Crawl space vapor barrier Basics

For many homeowners, the first thought in my head when you consider installing a crawl space waterproofing system is: "I'm not going, why should I do?"

Good question! And it's a great response. Although you probably do not think about your crawl space, and you can not even see your crawl space is part of your home. What happens there has a surprising effect of the rest of the house.

Humidity Control

Water can enter the crawl space in three differentWays: through the soil (or concrete) around your home, from a loss of pipe or through the air vents in the crawl of your space. If this moisture or humidity for all-out occurs loss means a wet crawl space headaches for you. Moisture collects in the organic anything - including wood flooring, support beams, and some types of insulating crawl space. As the waves and warps the wood with moisture, there are bad results: mold, mildew, mold, bacteria and mites.

What you haveunder your house is no longer a void. It is a habitat. The area is full of mites, moisture, mold and dust. Too soon, mice, rats taking, snakes and worms of residence, living and dying in the dark, damp space under your house. And there's nothing more attractive to a colony of termites find a new place anything wet, rotten wood live!

Ignore the monster lurking below, while you can, but remember, they are also against the floor and rotting columnssignificantly damaged, have been involved in it. Warm air in the house leaves the house through the upper levels of the crawl space and the air is sucked into the house. As it moved, do not stop moisture, mold, dust mites, odors and waste is coming with him. In summer, the air conditioner is working overtime to remove moisture. During the winter months, cold air in the house banging on everything, what can be achieved, including the water heater ventilation, hot waterpipes, and heating ducts.

In a vented crawl space, insulation is a Catch-22. If you don't have crawl space insulation, then there's no line of defense keeping humid summer air and cold winter air away from your floorboards. If you do have crawl space insulation, then moisture and mold can saturate the material, weighing it down and causing it to collapse on to the floor. If it's wet or lying on the ground, what can it do for your home?

The first step to solving a crawl space moisture problem is to remove any standing water issues. Left in your home, it will add humidity to the home, encourage mold and mildew, and bring pests into the room while it stagnates. It simply has to go.

If your crawl space has pooling water at any time, a reliable cast-iron crawl space sump pump is the best option. Water can be directed to the sump pump via a drainage swale, or in some cases, a modern French drain system.

Humidity pours into your house through the crawl space Sources, and the damp earth and concrete around your house will absorb water like a sponge, releasing water vapor into the environment. Cut to the source of this problem by insulating the crawl space vents and all the installation of a vapor barrier crawlspace. Avoid cheap solutions, the type of product you should look strong and durable, at least 20 mils thick. A quality rip of the crawl space vapor barrier is access to you and service occupations, without the line to allow the defense. Crawl space vaporObstacles must be identified should be flexible and resistant to punctures and tears, and a bed of gravel to allow water to pass under.

Crawl space vapor barrier Basics