Whole-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.
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AfterFast, Reliable Duct Sealing Across Medford
Duct sealing in Medford typically runs $800 – $2,400 for a whole-home system depending on accessibility, and most jobs are scheduled within a week with a written price locked in before we start. We’re the Medford crew from Hollis Air Duct Cleaning, dispatching from our Boston office and serving the triple-deckers along Salem Street, the rentals near Tufts, and the two-families tucked behind the Fellsway. If your vents blow weak, your basement ducts whistle, or your winter heating bills keep climbing, call us at (361) 326-5060. We’ll show you exactly what’s leaking and what it costs to fix it.
Why Hollis Air Duct Cleaning Is Medford’s Preferred Duct Sealing Company
We’ve been working in Medford since 2004 as part of the Garrison Partners family, and our technicians know the difference between a 1920s balloon-frame triple-decker on Boston Avenue and a mid-century split near the Middlesex Fells. That matters because the ductwork in those buildings behaves differently, fails differently, and gets sealed differently.
Our crews arrive uniformed and background-checked, inside the quoted window, with written prices that don’t move once we’re in your basement. The 365-Day Done Right Promise covers every sealing job in writing: if a joint we sealed opens up or a connection we masticed fails within a year, we come back and make it right at no charge, including a free second visit. No negotiation, no runaround.
Phones are answered by a live person 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Scheduling is coordinated from our Boston office, and crews carry Medford-appropriate parts and materials on the van, including mastic rated for the temperature swings these old galvanized systems see.
Duct Repair in Medford
Duct Repair in Medford usually means fixing disconnected galvanized runs in triple-decker basements, patching corrosion where decades of condensation have eaten through steel, or rebuilding return plenums that were cobbled together with tape and hope in the 1970s. Typical repairs in Medford run $400 – $1,200 depending on whether we’re working in open basement space or cutting access through finished ceilings near Wellington Circle.
Disconnected Joints Behind Finished Ceilings
In Glenwood and Wellington, we regularly find supply ducts that have separated where they pass through balloon-frame walls, blowing heated air into wall cavities instead of bedrooms. We cut precise access panels, reconnect the runs with mechanical fasteners, then seal and patch so the repair disappears into your ceiling.
Corroded Galvanized and Asbestos-Wrapped Sections
Original ductwork in Medford’s 1890 – 1930 housing often wears thin at the bottom of horizontal runs where condensation pools. When we find asbestos paper wrap crumbling around a corroded section, we stop, document it, and explain your abatement options before any sealing work continues. We don’t bury hazardous material behind new mastic.
Air Duct Sealing in Medford
Air Duct Sealing in Medford addresses the leaks, gaps, and failed tape joints that bleed heated and cooled air into basements, attics, and wall cavities before it ever reaches your rooms. A typical whole-system sealing job in Medford costs $800 – $2,400, with simpler single-zone work on exposed basement ducts at the lower end and multi-zone systems behind finished ceilings at the higher end. We price by the system, not by the vent, and we photograph the leaks before we start and the sealed joints after we finish.
Mastic Sealing vs. Tape-Only Repairs
We use water-based duct mastic for permanent joints and foil tape for temporary access panels or vibration-prone connections. Mastic remains flexible through Medford’s freeze-thaw cycles, while tape alone dries out and fails within two or three winters. Our Duct Sealing team carries both, and we explain where each goes before we apply it.
Negative Pressure Testing After Sealing
Once the joints are sealed, we pressurize the system and measure static pressure at the air handler. In Medford’s undersized 4-inch galvanized ducts, even small improvements in leakage show up as measurable gains in airflow at the registers. We share those numbers with you before we pack up.
Trusted Brands We Service in Medford
Our vans stock sealing and filtration products from Honeywell, Aprilaire, and Abatement Technologies, plus Nikro negative-air machines and Rotobrush rotary systems for the agitation and extraction work that has to happen before sealing. For Medford homeowners, this means we rarely need to order parts: if your system needs a specific collar, damper, or filtration upgrade while we’re sealing-or if you also want our Dryer Vent Cleaning in Medford-we likely have it on the shelf. Turnaround stays tight, and return trips for materials don’t get added to your bill.
Common Duct Sealing Problems We See in Medford Homes
- Sealing over debris in undersized galvanized ducts. Medford’s original 4-inch supply runs accumulate decades of dust and lint. Trapping that material behind sealant restricts airflow and forces your blower motor to work harder, shortening its life. We clean before we seal, always.
- Rigid sealants in balloon-frame wall returns. Old Medford walls expand and contract with seasonal humidity. Rigid epoxy or spray foam cracks within a year. We use flexible mastic that moves with the building.
- Skipping camera inspection behind finished ceilings. In Wellington and Glenwood two-families, buried duct runs often hide disconnected joints or asbestos-wrapped sections that need abatement before any sealing makes sense. We look first.
- Ignoring the air handler cabinet. The plenum connections at your furnace or air handler leak more than the duct runs themselves in many Medford basements. We seal those high-loss joints as standard, not as an upsell.
Pricing for Duct Sealing in Medford, MA
A typical duct sealing job in Medford runs $800 – $2,400 for a complete system. Single-zone work on exposed basement ducts with straightforward access usually falls at $800 – $1,400. Multi-zone systems in triple-deckers, with finished ceilings to cut and old knob-and-tube wiring to navigate, run $1,600 – $2,400. What moves the number: how many access panels we need to cut, whether asbestos wrap requires abatement coordination, and whether the system needs pre-sealing cleaning to remove debris.
We do not price per vent. One flat price per system, agreed in writing before we touch anything. No teaser coupon that doubles once the van is in your driveway. We photograph your actual ducts before and after, and we leave you with a written copy of the 365-Day Done Right Promise. Call (361) 326-5060 for a free estimate. We’ll look at your basement, explain what we found, and give you a number that doesn’t change.
We Also Serve Cities Near Medford
Our crews work throughout the metro north area, including Duct Sealing in Medford and neighboring Malden, Somerville, Arlington, and Everett. The same written pricing, same background-checked technicians, same 365-Day Done Right Promise applies in every city we serve.
Serving Medford, MA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Medford area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About Duct Sealing in Medford
Every 15 – 20 years for most Medford triple-deckers, or sooner if you notice uneven heating, rising winter bills, or whistling from basement joints. The original galvanized ductwork in these buildings was never designed for modern airflow demands, and tape joints fail predictably as they age. Call (361) 326-5060 and we’ll inspect your system and tell you straight whether sealing is worth it now or can wait.
Yes, though it requires cutting access panels and using flexible rotary brushes and negative-air machines that fit tight 4-inch galvanized runs. We patch the panels when we’re done, and we photograph every joint before and after so you see what changed. In a Wellington two-family, our tech found original galvanized supply ducts wrapped in crumbling asbestos paper and connected to a 30-year-old air handler. We set up negative pressure with HEPA filtration, used a Rotobrush and Nikro agitation tools to clean the runs, then sealed the accessible joints with mastic and foil tape. Before-and-after photos of each register showed the homeowner exactly what changed.
No. We price by the system, not by the vent. One flat price per system, written down before we start, and it does not move at the door. Per-vent pricing is how some outfits turn a $300 quote into a $1,800 invoice. We don’t work that way. Call (361) 326-5060 for an exact quote on your system.
We stop work and document it. Many Medford homes built between 1890 and 1950 have asbestos paper wrap on basement ductwork, and disturbing it without proper abatement is illegal and dangerous. If we find it, we explain your options, connect you with licensed abatement contractors if needed, and return to seal once the hazard is cleared. We do not seal over asbestos.
Yes, typically 10 – 30% savings on heating bills in Medford’s older housing stock, where duct leakage into unconditioned basements and wall cavities is common. With heating systems running 6 – 7 months here, that adds up fast. The payback period usually falls between 2 – 4 years depending on fuel costs and how leaky your system was to start. Call (361) 326-5060 for a free estimate and we’ll measure your leakage so you know the savings potential before committing.
Written by Roy Castellanos, Owner at Hollis Air Duct Cleaning, serving Medford since 2004.