on how you get into ceilings and shafts. We measure both before giving you a number.
Buildings, replacement and booking
Buildings, replacement and booking
Boards and supers, basement laundries, when to replace instead of clean, and how to book.
When is replacing the ductwork better than cleaning it?
When cleaning cannot repair the damage: leaks, crushed or kinked runs, flex duct that has broken down. Cleaning is for ductwork that is still sound. Replacement starts with an inspection, then the bad sections come out and new ones go in. If the inspection shows cleaning will do, that is what we recommend.
How long does a replacement take, and what do I know before booking?
Plan for a day or more, since it varies with the system. We inspect first, which means you hear the scope and the time before committing to anything.
My building is a co-op or condo. Who has to approve the work?
That depends on your building, so ask the board, the managing agent or the super before we come. Many buildings want a certificate of insurance, a window for the freight elevator, or roof access arranged in advance, and some run a shared basement laundry that serves many apartments. Tell us what the building requires when we call and we plan around it.
What goes into the quote, and is it free for real?
It is free, with no obligation, on all three services. What moves the number is the length and route of the run, how packed it is, and the size and reach of a duct system. What stays the same on every job: the free quote, the full look before duct equipment is unloaded, and lint and obstructions cleared from the whole run.
Where do you work, and how do I book?
Queens, Brooklyn and nearby parts of New York City, and we come to you. The service areas page lists them. To book, call, or send the booking form and we phone you. Nothing is booked until you say yes.
Still wondering about something?
Call, or send the form and we ring you. The quote is free and binds you to nothing.