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 Arlington
Dryer vent cleaning in Arlington typically costs $135 – $275 for a standard single-family home, and most jobs take under two hours once our tech arrives. The real question isn’t whether you need it done. It’s whether the company you call will actually remove the lint, or just blow air through and hand you an invoice. We give you a written price before we start, and before-and-after photos when we finish. Call (737) 727-2314 for a free estimate, and you’ll speak to a live person, not a voicemail tree.
Why Cardinal Air Duct Cleaning Is Arlington’s Preferred Dryer Vent Cleaning Company
Arlington homeowners keep calling us back because we do the job the way it should be done: source removal with agitation tools, HEPA-filtered negative-pressure extraction (that means the loosened lint goes straight into the vacuum, not back into your laundry room), and photo documentation of the vent run before and after. Our techs arrive in uniform, background-checked, with their name sent to your phone before they ring the bell. We run Rotobrush rotary brush systems and Nikro HEPA vacuums, the same professional-grade equipment used in commercial duct work, not a shop-vac lashed to a drill.
We’re part of the Relay Home Co. family, founded 2005, and every Arlington booking carries The Relay Visibility Guarantee: a live trackable arrival time, before-and-after photos, and a digital invoice you can pay from your phone. Dispatch and scheduling are coordinated from the brand’s Washington, DC office, but the crews serving Arlington are local and know the area’s housing stock well. From 1940s brick ramblers in Arlington Forest to newer townhomes near Columbia Pike, we’ve seen the vent configurations that make this city different.
Omar Haddad leads the team, and he’s built the operation around a simple standard: written price before any work starts, written guarantee on every repair, and a 365-Day Done Right Promise. If the work isn’t right within a full year, we return and correct it at no charge. No fine print, no exclusions, no “that’s not covered.”
Dryer Vent Installation in Arlington
Dryer Vent Installation in Arlington means replacing an old, crushed, or undersized vent run with rigid metal duct that meets current fire code – and in a city where housing spans from 1940s brick ramblers to new high-rises near the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, vent runs here range from 4 feet to over 25 feet. That spread matters because a 4-foot straight shot and a 25-foot run with three elbows are completely different jobs. We price installation per system, not per foot, and we give you that price in writing before any cutting starts.
What does a new dryer vent installation actually involve in Arlington? We remove the old duct, inspect the wall cavity for damage or fire-blocking issues, install rigid metal piping with properly sealed joints, and replace the exterior vent cap with a code-compliant unit. Most installations run $225 – $425 depending on run length and access. If your existing vent is buried behind drywall (common in 1950s and 60s split-levels), access cutting may add to the scope, and we’ll show you exactly why before we proceed.
New Construction and Remodel Work
We install dryer vents in new Arlington builds and during laundry room remodels. The key here is doing it right the first time: smooth rigid metal duct, minimal bends, proper slope, and a termination point that isn’t buried under a deck or pointed into a window well. We’ve corrected plenty of builder shortcuts in Arlington, including flex duct buried in walls where code requires rigid metal.
Vent Rerouting and Bird Guard Installation
Some Arlington homes have dryer vents that terminate in awkward spots: under porches, into carports, or through roofs where birds nest in the flap. We reroute those runs to safer locations and install bird guards that keep starlings and sparrows out without restricting airflow. A bird guard installation alone runs $85 – $160, including the part.
Dryer Vent Repair in Arlington
Dryer Vent Repair in Arlington usually means one of three things: a crushed duct section, a disconnected joint that’s pumping humid lint-laden air into a wall cavity, or a failed exterior vent cap. In older Arlington homes, especially 1940s and 50s brick construction, the original vent runs were often 4-inch aluminum flex – and that material crushes, tears, and separates over decades of thermal cycling.
We were called to a 1960s split-level in the Ashton Heights neighborhood after the homeowner noticed the dryer taking two cycles to dry towels. Our tech ran a camera inspection through the lint pathway and found a crushed 4-inch aluminum flex duct behind the drywall, packed solid with lint. After source removal with agitation tools and a HEPA-filtered vacuum, we replaced the damaged section with rigid metal duct and showed the homeowner before-and-after photos of the inside of the run. That repair ran $260 all-in.
Typical dryer vent repairs in Arlington run $160 – $380. A simple vent cap replacement is on the lower end. A crushed duct section that requires drywall access and a rigid metal replacement is on the higher end. Every repair comes with a written guarantee, and if the repair fails within 365 days, we return and fix it free. That’s the 365-Day Done Right Promise, and it applies to every booking without exception.
Vent Cap Replacement
Arlington’s freeze-thaw winters are hard on exterior vent caps. Plastic louvers crack, springs fail, and flaps stop sealing. A failed cap lets cold air, rain, and even rodents into the vent line. We stock metal louvered caps and pest-resistant models locally, and most replacements take under 30 minutes.
Crushed Duct Repair
If your dryer vent disappears into a wall or ceiling and that run is old flex duct, there’s a decent chance it’s at least partially crushed. The symptom is almost always the same: clothes take longer to dry, and the laundry room gets warmer and more humid than it used to. We locate the restriction with a camera, access it with minimal cutting, and replace the bad section with rigid metal.
Trusted Brands We Service in Arlington
Our Arlington crews work on dryer vents connected to every major dryer brand: Whirlpool, LG, Samsung, Maytag, GE, Electrolux, and Speed Queen. What matters more than the dryer brand is what’s behind it. We stock rigid metal duct, code-compliant vent caps, and pest guards locally for fast turnaround, and we use Nikro HEPA vacuums and Abatement Technologies containment units on every job where loose lint could spread. We also install and service Aprilaire and Honeywell filtration products when homeowners want to improve indoor air quality beyond the dryer vent. The equipment we carry for cleaning and extraction isn’t optional add-on gear for us – it’s the standard.
Common Dryer Vent Cleaning Problems We See in Arlington Homes
- Crushed flex duct in older homes. Richmond Highway corridor homes built in the 1950s and 60s often have original 4-inch flex duct that’s been squeezed by framing, insulation, or past renovations. Crushed duct doesn’t just slow drying; it creates a lint trap that can ignite.
- Long runs with multiple elbows. Larger homes in neighborhoods like Country Club Hills and Dover Crystal often have dryer vents that run 20 feet or more with two or three 90-degree bends. Every bend is a lint collection point, and these runs need camera inspection and agitation tools, not just a quick air blast.
- Birds and rodents in the vent termination. Arlington’s mature tree canopy means active bird populations. Starlings and sparrows love nesting in warm dryer vent openings. A missing or broken flap is an open invitation, and we pull nests out of vents regularly from March through June.
- Builder-grade vent caps that leak air. Newer townhomes near Columbia Pike and Shirlington often have cheap plastic vent caps that crack within a few seasons. A cracked cap lets conditioned air escape and humid outdoor air in, even when the dryer isn’t running.
Pricing for Dryer Vent Cleaning in Arlington, VA
Here’s what you should actually expect to pay in Arlington. A standard dryer vent cleaning for a single-family home with a typical vent run runs $135 – $195. If the run is longer than 15 feet, has multiple bends, or hasn’t been cleaned in years, expect $195 – $275. Condos and apartments usually run $110 – $175 per unit, though multi-unit buildings often need shared or hidden vent runs that we price by inspection. We never quote a per-vent price, because per-vent pricing encourages techs to skip the real work of source removal and negative-pressure containment. The price we quote is the price you pay. Written, before any work starts. Call (737) 727-2314 for a free estimate on your Arlington home.
We Also Serve Cities Near Arlington
Beyond Arlington, our crews regularly handle dryer vent cleaning jobs in Arlington and the surrounding areas. We serve Alexandria, Leesburg, Richmond, and Virginia Beach. If you’re in one of those cities, the same flat-rate-per-system pricing and 365-Day Done Right Promise apply. We’re also the team behind our Dryer Vent Cleaning hub, where you can read more about our process in detail.
Serving Arlington, VA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Arlington 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 Arlington
Most Arlington homes need dryer vent cleaning every 12 to 18 months, but that’s not a universal number. A 4-foot straight run in a new Ballston high-rise can go two years. A 20-foot run with three elbows in a 1950s rambler may need it annually. The honest answer is that you should clean it when drying time increases, the laundry room gets unusually warm, or you can see lint building at the exterior vent cap. Call (737) 727-2314 and we’ll help you figure out where your home falls.
Because a dryer has exactly one vent, and pricing it per-vent is a trick. Companies that quote per-vent prices lock in a teaser rate, then upsell once they’re on-site, or worse, they rush through the job because the low price doesn’t cover real source removal. We price per system. One flat price for the entire dryer vent cleaning, agreed in writing before work starts. That’s the only honest way to do it.
Look for three things. A written price before work starts, not an estimate that can change at the door. Before-and-after photos so you can verify the lint is actually gone. And a company that uses agitation tools plus HEPA filtration, not just compressed air. Cardinal Air Duct Cleaning does all three on every Arlington job, along with background-checked technicians and a 365-Day Done Right Promise. Call (737) 727-2314 and you’ll get a live person who can answer your questions directly.
Yes. We repair crushed and disconnected dryer vent sections throughout Arlington, including in older homes where access requires cutting drywall. We locate the damage with a camera inspection, access it with the smallest opening possible, replace the bad section with rigid metal duct, and show you photos of the repair. Every repair carries a written guarantee, and if it fails within 365 days, we return free.
Yes. We install new dryer vents in Arlington homes, both as replacements for failed runs and as part of new construction or remodel work. Installation uses rigid metal duct, code-compliant vent caps, and proper sealing at every joint. Pricing runs $225 – $425 for a typical installation, with a written quote before we start. Call (737) 727-2314 to schedule an inspection.
Call Cardinal Air Duct Cleaning for Dryer Vent Cleaning in Arlington
If your dryer is taking longer than it should, or you haven’t had the vent cleaned in over a year, don’t wait until the symptom becomes a fire hazard. Call (737) 727-2314 for a free estimate. You’ll talk to a person, get a clear price, and if you book, you’ll know exactly who’s coming and when. Omar Haddad and the team at Cardinal Air Duct Cleaning serve Arlington with one standard: written price before work starts, before-and-after photos, and a 365-day guarantee on every job.
Written by Omar Haddad, Owner at Cardinal Air Duct Cleaning, serving Arlington.