About Redwood Draft Ventilation Co.
Founded and still owned by Holly Fitzgerald. Five technicians, one shop, and a service radius we can drive before lunch.
Started in a rented bay on Elk Valley Road
Holly Fitzgerald spent eleven years as a balance technician and then a project lead on hospital mechanical systems in Eureka and Arcata. In 2009, tired of a two-hour round trip and watching coastal buildings get equipment specified for the Central Valley, she leased a bay on Elk Valley Road, bought a used brake and a van, and started taking calls in Crescent City.
The first year was bath fans and filter changes. The second brought the first restaurant hood. By 2014 the shop had outgrown the bay and moved to Fairway Drive, where it still is — same phone number, same policy of quoting a fixed price before touching anything.
Today Redwood Draft is five technicians and an office manager. We have deliberately not opened a second location. Everyone who works here lives within twenty minutes of the shop, which is why an emergency call at 6am gets answered by someone who is already awake and nearby.
Four rules that haven't changed
Price it before you build it
No open-ended time and materials on planned work. If we misjudged the labour, that's our problem, not an invoice surprise.
Measure, then claim
Nothing gets called "fixed" without a reading to back it up. Reports go out whether the numbers flatter us or not.
Stay local
Our service radius is the distance a van can cover and still get back for an afternoon emergency. That's the whole business plan.
Build for the climate
Coastal spec as default: corrosion-rated hardware, sealed penetrations, dew-point-aware controls.
Who turns up
Holly Fitzgerald
Owner · Lead designer
Twenty-eight years in the trade, C-20 license holder, and the person who writes every proposal. Handles design work, commercial estimating and anything involving an inspector.
Dale Whitcomb
Shop foreman
Runs fabrication. Nineteen years of sheet metal, and the reason we take on transitions other shops decline.
Renata Vasquez
Service lead
EPA 608 universal, NATE certified. Owns the maintenance program and most of the emergency callouts.
Office
Scheduling & billing
Reachable 7:30–17:30 weekdays at 707-465-0980 or developer@blog.intercoolventilation.com.
Licensing, insurance and standards
- California C-20 Warm-Air Heating, Ventilating and Air-Conditioning contractor license, active and in good standing
- General liability and commercial auto insurance; certificates issued on request before work begins
- California workers' compensation coverage for all five technicians
- EPA Section 608 universal certification held by service staff
- Work performed to SMACNA duct construction standards, ASHRAE 62.1 / 62.2 ventilation rates and NFPA 96 for commercial kitchen exhaust
- Title 24 documentation prepared as part of applicable permit sets
Ask for our license number and certificate of insurance at the site visit — we bring copies.
Need airflow sorted before the next inspection?
Talk to Holly Fitzgerald directly. Most quotes are back within two business days.