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 Dryer Vent Cleaning Across Lafayette
Dryer vent cleaning in Lafayette typically runs between $149 and $289 for a standard single-family home, and most jobs are completed in about an hour. Call (737) 727-2314 for a written quote before any work begins. If you live off Mt. Diablo Boulevard, in the Trails neighborhood near the reservoir, or up in the Briones foothills, we already know the vent setups on your street – because we see them every week.
Lafayette’s semi-rural hillside pockets, including homes off Happy Valley Road and along Reliez Valley, sit on longer-than-average dryer exhaust runs. Many are on septic systems that put the laundry room on an exterior wall, so the run exits through a sidewall rather than a roof. That long horizontal sidewall run is exactly where lint settles, and it’s rarely visible at the trap. It’s also the reason a camera inspection matters more here than in a flat-grid suburb like Walnut Creek or Pleasant Hill. Our Dryer Vent Cleaning team treats Lafayette as its own animal, not a clone of every East Bay city.
We’re part of the Relay Home Co. family, founded 2005, and every job includes a written price before work starts, a live trackable arrival window, and before-and-after photos of your actual duct run. That’s The Relay Standard, and it’s how Lafayette homeowners know exactly who’s coming and what they’ll pay.
Why Cardinal Air Duct Cleaning Is Lafayette’s Preferred Dryer Vent Cleaning Company
Lafayette homeowners call us because we name the problem before we touch the wall. A dryer that takes two cycles to dry a load off Burton Valley usually isn’t a failing heating element. It’s a flex duct that sagged in the crawlspace, or a roof vent screen that’s been packed shut since the last rain season. We bring a camera, we show you the blockage, and we tell you the flat price before the Rotobrush or Nikro HEPA vacuum comes off the truck.
Our technicians are background-checked and arrive in uniform. You’ll know the tech’s name before they open the door, and you’ll get a live arrival window you can track from your phone. No four-hour wait, no mystery van in the driveway.
Every job is covered by the 365-Day Done Right Promise. If the work isn’t right within a full year, we return and correct it at no charge. That applies to every booking in Lafayette without exception, and it’s the longest-standing satisfaction window in the trade. We also answer calls with a live person 24/7, so when your dryer starts smelling scorched on a Sunday evening, you reach a human, not voicemail.
Dryer Vent Installation in Lafayette
Dryer Vent Installation in Lafayette usually means replacing an old flex run with rigid metal duct, or adding a new termination point when a laundry room gets moved to an exterior wall. Most Lafayette installations run between $389 and $749 depending on the length of the run and whether we’re cutting through stucco, siding, or interior drywall. We quote that flat price in writing before we start, and it does not change at the door.
New Build and Remodel Runs
When a Lafayette contractor finishes a remodel and the dryer vent is an afterthought, we see it within a year. The run gets improvised through a chase or crawlspace with flexible foil, and that sagging low spot starts trapping lint from day one. We install rigid 4-inch metal duct with minimal elbows and a proper termination at the exterior wall. It’s the difference between a run that lasts twenty years and one that blocks again in eighteen months.
Sidewall Termination Upgrades
Homes off Happy Valley Road and in the Briones foothill pockets often have sidewall exits, which are fine when they’re done right. We replace old plastic louvered caps with Guardsman metal vents that include a pest guard and a backdraft damper. Birds, rodents, and wasps get in through cracked plastic louvers faster than most homeowners realize, and a blocked vent outlet in Lafayette’s dry summer months is a fire waiting for a spark.
Dryer Vent Repair in Lafayette
Dryer Vent Repair in Lafayette typically costs between $189 and $425. The most common repair we handle is a crushed or separated flex duct, followed by a roof or wall cap that’s been screened and never re-inspected. We inspect first with a camera, show you what we found, and give you the written repair price before any tool comes out.
Crushed and Separated Runs
A flex duct pulled through a tight crawlspace or attic chase collapses over time. Lafayette homes with two-story additions are especially prone, because the laundry room stays on the ground floor and the run has to travel up and across. When that duct separates at a joint, hot lint-laden air vents into the wall cavity or crawlspace instead of outside. That’s not a cleaning issue. It’s a repair, and it needs to be caught before it gets worse.
Roof Termination Re-Screening
Roof-terminated vents on two-story Lafayette homes get screened for pests and then ignored for years. The screen itself becomes the blockage, and a partially blocked roof vent pushes lint back down the run. We remove the old screen, clear the line, and install a proper roof jack with a low-restriction cover. Then we photograph the work from the roof and show you the before-and-after on your phone.
Trusted Brands We Service in Lafayette
We run professional-grade equipment rather than truck-mounted shop-vac setups. Rotobrush rotary brush systems do the agitation, Nikro HEPA vacuums do the extraction, and Abatement Technologies containment units keep lint from drifting into your laundry room while we work. We also stock Guardsman vent caps and louvered terminations for Lafayette homes on our service trucks, which means most repairs don’t need a second visit for parts. When we install a new cap or damper, we fit it the same day and photograph it before we leave.
Common Dryer Vent Cleaning Problems We See in Lafayette Homes
- Lint packed past the first elbow on sidewall runs. Lafayette’s hillside lots force longer horizontal exhaust paths, and the lint that actually matters builds at the first bend, not at the trap. You can empty the lint screen every load and still have a dangerous blockage eight feet down the line.
- Pest-screened roof vents that became the clog. Roof-terminated vents on two-story homes get screened and forgotten. The screen traps lint, the lint traps moisture from Lafayette’s winter rains, and the whole assembly becomes a solid blockage.
- Flex duct that sagged and trapped lint. When a previous install ran flexible foil through a crawlspace or attic instead of rigid metal, it sags. That low spot becomes a lint trap, and every cycle makes it worse.
- Dryers pushed tight against the wall, kinking the run. We see this in older Lafayette ranchers near downtown where laundry closets are tight. A hard kink behind the dryer reduces airflow immediately, even before lint builds up.
Pricing for Dryer Vent Cleaning in Lafayette, CA
A standard dryer vent cleaning in Lafayette runs $149 to $289, and that’s one flat price per system, agreed in writing before we start. We do not charge per vent and we do not tag on extra fees once the technician is in your laundry room. Installation work runs $389 to $749 depending on run length and whether we’re cutting through stucco or siding. Repairs run $189 to $425. The price you see is the price you pay, and you’ll get before-and-after photos of your own duct run before we leave. Call (737) 727-2314 for an exact quote on your Lafayette home.
Our tech was called to a home off Happy Valley Road where the dryer had been taking two full cycles to dry a load and the laundry room smelled faintly scorched. We ran a camera inspection down the sidewall run, found a packed lint pathway past the first elbow, and cleared it with agitation tools under negative pressure with HEPA filtration holding the room clean. We fitted a new Guardsman louvered wall vent with a pest guard, photographed the before-and-after of their own duct run, and the dryer came back to a single cycle.
We Also Serve Cities Near Lafayette
Our crews reach Lafayette neighborhoods including Happy Valley, Burton Valley, and the Trails, and we regularly schedule work in nearby Walnut Creek, Orinda, Moraga, and Pleasant Hill. Dispatch and scheduling are coordinated from the brand’s San Francisco Bay Area office, with crews serving Lafayette locally. You get the same flat pricing, the same written quote, and the same 365-Day Done Right Promise on every job.
Serving Lafayette, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Lafayette 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 Dryer Vent Cleaning in Lafayette
Most Lafayette homes need a dryer vent cleaning every 12 to 18 months, but the honest answer depends on your run. If your laundry room sits on an exterior wall with a short, straight sidewall exit, you can go longer. If you’re off Happy Valley Road or anywhere in the Briones foothills with a long horizontal run, or if your vent terminates through the roof, plan for every 10 to 12 months. A camera inspection will tell you where you stand, and we’ll show you the photos before any cleaning is done. Call (737) 727-2314 to schedule yours.
On most Lafayette homes, a two-cycle dryer means restricted airflow, not a broken dryer. The lint you can’t see past the first elbow or at the roof cap is the usual culprit, especially on longer sidewall runs. We’ll inspect the full run with a camera, clear it under negative pressure, and your dryer typically returns to a single cycle. If the problem is a crushed flex duct rather than lint, we’ll show you that on camera and give you a written repair price. Call (737) 727-2314 for an inspection and flat quote.
One flat price per system, agreed in writing before any work starts. We do not charge per vent, and we don’t use a low teaser number only to inflate the invoice once we’re on site. The price you’re quoted is the price on the invoice, and you’ll see before-and-after photos of your own duct run. Call (737) 727-2314 for a free estimate on your Lafayette home.
We cannot promise same-day service. Dryer vent cleaning is a scheduled job with a background-checked technician and professional equipment, not a race to the driveway. What we will give you is a live arrival window you can track, a written price before we start, and a tech whose name you know before they arrive. Call (737) 727-2314 and we’ll get you on the schedule as soon as possible.
We start with a camera inspection of the full run, including past every elbow and all the way to the exterior termination. Then we agitate the duct walls with a Rotobrush rotary brush system while a Nikro HEPA vacuum pulls loosened lint out under negative pressure – that means the debris goes straight into the vacuum, not back into your laundry room. We check the exterior termination, replace or re-screen the cap if needed, and hand you before-and-after photos of your own duct run before we leave. Call (737) 727-2314 to book your inspection and flat quote.
Written by Omar Haddad, Owner at Cardinal Air Duct Cleaning, serving Lafayette through the Relay Home Co. family since 2005.