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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AfterHow Much Does Air Duct Cleaning Cost in Columbus?
Air duct cleaning in Columbus typically runs $300 to $650 for a standard single-family home, with most two-story houses in the metro landing between $400 and $550. A basic one-furnace, one-story ranch often comes in at $300 to $425, while larger homes with two HVAC systems, finished basements, or heavy pet hair push past $700. At Hollis Air Duct Cleaning, every one of those numbers is written down before a technician opens a single vent, and it does not change once the work starts.
That last part matters more than the price itself. In Columbus, duct cleaning is one of the few trades where the advertised price and the final invoice often have nothing to do with each other. We built our pricing around the opposite idea: give the homeowner a real range up front, put it in writing, and stand behind it for a full year.
Key Takeaways
- Standard Columbus homes: $300 – $650. Larger or multi-system homes: $650 – $1,200.
- Price is driven by the number of HVAC systems, vent count, duct accessibility, and how much debris has built up.
- Unusually low teaser prices ($99, $149) almost always climb once the crew is inside. Ask for the price in writing before anyone touches your system.
- Dryer vent cleaning is a separate service and usually runs $125 – $225 on its own.
- Hollis gives a written price before work begins and covers the job with the 365-Day Done Right Promise.
Air Duct Cleaning Cost Breakdown (2026)
Below are real ranges for the Columbus market heading into 2026. These reflect what homeowners in Franklin, Delaware, and Fairfield County are actually paying, not a national average pulled from a lead-generation site.
| Service | Typical Columbus Price Range | What’s included |
|---|---|---|
| Standard single-system home (up to ~10 vents) | $300 – $425 | Full supply and return cleaning, one furnace, one AC coil, negative-air setup |
| Two-story, single system (11 – 18 vents) | $425 – $550 | Same scope, more runs, longer trunk lines |
| Two-system home (dual furnace/AC) | $550 – $800 | Both systems cleaned and documented separately |
| Large custom home (2,800+ sq ft, dual system, multi-zone) | $800 – $1,200 | Extended runs, zone dampers, multiple returns |
| Dryer vent cleaning | $125 – $225 | Full lint removal, blower-assisted, vent exterior check |
| Duct sealing (mastic, per system) | $400 – $900 | Sealing accessible joints and leaks with mastic, not tape |
| Before/after photo documentation | Included | Photos of the trunk line and a representative return |
The single biggest swing factor is how many HVAC systems you have. A Dublin or Westerville two-story with a basement furnace and an attic air handler has two separate duct networks – each one needs its own setup, its own cleaning pass, and its own documentation. That’s not an upsell; it’s two jobs under one roof. The second driver is vent count. A 1950s Clintonville bungalow might have six supplies and two returns. A 2015 build in New Albany can have twenty-plus supplies plus a dedicated return in nearly every room. More openings means more time on the hose and more access points to seal back up when we’re done.
If you want to understand the mechanics behind the price, our home page walks through how we approach a job from arrival to final walkthrough.
What Affects Air Duct Cleaning Pricing in Columbus
- Number of HVAC systems. Columbus homes frequently run two systems: a basement or first-floor furnace paired with an attic unit for the second floor. Each is priced and cleaned independently, so a dual-system home in Upper Arlington typically costs $150 – $300 more than a comparable single-system house.
- Vent count and duct layout. A simple trunk-and-branch layout in a Grove City ranch is fast to service. A sprawling ranch with long runs, flex duct, and multiple zone dampers takes significantly longer and prices accordingly.
- Accessibility. Finished basements with drop ceilings are easy. Unfinished basements with ducts buried behind plumbing, insulation, or drywall soffits are not. When we have to crawl, cut an access panel, or work around tight mechanical closets, that labor shows up in the price.
- Debris load. Homes with pets, recent renovation dust, or heavy seasonal pollen intake often need extra passes and, sometimes, a second visit. Ohio’s spring pollen and fall leaf debris get pulled straight into return ducts, and we see it every April and October.
- Return duct configuration. A single central return is quick. Multiple returns – common in newer builds and in homes that have been remodeled – add time and equipment setup.
- Add-on services. Duct sealing, coil cleaning, and dryer vent service are quoted separately. Dryer vents in particular are a genuine safety item: lint accumulation is a leading cause of house fires, and we treat that work as its own line item, not a free add-on.
How Much Should Air Duct Cleaning Cost in Columbus Without the Games?
If you’ve called around Columbus for quotes, you’ve probably noticed two very different price structures. One is the “whole house special” advertised at $99 or $149. The other is a range like the one on this page. They are not the same service.
The low-price model works on a simple script: get in the door cheap, then find reasons once inside. One system becomes two. “Heavy buildup” becomes an added charge. “Sanitizing” and “deodorizing” get tacked on as line items you didn’t ask for. By the time the technician leaves, the $99 special is a $700 invoice and you’re standing in your hallway wondering what just happened. Homeowners in Columbus have been telling us about this for years.
Our model is the opposite. We quote a range based on the number of systems and vents before anyone comes out, confirm it in writing, and the price on the paper is the price on the invoice. If something unusual shows up mid-job – a disconnected duct, a buried return, a collapsed flex run – we stop and tell you before doing anything else. That’s the whole pitch. It’s not clever. It just works.
What Equipment You’re Actually Paying For
Air duct cleaning isn’t a shop vac and a brush. A real job uses two pieces of professional equipment working together. The first is a negative-air machine – Nikro and Abatement Technologies units are what we run. It creates suction at the main trunk line so loosened debris is pulled into a HEPA-filtered collection instead of floating back into your living room. The second is a rotary brush system, typically a Rotobrush, that travels the inside of the duct and physically scrubs the walls.
You’re also paying for filtration products where they’re called for. Honeywell and Aprilaire filters are common in Columbus homes, and Guardsman filter media shows up in older systems. We match what’s already in your system or recommend a filter that fits the equipment, not the sales sheet.
All of that equipment costs money to buy, maintain, and staff. A crew that shows up with the right tools and the right filtration is charging you for the actual job. A crew with a shop vac and a brush is charging you for a visit.
How to Save on Air Duct Cleaning in Columbus
There are real ways to bring the number down without cutting corners:
- Bundle duct cleaning with dryer vent service. Doing both in one visit is cheaper than two trips. Dryer vent cleaning is genuinely worth doing on its own schedule anyway; combining them saves a visit fee.
- Book during spring or fall. HVAC crews are busiest in the middle of summer and winter. Off-peak scheduling in Columbus sometimes opens up flexibility on larger jobs.
- Get it done before you need it. Duct cleaning is maintenance, not emergency service. Scheduling before a heating or cooling failure means no rush charges and no scramble.
- Know your system count before you call. If you have two furnaces, say so. A quote based on one system is going to change. Knowing your setup up front gets you an accurate range on the first call and eliminates the “we found a second system” surprise.
- Ask for the written price before anyone schedules. At Hollis, that’s standard. If a company won’t put it in writing before the visit, that tells you something.
Free estimates are standard at Hollis Air Duct Cleaning. Call (361) 326-5060 and we’ll give you a range based on your home, not a script.
What the 365-Day Done Right Promise Actually Covers
Every Hollis job is covered by the 365-Day Done Right Promise. If the work fails within a year – a duct connection we sealed comes loose, a component we serviced stops working the way it should – we come back and make it right at no charge. That includes a free second visit. It’s written into the job, not negotiated after the fact. Most companies in the trade won’t put a year-long guarantee on paper. We do, and we mean it.
Is Duct Cleaning Actually Worth the Money in Columbus?
For a lot of Columbus homes, yes – and the reason is specific to this city’s housing stock and climate. Central Ohio has a wide temperature swing between January and July, and HVAC systems here cycle hard in both seasons. That cycling pulls air through the ducts dozens of times a day. In homes built before 1980 – a big chunk of Clintonville, Bexley, German Village, and the near east side – ductwork was often installed with materials and techniques that don’t seal like modern systems do. Those gaps pull attic and crawl space air into the living space.
We also see heavy pollen in April and May, and a lot of it ends up in return ducts. Homes near the Olentangy and Scioto river corridors, and older neighborhoods with mature tree coverage, tend to pull more debris than new builds on cleared lots.
If your ducts were cleaned recently and your system is functioning well, you probably don’t need another pass. If it’s been five-plus years, if you’ve had a renovation, if you have pets, or if someone in the house has seasonal allergies that won’t budge, it’s usually worth doing.
For homeowners who want a deeper walk through of what’s involved in a full cleaning, our service breakdown covers the process from start to finish. Dryer vent safety is its own subject and worth understanding separately if your dryer has been taking longer to dry loads.
FAQs – Air Duct Cleaning Cost in Columbus
How much does air duct cleaning cost in Columbus?
Most Columbus homeowners pay $300 to $650 for a standard single-system home in 2026. Two-system homes typically run $550 to $800, and larger custom homes with multi-zone systems can hit $800 to $1,200. The price depends on system count, vent count, and duct accessibility. Call (361) 326-5060 for an exact quote – estimates are free.
Why do some Columbus companies advertise $99 duct cleaning?
Because the $99 doesn’t cover the job. That price gets a technician into your home, and the real cost gets assembled afterward with add-ons for additional systems, “heavy buildup,” sanitizing, and deodorizing. The honest move is to ask any company for a written price before the visit. Hollis provides one every time – call (361) 326-5060 and we’ll put a range in writing before anything is scheduled.
Is it cheaper to repair or replace ductwork?
Repair is almost always cheaper – resealing a disconnected joint or a failed flex run typically runs $150 to $400, while replacing a full duct system can run $3,000 to $8,000 or more. Duct replacement is only worth it when the ducts are undersized, collapsed, or made of materials that can’t be sealed. If you’re not sure which you have, we can look during a cleaning visit. Call (361) 326-5060 to schedule an assessment.
Can you come the same day I call?
Often, yes. Duct cleaning isn’t treated as emergency service, but we schedule same-day and next-day appointments when the calendar allows. Calls are answered by a live person 24 hours a day, so you won’t be waiting until Monday to reach someone. Call (361) 326-5060 for the next available window.
How long does air duct cleaning take in a Columbus home?
A standard single-system home takes 2 to 3 hours. A dual-system home typically runs 3 to 5 hours. This includes setup, the negative-air connection at the trunk line, rotary brush cleaning of each run, and the final walkthrough with before-and-after photos. If the visit runs longer than quoted, that’s on us. Call (361) 326-5060 for a time estimate based on your home.
Why Homeowners Choose Hollis in Columbus
Hollis Air Duct Cleaning has been in business since 2004 as part of the Garrison Partners family, and every location operates independently under The Garrison Standard. That standard is simple, specific, and on paper: arrive inside the quoted window, price the job in writing before work begins, do the work by the book, and leave the site clean. Technicians are background-checked and uniformed. You know who’s coming into your home before they ring the doorbell. Phones are answered by a live person 24 hours a day. No voicemail loops, no callback queues, no waiting until Monday morning.
We’re not the cheapest bid in Columbus. We’re the one with a written price, a 365-Day Done Right Promise, and a crew that shows up when we said we would. If that’s what you’re looking for, our Columbus air duct cleaning service page covers the full process. Homeowners in Dublin, Westerville, Upper Arlington, Grove City, and Hilliard can schedule the same service. If your dryer vent hasn’t been touched in years, that’s worth its own appointment. If your system is running but the air isn’t moving the way it used to, duct sealing may be the fix. And if you’re curious about what a professional-grade cleaning actually involves, the details are all there.
Ready for a Real Price?
Call (361) 326-5060 for a free estimate. We’ll ask a few questions about your home, your system count, and your vent layout, and give you a written range before a technician ever sets foot in your basement. Same-day and next-day appointments are often available. If the answer is “you don’t need this yet,” we’ll tell you that too.
Written by Roy Castellanos, Owner at Hollis Air Duct Cleaning, serving Columbus since 2004.
Pricing reflects the Columbus market as of 2026. Hollis Air Duct Cleaning offers free estimates – call (361) 326-5060.
What Our Customers Say
"They checked each section with a camera and showed me the dust before and after. Thorough and honest."
- Nicole H."Duct sealing along with the cleaning cut our summer bill. Straight talk and fair price."
- Gwen O."Sealed some leaking duct joints in the crawl space with mastic. Rooms that were always cold now get air."
- Ronald W.