Crawl Space Repair Photo Album: Save Your Home by Encapsulating the Crawl Space - Vancouver, WA

Encapsulation is the process of sealing your home off from the earth and regulating the environment in the crawl space. This has numerous benefits like helping to prevent mold growth, wood rot, and deter rodents. For this homeowner, they noticed that there were signs of previous water intrusion in their crawl space and wanted a professional to come out and solve the issue. They called John's Waterproofing and we informed them that the best long-term solution to keeping water out is by encapsulating. The first step in the encapsulation process is removing all the falling fiberglass insulation and the damaged vapor barrier. This way we have a clean space to install the drainage system. Our drainage system involves digging a trench along the interior perimeter of the crawl space to lay down a perforated pipe. This pipe collects water as it tries to seep into the space and offers a safe passageway for it to flow through instead of puddling in. The pipe then connects to a SuperSump Plus sump pump. The sump pump takes all the collected water from the pipe and can securely push it out and away from the homes foundation. These two work together to ensure the crawl space will stay dry. Then, TerraBlock gets installed along the base. This is a 3/4 inch thick insulation foam that gets cut to perfectly fit into each individual crawl space. It seals the space off from the earth, and as a result helps promote better energy efficiency in the home. Next, a CleanSpace vapor barrier gets installed. This goes on top of the TerraBlock, up the foundation walls, and between the footing and wooden posts to isolate and protect. It is made with woven fibers that help to prevent water from being able to seep through and is backed by a 25 year warranty against rips and tears. A SaniDry dehumidifier gets installed to filter the air by pulling out excess moisture or particles. Lastly, Spray Foam will be applied to the foundation walls as a final air sealant and insulator. After the entire encapsulation is installed, the crawl space will be able to remain dry and keep the home healthy.

Falling Insulation and Damaged Vapor Barrier.

The falling fiberglass insulation and debris covered vapor barrier are indicators of a significant water issue that needs to be addressed.

Efflorescence on the Foundation Walls.

Another indicator of water intrusion is the efflorescence on the foundation walls. This is a salt deposit that gets left behind on surfaces after water evaporates.

Isolating the Wooden Posts.

After the crawl space is cleaned out, we install the CleanSpace vapor barrier between the concrete footing and wooden posts to isolate and protect them from future water damage.