Whole-home duct cleaning
Dryer vent cleaning
Camera inspection
Sanitizing & deodorizingWhole-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.
Trusted HVAC Cleaning for San Antonio Homeowners
HVAC cleaning in San Antonio is more than a filter swap. It’s removing the crusted dust, pet hair, and pollen that bake onto your coils and line your ducts through a Texas summer. When your system struggles to cool a 2,400 square foot home in Alamo Heights in August, the cause is rarely the thermostat. It’s usually a fouled evaporator coil or blocked return. Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio has handled these problems across Bexar County for years, and our techs show up in uniform with equipment built for the job: Rotobrush rotary brushes, Nikro HEPA vacuums, and Abatement Technologies containment units. Call (254) 347-3897 to talk through what your system needs. A live person answers, day or night.
Key Takeaways
- Real pricing before work starts: Most standard HVAC cleanings in San Antonio run $349 – $589 depending on system size and condition.
- Written guarantee on every job: The 365-Day Done Right Promise means if the work isn’t right within a year, we return and correct it at no charge.
- Phone-native booking from start to finish: Live trackable arrival, before-and-after photos, and a digital invoice you can pay from your phone.
- Professional-grade equipment only: Rotobrush brush systems, Nikro HEPA extraction, and Abatement Technologies containment.
Styles & brands we work with
AC Coil Cleaning
AC Coil Cleaning is the process of removing the accumulated grime from your system’s evaporator and condenser coils so refrigerant can actually do its job. In San Antonio’s climate, your coil works harder than it would in Dallas or Houston: our air carries fine limestone dust and high humidity, both of which cling to wet coil surfaces. When the coil gets coated, your system runs longer to hit the same temperature. You’ll see it on your CPS Energy bill before you feel it in the house. Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio cleans coils using professional-grade coil cleaners that cut through the baked-on layer without corroding the fins. If you’re wondering how much HVAC Cleaning costs, coil cleaning alone typically runs $149 – $249, and it’s usually bundled into a full system cleaning for better value.
Signs Your Coil Is Fouled
The coil sits in the air handler, so you rarely see it. What you notice instead is a system that runs nonstop and still leaves the back bedrooms warm by 4 p.m. You might also find a thin layer of dust accumulating on furniture faster than normal, because a dirty coil can’t pull humidity out of the air the way it should.
What We Do With the Coil
We access the coil housing, inspect the fins for damage, and apply a cleaning agent that breaks down the film without bending fins. Then we rinse and confirm airflow before closing everything back up. The whole process is photographed so you can see the difference, and the price is written before we begin.
AC Cleaning
AC Cleaning is a top-to-bottom service that addresses the entire air conditioning side of your system: the coil, the blower wheel, the drain pan, and the plenum. Where a coil-only cleaning targets one component, AC Cleaning treats the places where dust, moisture, and microbial growth collect as a unit. San Antonio homes with pets, kids, or windows that stay open in spring benefit most, because those houses move more particulate through the return. Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio performs this as a single visit with a written quote before any tools come off the truck. Expect AC Cleaning to run $299 – $489 for a typical single-system home, depending on access and how long the system has gone without service.
Blower Wheel and Housing
The blower wheel is the squirrel-cage fan that pushes air past the coil and into your ducts. When it’s caked with dust, it moves less air and makes the motor work harder. We remove the wheel, clean each blade, and reinstall it balanced and quiet.
Drain Pan and Line
San Antonio humidity means your AC pulls gallons of water out of the air every day. That water has to leave through the drain line, and when algae builds up in the pan it backs up and leaks into your closet or ceiling. We clear the pan and line so water flows the way it should.
Evaporator Coil Cleaning
Evaporator Coil Cleaning is the most important single maintenance task for an air conditioner in South Texas. Your evaporator coil is the cold surface that air passes over before it enters your ducts, and in a place like Timberwood Park or Scenic Oaks you’re fighting dust from construction, limestone, and pollen. A dirty evaporator coil cuts airflow and reduces the system’s ability to absorb heat, which means longer runtimes and a compressor that ages faster than it should. We use a foaming cleaner that expands into the coil’s tight fin spaces, lifts the embedded dirt, and rinses away cleanly. Evaporator coil cleaning as part of a full HVAC cleaning typically adds $100 – $180 to the total job, and it’s included in our standard system cleaning.
When It’s Urgent
If you can see frost forming on the copper lines entering the coil, that’s not normal for San Antonio heat. It means airflow is so restricted that the coil is freezing, and continued operation can send liquid refrigerant back to the compressor and destroy it. Shut the system off and call us before you turn it back on.
Our Approach to the Evaporator Coil
We don’t just spray and walk away. We pull the access panel, inspect the coil for signs of corrosion or past leaks, and treat the surface with a cleaner designed for aluminum and copper coils. Then we verify the temperature drop across the coil so you know it’s actually doing its job again.
See how this fits into our home air quality services across Bexar County.
AC Duct Cleaning
AC Duct Cleaning is the removal of dust, debris, and allergens from the supply and return ductwork that carries conditioned air through your home. In San Antonio, the return side of the system is where most of the action happens: return ducts pull air from your living spaces back to the air handler, and every bit of that air carries whatever’s floating in your house. Over years, the inside of those ducts develops a gray coating of dust, skin cells, and pet dander. Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio uses negative-pressure extraction, which means the loosened debris goes straight into the vacuum containment, not back into your living room. Whole-home AC duct cleaning in San Antonio typically runs $399 – $699 for a standard single system, with the final price written before we begin.
What Negative-Pressure Extraction Means
We connect a HEPA-filtered vacuum to the duct system, then send a rotating brush through each run to knock debris loose. Because the ducts stay under negative pressure the whole time, any dust we dislodge is pulled toward the vacuum rather than pushed into your house.
What You’ll See When We’re Done
You get before-and-after photos of the inside of your ducts, so you’re not taking our word for it. The difference between a five-year-old return duct before and after is usually dramatic, and we photograph every main run so you can verify it yourself.
Furnace Cleaning
Furnace Cleaning is the maintenance your heating side needs before the few cold weeks San Antonio actually gets. It involves cleaning the furnace burners, heat exchanger surfaces, blower, and the area around the unit where dust gathers during the months the furnace sits idle. Most San Antonio furnaces run maybe 20 to 40 days a year, but they collect dust all year long. That dust burns off when you first fire the heat in November, and if there’s enough of it, you’ll smell it through every vent in the house. Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio cleans furnaces as part of our whole-system approach or as a standalone service. Furnace cleaning alone runs $175 – $275, depending on the unit’s location and access.
Before the First Cold Snap
The best time for furnace cleaning in San Antonio is October, before the first real cold front. That way any dust that settled since spring is removed before you breathe it, and the burners are clean before the season’s first ignition.
What We Check Beyond Dust
While cleaning the furnace, we look for the things homeowners miss: cracks in the heat exchanger, corroded burner tubes, and gas connections that need attention. If we find a concern, you’ll know about it with photos and a plain-language explanation of what it means.
AC Vent Cleaning
AC Vent Cleaning is the cleaning of the visible grilles and register covers where conditioned air enters your rooms. It’s the part of the system you see every day, and it’s often the grimiest. San Antonio homes with ceiling vents accumulate a ring of gray dust around every supply register, and floor vents in older homes like those in Terrell Hills collect everything from pet hair to spilled coffee. Cleaning the vents themselves is quick work, but doing it without also cleaning the ducts behind them is cosmetic. We include vent cleaning as part of every duct cleaning job, and we can also clean and repaint register covers that have yellowed with age. Standalone vent cleaning starts around $99 for a typical home with 10-14 vents.
Ceiling Vents vs. Floor Vents
Ceiling vents tend to hold dust on the face and around the edges, while floor vents become miniature collection bins for whatever falls into them. We remove each cover, clean it thoroughly, and wipe down the opening so the air path is clear.
Why Vents Alone Aren’t Enough
If your vents are dirty, the ducts behind them are dirty too. Cleaning the visible grille without addressing the duct run is like washing your face and leaving the rest of you dusty. We’ll tell you honestly if vent-only cleaning makes sense for your situation, and we won’t upsell you into something you don’t need.
Furnace Duct Cleaning
Furnace Duct Cleaning is the cleaning of the ductwork specifically connected to your furnace, including the supply plenum, return drops, and the runs that carry heated air during winter. In San Antonio, these are the same ducts that carry cooled air in summer, but the furnace side has a few extra considerations: soot from the burners, higher-temperature operation, and the fact that the furnace sits dormant for most of the year while dust settles into every crevice. Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio cleans furnace ductwork with the same negative-pressure extraction process we use on the AC side, and the pricing mirrors standard duct cleaning at $399 – $699 depending on home size and the number of runs.
What Makes Furnace Ducts Different
Furnace ducts tend to carry more fine particulate than AC-only systems, especially if the home has a gas furnace. We check for soot deposits around the plenum connection and clean the interior surfaces thoroughly so your first cold snap doesn’t smell like burned dust.
When Furnace Duct Cleaning Makes Sense
If you’ve never had the ducts cleaned and you’ve owned the home more than three years, it’s probably time. Homes near Cibolo and Converse with new construction activity nearby pick up drywall dust fast, and that fine powder travels through returns and into the furnace cabinet. If you’re in the New Braunfels area, check out our HVAC Cleaning in New Braunfels page for full details on service there.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterBrands We Service
We work on every major HVAC brand, and we’ve spent years learning the quirks of each one. Trane and American Standard units are common across San Antonio, and their coil designs require careful fin handling. Carrier and Bryant systems often hide the evaporator coil behind a sealed panel that needs proper gasket replacement after service. Lennox units use their own coil geometries, and Goodman systems are everywhere in newer construction in our HVAC Cleaning in Cibolo and Converse.
We’ve serviced hundreds of Rheem, Ruud, Daikin, and Mitsubishi systems as well, and we know where each brand collects dirt and how to clean it without damaging the fins. Whether you have a Trane, Carrier, Lennox, Goodman, or any other make, we can diagnose and clean it properly. We also offer HVAC cleaning in Cibolo for homeowners in that area.
Signs You Need a Pro Right Now
- Weak airflow from multiple vents. If several rooms feel stuffy and the air coming from the vents is barely moving, you likely have a restriction somewhere in the duct system. It could be a collapsed flex duct or a blower wheel so coated with dust that it can’t move air. Both get worse the longer you wait.
- Dust accumulating right after you clean. When you dust the living room on Sunday and by Wednesday there’s a new gray film on everything, the system is recirculating dust rather than trapping it. Dirty ducts and a dirty coil turn your HVAC into a dust distribution machine.
- Musty smell when the AC kicks on. That odor is almost always biological growth on the evaporator coil or in the drain pan. San Antonio’s humidity provides the moisture, and the coil provides the surface. It won’t go away on its own, and running the system spreads the smell through every room.
- Electric bill climbing without more usage. A dirty system runs longer to hit the same setpoint. If you compare July to July and the bill is up 20% with the thermostat set the same, the system is working harder than it should. Cleaning the coil and blower restores the efficiency you’re paying for.
- One room won’t hold temperature. When the bedroom over the garage is always 8 degrees warmer than the rest of the house, there’s usually a duct problem specific to that run. A crushed duct, a disconnected joint, or a damper that’s stuck shut. We find out which and fix it.
Our Process, Step by Step
You should know exactly what happens when we arrive. Here’s the order of operations for HVAC Cleaning in San Antonio, and it doesn’t change based on who’s doing the work.
1. Inspect and quote before we touch anything
We start with a full visual inspection of the system: the air handler, the coil, the visible duct runs, and the return. Then we hand you a written price for the exact service you need, based on what we actually see. The price doesn’t change at the door, because it’s already written down.
2. Contain the work area
We lay down protection around the air handler and the areas where we’ll be working. Negative-pressure containment keeps any dust we kick up from leaving the work zone, so your house doesn’t get dirtier during the cleaning than it was before we arrived.
3. Clean the coil, blower, and drain
This is the heart of the job. We access the air handler, clean the evaporator coil with a professional-grade cleaner, remove and clean the blower wheel, and clear the drain pan and line. Each step is photographed so you can see the work happening.
4. Clean the ducts with HEPA extraction
Using our Nikro HEPA vacuum and Rotobrush rotary brush system, we clean each supply and return duct run. The brush knocks the debris loose, and the negative-pressure extraction pulls it straight into containment. Nothing blows back into your living space, period.
5. Verify and show you the proof
Before we pack up, we run the system and confirm proper airflow, temperature drop across the coil, and drainage. You get before-and-after photos of the coil, blower, and duct interiors, plus a digital invoice you can pay from your phone. The whole job is backed by the 365-Day Done Right Promise.
How Much Does HVAC Cleaning Cost in San Antonio?
A typical whole-system HVAC cleaning in San Antonio runs $349 – $589 for a standard single-system home. That includes the evaporator coil, blower wheel, drain pan, and full duct cleaning. A coil-only cleaning runs $149 – $249. Furnace cleaning on its own is $175 – $275. Duct cleaning as a standalone service is $399 – $699 depending on the number of runs and how accessible they are. Homes in Castle Hills and Alamo Heights with older duct systems sometimes run higher due to access challenges, while newer builds in HVAC Cleaning - Converse and Cibolo often come in at the lower end because the ductwork is standard flex runs installed in open attics.
What affects the price most is the size of the system and how long it’s been since the last cleaning. A 1,600 square foot home with one air handler and 10 duct runs is a different job than a 3,400 square foot home with two systems and 22 runs. Pet hair, previous construction dust, and homes where the previous owner smoked all add time to the job. You avoid overpaying by getting a written price before work starts, which is exactly what we do. A free estimate from us includes the inspection, the written quote, and a breakdown of what’s included, so you’re comparing real numbers instead of vague promises. Call (254) 347-3897 and we’ll walk you through it.
Our Service Area Near San Antonio
Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio serves the entire San Antonio metro. We’re in Alamo Heights, Terrell Hills, and Castle Hills regularly, and we run up 281 to Timberwood Park and Scenic Oaks weekly. Kirby, Converse, and Cibolo are close-range jobs for us, and we make the trip to Floresville and Lackland AFB as needed. If you’re closer to New Braunfels, check our HVAC Cleaning in New Braunfels page for details specific to that side of the corridor.
Serving San Antonio, TX - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Antonio area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
Frequently Asked Questions About HVAC Cleaning in San Antonio
HVAC Cleaning is the complete cleaning of your heating and cooling system: the evaporator coil, blower wheel, drain pan, and the full duct system. It removes the dust, debris, and biological growth that builds up over years of San Antonio summers and reduces your system’s efficiency. The result is cleaner air moving through your home and a system that doesn’t have to work as hard to hit your thermostat setting.
A standard single-system HVAC cleaning in San Antonio takes 3 to 5 hours from arrival to final walkthrough. Two-system homes or homes with extensive duct contamination can take longer, and we’ll tell you the expected time on the written quote before we begin. You don’t need to leave the house, though most people stay comfortable while we work.
Most HVAC cleanings in San Antonio run $349 – $589 for a whole single-system home, with coil-only service at $149 – $249 and duct-only service at $399 – $699. The written price you receive before work starts is the price you pay, with no add-ons at the door. Call (254) 347-3897 for a free estimate on your specific system.
We service every major brand, and Trane and Carrier are two of the most common systems we see in San Antonio. The cleaning process is the same across brands, but the access methods and coil designs differ, and our technicians know the specifics. Whether you have a Goodman from a builder install or a Lennox you chose yourself, we handle it.
A live person answers our phone 24/7, and we schedule emergency cleanings for situations like a clogged drain pan that’s flooding a closet or a blower that’s completely stopped. Most emergency calls in San Antonio involve water leaks or total airflow loss, and we’ll tell you straight whether it’s something we can address same-day. Call (254) 347-3897 and talk to someone who can help right now.
Every HVAC cleaning from Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio is backed by the 365-Day Done Right Promise. If anything we cleaned doesn’t perform the way it should within a full year, we return and correct it at no charge. That’s a written guarantee on every job, not a select-upgrade option.
Clear a path to the air handler and to the main return vent, and park any cars that might block driveway access if we need to reach an attic scuttle from the garage. Beyond that, just be home to let us in. We handle everything else, including floor protection and containment, so there’s no prep-work burden on you.
Schedule Your HVAC Cleaning Service in San Antonio Today
The longer you wait, the more dust settles on your coil and inside your ducts. But this isn’t a decision you have to make alone. Call (254) 347-3897 and talk to a live person about your system. You’ll get an honest assessment, a free estimate, and a written price before any work starts. No pressure, no surprises, just a clean system. We answer 24/7, and we’re ready when you are.
Written by Omar Haddad, Owner at Cardinal Air Duct San Antonio, serving San Antonio since 2005.