Carolina Energy Conservation Case Studies: Encapsulate Your Crawl Space To Upgrade Your Home Comfort

Challenge

After being recommended crawl space work by their pest inspector, these Murrells Inlet homeowners called us to come to take a look. Our senior specialist Joel Libby went out to help the homeowners through the process. Joel knew there was work to be done the minute he opened the access to the crawl space. There was falling batting insulation, animal droppings, groundwater seepage, and worst of all, mold. Joel spent some time in the crawl space taking measurements and pictures as he indicated some of the issues that the crawl space was facing. He then sat down with the homeowners to discuss a plan. With each issue that was found in the crawlspace, Joel explained the severity of the problem and recommended a service to fix it. The overall goal, that was decided by Joel and the homeowners, was the prevention of future damage from mold, rot, and odor in the crawlspace. Joel took the time to explain why these services are important, not only to eliminate pests and mold in your crawlspace, (because who is spending time in their crawlspace anyway), but to help the overall health of the home. Air from outside is pulled into the crawlspace and then rises through the home and out through the attic. If the crawl space isn’t properly sealed, the moisture from the humid air outside can cause serious structural damage to the home.

Solution

With a plan in place, the work begins. Our crawl space crew Edward, Tyler, and Jeff began this two-day job by tearing out all the fallen and moldy insulation and fumigating and killing the mold. A perimeter drainage system was installed to prevent moisture issues if water was to ever get into the crawlspace in a heavy rain instance, as well as a drainage mat to cover the whole floor of the crawlspace. The walls are then covered with our closed-cell foam board with a radiant barrier to insulate and reflect heat back into the crawlspace. The next step is installing a vapor barrier liner along the floor, around the pillars, and up the walls to seal off your crawl space from the outdoor conditions. The final step is to install a dehumidifier to circulate and condition the air in the crawlspace.  

Our teams take pride in creating beautiful crawlspaces to help protect and upgrade the home. If you are interested in learning more on the topic, click this link to be taken to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Guide to Closing and Conditioning Ventilated Crawlspaces.