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 Air Duct Cleaning Across Boulder
Air duct cleaning in Boulder typically costs $390-$720 for a full residential system, and the work is completed in a single scheduled visit with a written price before anything starts. Boulder’s location at the wildland-urban interface changes what’s actually inside your ducts: fine ash from the December 2021 Marshall Fire, loose particulate that never binds with moisture in our semi-arid climate, and decades of dust in older ranch homes that line Table Mesa and Martin Acres. Our crews run professional-grade negative-air equipment through supply and return ducts, photograph every run before and after, and hand you the documentation when we’re done. Call (806) 606-6902 and we’ll schedule the visit on your timeline.
You don’t need urgency theatre. You need someone who understands why a 1972 split-level near Baseline behaves differently from a condo stack off University Hill. That’s what we do.
Why CleanRun Air Duct Cleaning Is Boulder’s Preferred Air Duct Cleaning Company
Boulder homeowners ask better questions than most. They want to know whether the Marshall Fire smoke reached their return ducts, whether their 50-year-old sheet metal is still sealed, and whether anyone can prove the work happened. We answer those questions with a camera, a written price, and a documented record rather than reassurance language. Every visit to Boulder includes a photo record of the inside of every duct run, before and after, delivered as part of the standard job file.
The technicians who arrive at your door are background-checked, uniformed, and identified by name before they step inside, under Haven Standard Clause 3: Verified Crews. They operate equipment from Rotobrush, Nikro, and Abatement Technologies, and they will tell you exactly what they’re doing and what the camera shows. If a competitor’s estimate is already on your counter, bring it. We’ll put our number next to it in writing, free of charge.
Our Air Duct Cleaning teams serve Boulder neighborhoods across the city, from the 1960s ranches off Table Mesa Drive to newer construction near Arapahoe Ridge. Scheduling is coordinated from our Denver office, and crews reach Boulder without the logistical friction that comes with running jobs from outside the Front Range. Boulder is a service priority for us, not an afterthought on a statewide route.
Our Air Duct Cleaning Services in Boulder
Residential Duct Cleaning
A full residential cleaning in Boulder runs $390-$720 depending on the number of systems and the condition of the ductwork. Most homes here have one furnace and air handler. Others, particularly larger splits near Wonderland Lake or two-story builds in North Boulder, may have two. Every residential job starts with a camera walkthrough of the plenum, the supply trunk, and the return drop so we can point to exactly what’s there before we touch it.
Not every Boulder house needs the same level of source removal. A 1968 ranch in Martin Acres with original sheet-metal ductwork and a recent remodel will likely have construction dust layered over decades of fine particulate. A 2018 build near Gunbarrel may only need a routine extraction. The camera decides. The written price follows.
Commercial Duct Cleaning
Boulder’s commercial stock is a mix of older downtown buildings along Pearl Street, office clusters near Canyon Boulevard, and medical or professional suites in east Boulder. Shared air handling systems in these buildings move air for dozens or hundreds of people daily, and Boulder’s high rate of restaurant turnover along the Pearl Street corridor means kitchen-adjacent duct systems often accumulate grease-laden particulate that a standard filter never catches.
We schedule commercial work outside business hours when needed and provide a complete photo record for your facilities file. Commercial pricing in Boulder typically ranges from $600-$1,800 depending on square footage, system count, and access constraints.
Supply Duct Cleaning
Supply ducts carry conditioned air from the air handler to each register. In Boulder, these are the runs most commonly fouled by two things: construction debris from remodels, and fine ash that infiltrated during the Marshall Fire smoke event. Our technicians run a Rotobrush agitation tool through every supply run to loosen what’s adhered, then pull it out under negative pressure rather than blowing it into the room.
The camera follows the brush. You see the before and after. In a 1,500-square-foot Martin Acres home with 10 supply registers, this portion of the work typically accounts for $140-$220 of the total system price.
Return Duct Cleaning
Return ducts pull air back to the air handler. They’re the lungs of the system, and in Boulder they often run through unconditioned crawlspaces and attics where flex connections degrade. We see more degraded return flex in Boulder’s 1960s-1980s stock than in newer Front Range suburbs simply because the housing here predates modern sealing standards.
Cleaning the return side includes photographing those connections so you can see whether sealing is needed. If the flex is disconnected or collapsed, cleaning alone won’t fix the problem. You’ll see it on camera, and you’ll get a written note in the job file rather than a vague recommendation. Return duct cleaning within a full system typically runs $120-$200 in Boulder homes.
Video Inspection
Video inspection is the single most straightforward way to know whether your Boulder home’s ducts are actually dirty, or whether someone just handed you a scare tactic. We run a camera from the plenum through the supply and return trunks before anything else happens. You watch the screen with us. You see the debris accumulation at the first elbow, and you make the call with evidence in front of you.
Standalone video inspection in Boulder is priced at $95-$150, and the fee is applied toward the full cleaning if you proceed. No hidden add-ons. No “we’ll credit it later” ambiguity. It’s a line item on the written price.
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.
BeforeAfterTrusted Brands We Service in Boulder
We run Rotobrush agitation systems and Nikro negative-air machines on Boulder jobs, and we use Guardsman air purification products when a customer needs more than mechanical cleaning. These are trade-recognized brands you can look up independently before we arrive. If your system includes a Honeywell media cabinet or Aprilaire filter housing, we’ll service it as part of the full system cleaning rather than treating it as an upsell. Our equipment choice matters here specifically because Boulder’s fine, dry particulate requires aggressive source removal paired with true HEPA filtration at the point of extraction. A shop vac with a long hose cannot accomplish this.
Common Air Duct Cleaning Problems We See in Boulder Homes
- Post-Marshall Fire ash in supply and return ducts. Homes across Boulder, including miles from the burn perimeter in Superior and Louisville, documented fine ash and char particles in ductwork after the December 2021 event. We routinely find systems that were running during the smoke infiltration with ash coating the air handler and blower motor in ways a standard filter change never addressed.
- Degraded flex connections in 1960s-1980s ranch and split-level stock. Boulder’s growth management ordinances largely froze new residential development from the 1970s onward, which means many homes in Table Mesa, Martin Acres, and Baseline still carry original sheet-metal ductwork with flex connectors that predate modern sealing standards.
- Shared dryer vent stacks in dense condo and apartment buildings. Boulder’s multi-unit buildings, particularly around University Hill and Pearl Street, often share lint pathways through a common stack. Lint accumulation in that shared pathway affects multiple units, not just the one with the slow-drying clothes.
- Loose, resettling particulate in a semi-arid climate. Boulder’s low humidity means fine dust never binds with moisture. It sits loosely in duct runs and resuspends every time the air handler cycles. Homes at elevation here typically show cleaner-looking returns than their actual particulate load would suggest, because the fine stuff doesn’t clump visibly.
Pricing for Air Duct Cleaning in Boulder, CO
Boulder pricing runs higher than some Front Range suburbs because the work is harder and the housing stock is older. Here are the ranges we write on estimates for Boulder jobs:
- Full residential system (single furnace, up to 2,500 sq ft): $390-$720
- Supply duct cleaning alone: $140-$220
- Return duct cleaning alone: $120-$200
- Video inspection (standalone, credited toward full cleaning): $95-$150
- Commercial systems (per system, depending on square footage and access): $600-$1,800
- Post-Marshall Fire ash remediation (add-on with HEPA source removal): $150-$300 depending on contamination extent
The written price is the price. That’s Haven Standard Clause 1, and it has been since our first job in 2013. No per-vent pricing games, no coupon that transforms into a four-figure invoice once a tech is on your driveway. If you already have a competitor’s written estimate, we’ll put our number next to it for free.
Call (806) 606-6902 and we’ll schedule the camera inspection and provide your written price before any work begins.
We Also Serve Cities Near Boulder
Boulder is our core service area, but we regularly schedule jobs in Boulder and surrounding communities along the US-36 corridor and I-25. That includes Lafayette, Broomfield, Westminster, and Thornton. If you’re just across the county line and wondering whether the drive matters for pricing, it doesn’t. The written price reflects the work, not the mileage.
Serving Boulder, CO - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Boulder 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 - Air Duct Cleaning in Boulder
If your HVAC system was running at any point during the weeks of smoke infiltration after December 30, 2021, fine ash and char particles may have been drawn into your supply and return ducts regardless of your distance from the burn perimeter in Superior and Louisville. The only way to confirm it is with a camera. We run video inspection through the plenum and down the trunks before quoting any cleaning, and you can watch the screen as we do it. If the camera shows a fine coat of white-gray ash on the air handler and duct walls, that’s the Marshall Fire signature, and standard filter changes did not remove it. Call (806) 606-6902 for a camera inspection and written price.
Yes, but the portion we can access from your unit is limited, and Boulder condo buildings around University Hill and Pearl Street frequently have lint accumulation in the common stack that affects every connected unit. We clean what’s reachable from your dryer connection and document the rest with the camera. If the shared stack is obstructed in the common area, you’ll need the building association to arrange access. We’ll provide written documentation and photos you can hand to the board. Your unit’s accessible portion is priced the same as a standard dryer vent cleaning within a full system job.
Yes, but only if the crew uses source removal with agitation, not a vacuum-only process. Boulder’s ash signature is fine and hydrophobic in our dry climate. It sits loosely on duct surfaces and resuspends easily. A Rotobrush agitation tool or compressed-air whip knocks it loose, and the negative-air extraction pulls it out through HEPA filtration before it recirculates into your living space. Our post-Marshall Fire ash remediation add-on covers this source removal on every supply and return run, with before-and-after photos in the job file.
Yes, and it’s common. University Hill’s high turnover of student rentals means many properties go ten or more years without duct inspection or cleaning, while the number of occupants and the amount of particulate cycling through the system stays high. The result is usually a thick debris layer at the first elbow beyond the plenum and a filter that’s doing far too much work. A full system cleaning on a University Hill rental, typically a 1940s-1960s bungalow or small multi-unit, runs within our standard $390-$720 range. The camera will show you and the property owner exactly what’s there.
Yes. Boulder sits at roughly 5,430 feet in a semi-arid climate, and the low humidity means fine particulate never binds with moisture. It stays loose in the ductwork, resuspending every time the air handler cycles. This is different from humid climates where dust clumps and becomes visible. In Boulder, your ducts can be carrying significant particulate load while your registers look relatively clean. For most homes here, we recommend inspection every three to four years, with cleaning frequency determined by what the camera shows, not a calendar. Homes that ran their systems during the Marshall Fire smoke event should be inspected once immediately. Call (806) 606-6902 and we’ll schedule the camera walkthrough.
Written by Tomas Reyes, Owner at CleanRun Air Duct Cleaning, serving Boulder and the Front Range since 2013.