Crawl Space Moisture Franklin, TN

February 5, 2013

Crawl Space Moisture Franklin, TN Reeves Crawl Space 615-290-2228 www.ReevesCrawlSpace.com

 

Lowering Crawlspace Humidity and Conditioning the Air Franklin, TN

       There has been a lot of discussion about conditioning the air in an encapsulated crawlspace. With the brutally hot and humid weather this past summer, we have been inundated with people calling about crawlspace moisture problems and a lot of discussion about crawlspace moisture problem solutions. In the years we’ve been in the business, crawlspace encapsulation is the most practical and cost effective solution we’ve found.  Our Reeves Dryspace system is the most thorough process on the market.

 

        Crawlspace encapsulation sometimes seems counter-intuitive to me. You’ve got a moisture problem in your crawlspace so you need vents to let the moisture out.  Right? As it turns out, most of the moisture in your crawlspace does NOT come from the soil or through the foundation walls. The moisture in your crawlspace comes from the outside through foundation vents and miniscule unseen openings like gaps between the foundation wall and sill plate and the seal (or lack thereof) around the crawlspace door. Those foundation vents that were designed to let moisture out of your crawlspace are actually the primary source of crawlspace moisture.

 

         So the solution is to encapsulate (seal) the crawlspace. The International Building Code permits crawlspace encapsulation provided the crawlspace air is conditioned. How do you go about doing that? One solution is to add a vent blowing out of your HVAC system to move the air around.  The cost is miniscule and doing so allows air circulation to ensure moisture doesn't collect on the wood.

 

       The EPA and the US Department of Energy recommend adding conditioned air at a rate of 1 CFM/per 50 SqFt of crawlspace area. That’s not much at all. A typical home with a well-designed HVAC system will blow approximately 80 to 120 CFMs into a small bedroom. Assuming that our hypothetical bedroom is in a hypothetical home with a 2,000 SqFt crawlspace, you will only be adding one-half to one-third of conditioned air to the crawlspace than you’d be adding to condition a typical small bedroom. That will add very little load to your system. We often recommend encapsulation and them monitoring the crawlspace humidity for a few months thereafter.  Studies by various public utilities have shown that ductwork in most homes leak on the average of 30%. That’s more than enough conditioned air to add to the crawlspace.

 

Remember that 55 to 60 percent or less relative humidity is the recommended level. Relative humidity above this level will encourage mold and mildew growth.  You can visit us on the web at www.ReevesCrawlSpace.com or call us at 615-290-2228. 

 

 

Shaun Reeves ACE

Reeves Pest Control

www.ReevesCrawlSpace.com

www.ReevesPestControl.com

Keeping Tennessee Pest Free!

615-290-2228     931-223-8327

 

Shaun Reeves is the first certified entomologist in Williamson County, TN.  Reeves Pest Control is the premiere crawl space encapsulation company in Middle Tennessee.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Labels: Blog, Crawl Space Repair, crawlspace encapsulation

Brentwood, TN