Crawl Space Repair Photo Album: Protecting a Crawlspace and Basement

This home in Springfield, IL. sat above a dirt crawlspace on one side of the home and a basement on the other side. The crawlspace beneath this home was accessible through a hatch in the basement wall. Unfortunately, that means the basement is accessible through a hatch in the crawlspace, and the crawlspace was accessible through the dirt floor.   Dirt floors allow all manner of nasty things to enter the home. Some things are obvious and readily visible, like pests and rodents, but other things, like mold spores and water vapor, are harder to notice. Its things like the mold spores and water vapor that can cause more damage to the health of the home though.    Water vapor can cause rot in the wooden joists above the crawlspace and can feed mold growth as well as dust mite populations. Plus, water vapor in the air makes the air harder to condition, lowering the home's energy efficiency. The mold and dust mites can negatively impact the health of the residents of the home and continued mold growth can cause serious damage to the home and residents.    Not only can these harmful things rise into the home through the floor, but they can also leak into the basement next to the crawlspace and make the basement equally uncomfortable and unhealthy. To stop this problem, the crawlspace was incapsulated with CleanSpace™.   CleanSpace™ is a waterproof liner specifically designed for crawlspaces. The tough, tear-proof material will block water from entering into the crawlspace from the dirt floor or the walls and its anti-microbial layer will prevent mold from growing across its surface. Once CleanSpace™ incapsulates the crawlspace the air can be dried with a dehumidifier and the area can be insulated to improve the home's energy efficiency.    Once the crawlspace is incapsulated the entire home is made healthier and more efficient as well as safer from water damage and mold growth. Just caring for a small part of this home made the value of the entire home better.