Understanding Crawl Spaces in the New Jersey Area

There is a popular belief concerning crawl spaces that, being supported by many building codes and general contractors across the US, is greatly contributing to transform the problem of damp, moldy and decaying crawl spaces into a true housing epidemic.

According to this belief, crawl spaces need to be protected from ground moisture by the way of a ground vapor barrier (usually a 6 mil plastic sheet) and  should be allowed to "breath" through open vents.

They believe that the open vents, by allowing in the air from the outside to circulate within the crawl space, will dry out the space.

It may sound like it makes sense, after all the air is known to dry things. A breeze will dry the clothes on the line and opening a window in the house will help dry out your freshly shampooed carpet, right?

However, in a crawl space environment things work a bit differently that they would in open air or at the above floors.

At any given season, there is always a significant difference between the temperatures in the crawl space and the temperatures outside and on the floors above.

Such differences in temperature cause the moisture present in the air that comes from the outside to condense all over the surfaces within the crawl space. The wooden joists and insulation will soak up the moisture, grow mold and rot as you can see in the picture that illustrates this post.

The only proven method to protect crawl spaces from moisture in the New Jersey and Pennsylvania area is encapsulation and conditioning. Conditioned crawl spaces also help improve indoor air quality and make your home more energy efficient. The savings on energy bills alone will pay for the cost of encapsulation overtime.

Contact us for more information,  a free estimate and a free book on Crawl Space Science.

Learn how our CleanSpace system can protect your home and  save you money.