You can install the most efficient system on the market and still lose a third of it to leaky ducts in a 140° attic. Ductwork is the part nobody looks at — and often the biggest problem.
In most Dallas–Fort Worth homes the duct system runs through the attic, where summer temperatures reach 130–150°F. Every leak, crushed flex run, and disconnected boot in that space dumps air you paid to cool into a space you don't live in — and pulls superheated attic air back into your returns.
We test, seal, repair, redesign, and replace residential duct systems across the metroplex. It's frequently the highest-return HVAC work a homeowner can do, and it's the fix we recommend before selling anyone a bigger air conditioner.
Not every duct problem needs replacement. We start by finding out where the air is going, then choose the smallest fix that actually solves it.
Contractors size supply ducts carefully and then run a single undersized return, because returns are ugly and take up wall space. The result is a system that can't breathe: high static pressure, a strained blower, noisy registers, and rooms with closed doors that never cool.
If your bedrooms have supply vents but the only return is a grille in the hallway, that's likely part of your comfort problem. Adding return capacity is often cheaper than any equipment upgrade and makes an immediate difference.
Two-story homes in Plano, Frisco, Allen, and McKinney share the same complaint: upstairs is unbearable in July while downstairs is fine. Heat rises, the upstairs sits directly under a superheated attic, and one thermostat can't serve both floors.
The fix is rarely a bigger unit. It's usually some combination of duct sealing, correcting undersized upstairs runs, adding return air, zoning the system, or adding a dedicated mini-split for the worst room. We diagnose which before spending your money.
Typical residential duct systems lose 20–30% of the air they carry. In a hot attic, that's not just lost capacity — it's also hot, dusty attic air being pulled into the return side and delivered to your rooms.
They solve different problems. Sealing fixes lost airflow, hot rooms, high bills, and dust intrusion. Cleaning removes accumulated debris from inside the ducts. Most homeowners who ask about cleaning actually need sealing.
Flexible duct in a North Texas attic generally lasts 15–25 years before the inner liner and insulation degrade. Original ducts in homes built in the 1960s–80s are usually well past replacement and often undersized for modern equipment as well.
Usually, yes. Sealing, resizing the upstairs runs, adding return air, zoning, or adding a single mini-split head all cost far less than a system replacement — and they target the actual cause.
If the ducts are original to a home built before the mid-1990s, or if they're undersized for the new system, yes — doing it during the changeout is far cheaper than coming back later, and it's the only way the new equipment reaches its rated efficiency.
We seal accessible joints, boots, and plenums with mastic from the outside, which is durable, verifiable, and repairable. We'll tell you honestly if portions of your system are inaccessible enough that replacement is the better value.
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We provide air duct sealing, repair & replacement throughout the DFW metroplex: Dallas, TX · Fort Worth, TX · Arlington, TX · Plano, TX · Irving, TX · Garland, TX · Frisco, TX · McKinney, TX · Richardson, TX · Mesquite, TX · Grand Prairie, TX · Carrollton, TX · Denton, TX · Lewisville, TX · Allen, TX · Sunnyvale, TX · Forney, TX · Terrell, TX · Rowlett, TX · Rockwall, TX. See every area we serve.
Absolute Comfort Mechanical HVAC — licensed, insured, family-owned, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Call 214-900-2533 for 24/7 AC repair, heating, cooling, and commercial refrigeration service.