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" Customer had water seeping into her crawlspace causing a musty odor, mold, and foundation problems. Design Specialist Christopher Geddie went out to give a free estimate and assess the customer's concerns. Our crew then installed our Cleanspace system, a SuperSump pump to discharge water, and a dehumidifier to maintain healthy air quality. The customer was very pleased with the work and is excited about the quality of her home now that the crawlspace is dry.”
This homeowner had a lot of work done when our company came out to his home. This before and after will only focus on a very small part of the entire job, however, this was a very important part of the project. It may not seem to have changed all that much between the two photos (besides that the area is covered in some white plastic), but it certainly has!
CleanSpace does much more than it seems, but it was not the only thing that was done in the crawlspace and in this photo. One thing that gets masked is that our crew sealed the vents in the crawlspace. In the before photo, the vents in the corner of the crawlspace can very obviously be seen, however, in the other photo, the area is covered. The crew actually seals the vents up and caulks them so that no air can get into the crawlspace from these vents.
Now that the sealed vents have been discussed, let's go back to the CleanSpace, which is what really makes the difference in a crawlspace. Having this thick liner keeps water vapor from penetrating it, which is good because that means the relative humidity level should go down quite significantly. One of the most important aspects of the CleanSpace's installation is that it gets sealed to the wall. This is important because if it is not sealed, then it is much less effective at keeping the water vapor out of the crawlspace. In the after picture, the CleanSpace has been sealed just a few inches below the "ceiling" of the crawlspace. Don't forget, CleanSpace also brightens up the crawlspace and makes it look much more "Clean"!
This customer wanted to make sure his mountain home was protected while he was away. It can be stressful enough worrying about a home that you are living in now, much less one that is several hours away. This customer decided the work was worth it for the peace of mind, as well as the quality in products and excellent service that All-Dry of the Carolinas provides to each and every customer. The home was strictly a crawlspace/CleanSpace job. While we installed a few supplementary products such as a Santa Fe dehumidifier and a SuperSump sump pump, the main focus was that of the CleanSpace encapsulation system.
The "before" picture shows what the basement looked like before any of our products had been installed. You can hardly see it, but they actually do have a crawlspace liner already. However, this is not doing them any good. It is so thin and fragile that it can easily rip and tear just by crawling on it. The other thing about this liner is that it is not properly sealed. If you're looking for something to keep your jeans from getting dirty, that might be the product for you, but if you want real protection from moisture and mold, CleanSpace is the product you need.
The "after" picture shows the crawlspace after our crew had installed the CleanSpace Liner. As you can see, the CleanSpace is laid almost from floor to ceiling. While not all customers and jobs have the CleanSpace go all the way up the wall, this customer was encouraged and wanted to. The only part that is left uncovered is a few inches of wood, for courtesy to other professionals like; pest control and termite inspectors.
When some envision their dream home, they might imagine it sitting on the side of a mountain. This is the case with this home in Sky Valley, Georgia. The downside of living in the mountains though is the issue of water running downhill and entering your basement or crawlspace. This home had the problem of high moister and water puddling in their crawlspace. Along with the water problems, it was also a physical challenge to work around because the area was covered in rocks. In the far right corner of the crawlspace there was a bolder that caused an issue placing in a drainage system. The homeowner feared that even with our waterproofing technology that the bolder would cause water to drain in a direction away from the drain. Although these problems faced our All-Dry of the Carolinas’ team they were able to tackle the issue and create a water free area under the home.
Our solution for this issue was a series of our waterproofing technology. To begin to tackle the issue our team had to first clean the space of debris and rocks. Once that was finished, our team had to figure out a solution to installing a drainage system that would work around the bolder that was unable to be moved. After careful consideration our team decided to place the drainage system at the base of the wall and bolder. We did exploratory digging to find the edge of the bolder to make sure that water draining off it would go into our drainage system. From there, drainage matting was added and then covered with CleanSpace to keep moister from coming from the soil of the crawlspace. A SmartSump was also added to the area to flush excess water from the crawlspace. Finally, a dehumidifier was added to the crawlspace to take care of the remaining issue of high moister levels in the air.
This homeowner had some pretty severe water intrusion in their crawlspace, enough that mold was just begging to start growing. The homeowner had actually had us help with a similar problem in a previous home, so they knew exactly who to call and knew the system would take care of their problems. The Systems Design Specialist proposed that the homeowner go with a CleanSpace Encapsulation, along with drainage matting, 3-inch drain tile, and a SuperSump pump.
The "before" picture shows part of the crawlspace when our Specialist went out to the home. The water intrusion was definitely worse along the sides of the home, as shown in this picture. As you can see, the area up along the wall is much darker, mainly because of the amount of water in the soil.
However, the "after" picture shows a much different story. As you can see, this entire area was covered in CleanSpace liner, from the floor to the walls. The more area that we are able to cover, the less moisture is able to get in, which is one of the main reasons why we like to go as far up the wall as we can. Some homeowners go with only a foot or two up the wall, but we suggest having the entire wall covered to prevent moisture from getting into the crawlspace.