Crawl Space Repair Photo Album: Open Crawl Space Vents Bringing in Issues in Clackamas, OR

Vents in the crawl space are a bad choice for more than one reason. Firstly, they let in hot, wet or cold air, they can let in water, and they create access points for rodents. The idea for old crawl space thinking was that vented crawl spaces would let air flow in through the vents on one side and out through the other vent on the other side. What actually happens is that air enters through all of the vents then it goes up into the home. This is called the Stack Effect. Air from the basement or crawl space is drawn upward into the entire home. Up to 40% of the air being breathed in a home came from below. The open vents in this crawl space were creating a lot of issues for this homeowner like mold growth, water intrusion as well as pest and rodent activity. They reached out to John's and scheduled their free visit. We went out and thoroughly inspected this crawl space and met with the homeowner to go over the best options to create a dry, stable and healthy environment. During the inspection we found signs of mold growth so we removed the fiberglass insulation and addressed the mold with our soda blasting machine, effectively neutralizing and removing the mold. We then remove all of the old vapor barrier, after which, we dig a trench around the interior perimeter of the crawl space. Within the trench, we place our 3 inch perforated pipe into a silt sock to direct water to the lowest point. At the low point, we install our SuperSump Plus to collect all of the water and pump it outside of the home through a discharge line. Outside of the home we install our LawnScape outlet- which is a grated drain that allows water to pass through while keeping debris out of the discharge line. We make sure to cover all of the vents to keep outside air from entering. Next, we install our ground insulation; TerraBlock. This creates an insulated barrier, separating the home and the earth. Over top of this material, we install our 20 mil thick CleanSpace liner. This not only brightens up the space, but will deter rodents and keep musty odors out of the home. To control the environment we then install our SaniDry Sedona to keep the space at a healthy relative humidity, while effectively eliminating damp and musty odors by drying and filtering the air. Lastly, we spray our foam insulation onto the foundation walls, up to the rim joists. Now this crawl space is sealed and controlled, allowing it to be a healthy foundation for the home to rest upon.