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Crawlspace liners can often be found in crawlspaces everywhere. It is quite simple to by a thin (usually black) liner and lay it out under a home. Fortunately, most people don't do this in order to keep their crawlspace dry, but some do and don't understand why it doesn't work. These liners are basically to create a barrier between the dirt and whoever is crawling in the crawlspace. They are too thin to keep water vapor from coming in and are almost never sealed correctly.
This crawlspace had one of these liners installed, and it did not turn out the best, even as a barrier between the dirt. This must have been installed a long time ago, because the amount of dirt and other debris on top of the liner makes it seem like it is almost part of the ground at this point. This liner is not helping to keep moisture and water vapor out of the crawlspace, mainly because no where in the crawlspace is it sealed and secured.
After the CleanSpace had been installed, the crawlspace became a completely new area. The CleanSpace transforms the look of the crawlspace to somewhere that you might not mind spending some time in. Not only does the area look better, but not it is extremely difficult for water and moisture to make its way into the crawlspace. The crew also installed a dehumidifier in order to make sure the humidity level of the crawlspace stayed lower than around 55, because this is where mold can grow.
This crawlspace was a dark and scary area when this homeowner first called All-Dry of the Carolinas. They had already tried to have a crawlspace liner installed in their crawlspace, but it just wasn't doing the job for them. These DIY crawl space solutions generally do not work very well because of a few reasons; they are not thick enough, and they usually aren't sealed correctly. This is important because if the area isn't sealed properly, then the water vapor is still able to get into the crawlspace and cause problems.
The "before" photo is how the crawl space looked when our System Design Specialist first inspected the home. Before the work was done, the crawlspace was a dark, scary area that had been trashed. The black liner absorbs most of the light and makes the crawl space much darker. There is also dirt and debris all throughout the crawlspace, caused by water intrusion, unsealed vents, and other issues.
The "after" photo shows a much different story, the CleanSpace Liner makes a huge difference in this space. First off, you can actually see under the house! The white liner does a great job at reflecting most of the light, which brightens the space. This makes it easier to see, work, and move under a home! Those are just the visual benefits of the product! What CleanSpace really does is keeps the water vapor from getting into the crawlspace. One way is by its thickness, it is a 20 mm thick liner, which does an excellent job of keeping the moisture out. Another way is through the sealing of the CleanSpace liner to the wall, this is extra important because those are really the only areas where moisture can come through.
Many people don't realize that the entrance to a crawlspace is very important. While water usually gets into crawlspaces through the floor and walls of the crawlspace, another area that can cause a lot of problems for a crawlspace is the entrance. Quite often, crawlspace doors have gaps that can let water and air into the crawlspace.
This was the case for this particular homeowner. They had their crawlspace encapsulated, which is an enormous first step for any home, but at the time, they had not replaced the entrance. While this didn't cause too many problems for the homeowner, they wanted to make sure that they were covered.
While the old crawlspace door may have blended in a little more, it didn't provide nearly as much protection as The new EverLast door that was installed by our crew. The EverLast Door creates an airtight seal that prevents air and water vapor from getting into the crawlspace. The seal is created by tightening down each of the toggle bolts, which tighten the door down and helps seal any gaps.
Most people use the area under their homes as a storage area, weather it be a basement or crawlspace. However, they aren't always the best places to store some things. This homeowner kept a lot of their things in this area, but did not have any real protection against the moisture. This can be a dangerous game to play, especially when there are important items like pictures or documents stored in these areas.
This homeowner had used another Basement Systems dealer while living in another state, so they knew about the system and how much it would provide them a dry storage solution. The solution proposed to them by one of our Systems Design Specialists, Jonathan Geddie, was a CleanSpace encapsulation, along with drainage matting, and a dehumidifier. This was a pretty simple, but certainly an effective system.
The difference between the area before and after encapsulation is pretty significant. Beforehand, it was just an area that was pretty open to moisture and possibly flooding. Afterwards, it was very protected from water and moisture. This homeowner finally has an area where they can store almost anything without having to worry about it being ruined. It also leads to a healthier home! There are no shortage of benefits from a CleanSpace encapsulation!
When it comes to your crawlspace, protecting it from moister is very important. In this Campobello, SC home the crawlspace was taking on large amounts of moister. Not only was moister the problem, but the crawlspace was littered with debris, trash, and an old liner. To solve this problem, our All-Dry of the Carolinas team encapsulated the entire crawlspace.
Our All-Dry crew was able to install a series of our waterproofing technology that would take care of the water issue in the crawlspace. Our crew installed a CleanSpace liner, sump pump, and dehumidifier. When encapsulating the crawlspace with CleanSpace, it seals the area to keep moisture from creeping up from the ground and causing damage to your foundation. A dehumidifier was placed in the crawlspace as a solution to the humidity that is produced from the pipes under your house. A SumpPump is to flush out entering water and excess water from the dehumidifer from the crawlspace. Together with all these tools, the crawlspace is completely protected from moisture.