Crawl Space Moisture Control And Repair

Written by Bob McGuire on July 1st, 2009

Crawl Space Critters

Crawl space dampness is always a problem. Mold grows at any wetness above 38 percent. That seems pretty dry to most people. I have been in Phoenix at 30% moisture and it seemed very dry. The dampness under a house when there is water under there is closer to 99 percent. At that high of a humidity the black mold will grow and flourish. The additional thing mold needs as well water vapor is food. Their food is anything organic. That might be cardboard, or wood scraps laying on the dirt floor or the floor above and all the joists and deck boards and plywood. The infestation can go from one extreme to the next. It can be a light amount of mold that you can hardly see all the way up to solid black wood above. Also you may notice some growing on the cinder block on the flank walls. Another place I have seen it is on the wooden I beam holding the house in the air. Insects are the same. They also need wood and water. Insects can do actually more damage faster. We have had to interchange beams and joists and decking on a house. Along with the regular waterproofing under the house along with the encapsulation the price can really climb.