Challenge

Are you dealing with Moldy, smelly insulation that is not providing any Insulation value and has sagged or even fallen? 

Our building science specialist inspected this homeowner’s crawl space and found it to be moisture damaged, moldy, and delaminated. The old thinking in crawl space construction was to vent the crawl space and create a thermal boundary being the insulation layer at the crawl space ceiling. What we know now is that it doesn’t work. Insulation is pulled by gravity away from the subfloor you're supposed to be insulating. The same cold air under the insulation flows into the space on top of it - rendering the insulation useless. As the insulation gets heavier with moisture content, it falls away from the subfloor even more and can even fall to the floor. Fiberglass batt insulation has paper facing and organic material in the resin used to set the fibers into a batt - both are mold food. This homeowner was dealing with these very issues. The homeowner was also dealing with a vented dirt crawl space. Millions of homes were built this way. Currently building science specialists agree - that was a big mistake. Now that building codes are changing. 

In the winter vents let cold air directly into homes. In the summer vents let warm humid air in which is cooled by the subterranean crawl space. This causes the relative humidity to go way up and condensation to form all over the crawl space surfaces including floor joists and ducts. Mold grows, wood rots, and insects and other pests flourish. Musty odors can be noticed upstairs as mold spores travel upwards into the living space. During the inspection, the building science specialist noticed the crawl space Rim Joists were leaky and poorly insulated as well. The rim joist is seldom insulated and never air sealed. This also explains why the level of condensation was higher in this crawl space.

Solution

How we repaired this crawl space and fixed this uncomfortable crawl space condition?

Fogarty’s Home services removed the existing fiberglass batts from the crawl space. This homeowner had a large amount of their pink fiberglass insulation damaged and sagging. It’s not fun laying on your back in a tight dirt crawl space, but our installers get the job done. After this process, your crawl space is ready to be fixed properly with other Dr. Energy Saver solutions. We seal the vents and other air leaks using insulated vent covers to properly fix this homeowner's damaged crawl space. The walls of the crawl space are insulated with silver glo insulation with a reflective radiant barrier face. A dimpled plastic drainage matting is then installed across the floor to create airspace and thermal break, and terra block floor insulation is installed over it. Finally, the heavy-duty 20-mil thick crawlspace encapsulation liner is installed permanently across the dirt floor - sealed with mechanical fasteners. The crawl space encapsulation liner features ultra-fresh antimicrobial ingredients in the product. We finish the job by air sealing the rim joist with two-part spray foam with a high insulation value per inch of R&, and because it expands it seals all cracks and gaps and joints where air from the outside enters your home.

Results. Warmer floors, fewer drafts, more comfortable rooms, your house is easier to heat and costs less to heat, less summer condensation. 

Project Summary

Crawl Space Repair: Fogarty's Home Services