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 Alum Rock
We serve Alum Rock from our San Francisco Bay Area dispatch office, with crews running scheduled appointments for our Dryer Vent Cleaning in Alum Rock and other services to neighborhoods from Alum Rock Park down to the Penitencia Creek corridor. If you live in one of the area’s original 1950s ranch homes off King Road or Capitol Avenue, you’ve probably got galvanized steel ductwork that was never properly sealed when it was installed. We know the housing stock here. We know what fails. Call (361) 326-5060 and we’ll put a written price in front of you before any work starts.
Why Hollis Air Duct Cleaning Is Alum Rock’s Preferred Duct Sealing Company
We’ve been in business since 2004 as part of the Garrison Partners family, and our Duct Sealing in Alum Rock reputation comes from doing what we said we’d do. Our technicians arrive inside the quoted window, in uniform, with background checks you can verify. The price is written down before we touch your system. Every repair carries our 365-Day Done Right Promise in writing, if it fails, we come back at no charge, including a free second visit. Phones are answered by a live person 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. No voicemail loops. No callback queues.
Air Duct Sealing in Alum Rock
Air Duct Sealing in Alum Rock means addressing the mechanical failures that decades of heat, dust, and seismic movement have caused in the area’s post-WWII housing stock. Most Alum Rock homes were built with uninsulated galvanized steel ducts and undersized returns, and the joints have loosened over time from the region’s seismic activity, not just age. Sealing is usually a mechanical re-fit before it’s a mastic-and-mesh job. We re-secure separated joints, replace cracked flexible connectors at the air handler, then seal with mastic and mesh so the fix lasts. A typical duct sealing job in Alum Rock runs $450 – $850 for a single-system home, depending on how many joints need re-securing and whether the air handler connector needs replacement.
What We Find in Alum Rock Attics
Uninsulated attic ducts in Alum Rock hit 140°F or higher on 95°F summer days. That heat bakes off old foil tape and mastic, reopening seams within a season or two. We strip the failed material, re-secure the metal, and apply fresh mastic rated for the temperature swing your attic actually sees.
The Sequencing Matters
Sealing without first re-securing separated galvanized joints just traps the leak behind mastic. Our Duct Sealing team checks every joint with a smoke pencil before we seal, so we’re not covering up a gap that will reopen in six months.
Duct Sealing Services in Alum Rock
Duct Sealing Services in Alum Rock cover the full range of failures common to the area’s 1950s-60s ranch homes: separated galvanized trunk lines, cracked flexible connectors at the air handler, and return plenums pulling in dusty attic air through gaps that opened from decades of vibration. We don’t just patch. We inspect with a camera, identify every leak point, re-secure mechanical connections, then seal with mastic and mesh. A full-system seal on a typical Alum Rock ranch runs $650 – $1,200 if multiple trunk sections need work or the return plenum requires rebuilding.
Camera Inspection Before Sealing
We run a camera through your supply and return ducts before we quote. In Alum Rock homes near the Diablo Range foothills, we regularly find flexible connectors cracked from the heat-and-dust cycle, letting fine particulate bypass whatever sealing was done on the rigid trunk. We show you the footage. Then we quote.
Post-Seal Verification
After sealing, we test static pressure and run a smoke test on every joint. If the numbers don’t improve, we keep working. The Garrison Standard requires completing the job by the book, not by the clock.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Alum Rock
Our equipment roster includes Rotobrush rotary brush systems for agitation cleaning before sealing, Nikro negative-air machines for controlled debris removal, and filtration products from Honeywell and Guardsman. We stock connectors, mastic, and mesh locally for Alum Rock jobs, so we’re not waiting on parts while your attic sits open. The tools are professional-grade, not hardware-store gear, and we explain what each one does before we start.
Common Duct Sealing Problems We See in Alum Rock Homes
- Seismic-loosened joints in galvanized trunks. Decades of small earthquakes and settling have pulled apart the original sheet-metal joints in 1950s-60s ranch homes off White Road and McKee Road. The gap is often hidden behind old foil tape that looks intact until we smoke-test it.
- Baked-off mastic and tape in uninsulated attics. Alum Rock attic temperatures regularly exceed 140°F in summer. Previous sealing work, even when done correctly, often fails within two to three years because the material wasn’t rated for that heat cycle.
- Cracked flexible connectors at the air handler. After the first big June heat wave, we see a spike in calls from homes near Alum Rock Park where the flexible connector between the air handler and rigid trunk has cracked, pulling in dust from the dry hillsides and spiking return-side static pressure.
- Undersized returns pulling attic air through gaps. Original Alum Rock construction often used return plenums with too little surface area. When the blower runs hard, it creates negative pressure that draws dusty attic air through any gap, making the house dirtier even when the filter is new.
Pricing for Duct Sealing in Alum Rock, CA
Duct sealing in Alum Rock typically runs $450 – $850 for a single-system home with standard galvanized trunk lines, and $650 – $1,200 if multiple sections need re-securing, the return plenum requires rebuilding, or the flexible air handler connector needs replacement. We do not quote per-vent pricing. We quote one flat price per system, agreed in writing before work starts, based on what we find during camera inspection. Factors that move the price: number of separated joints, accessibility in your attic, whether previous sealing material needs removal, and if the air handler connector is cracked. Every estimate is free. Call (361) 326-5060 for an exact quote on your system.
We Also Serve Cities Near Alum Rock
Our crews run scheduled appointments throughout the Bay Area and beyond, including Alum Rock, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, and San Francisco. Dispatch and scheduling are coordinated from our San Francisco Bay Area office. Each location is independently owned and operated under The Garrison Standard.
Serving Alum Rock, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Alum Rock 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 Alum Rock
Cleaning removes debris from inside the ducts; sealing fixes the leaks that let debris and unconditioned air in through the sides. Most Alum Rock ranch homes were never properly sealed at installation, so cleaning alone leaves the entry points open. We often find that previous cleaners never touched the separated joints or cracked air handler connector. Call (361) 326-5060 and we’ll camera-inspect to show you the difference.
Original 1950s-60s galvanized systems can be brought to standard with proper mechanical re-securing and mastic application, but they often don’t meet it as-found. We document the before condition with photos, perform the required re-securing, then seal to NADCA guidelines. The 365-Day Done Right Promise covers our work in writing. If the seal fails within a year, we return at no charge.
Alum Rock’s first sustained 95°F+ stretch in June is when attic temperatures spike and baked-on mastic fails, flexible connectors crack, and homeowners notice the system can’t keep up. Near Alum Rock Park, the dry hillside dust gets pulled through any gap. We see the pattern every year. If your system struggled last June, the connector or trunk joints are likely compromised now. Call (361) 326-5060 for a free inspection before the next heat wave.
Most Alum Rock galvanized steel ducts can be sealed if the metal itself is intact. We replace sections only when the metal is rusted through or crushed beyond repair. During camera inspection, we show you the actual condition and quote both options if replacement is needed. Sealing is usually half the cost of replacement or less.
We measure static pressure before and after, and we smoke-test every joint. We also take before-and-after photos of your own ducts, not stock images. You’ll see the separated joints re-secured, the cracked connector replaced, and the fresh mastic application. If the numbers don’t improve, we keep working. The Garrison Standard requires completing the job by the book.
Written by Roy Castellanos, Owner at Hollis Air Duct Cleaning, serving Alum Rock since 2004.