How Sealing Vents and Outside Air Improves Air Quality and Saves Money
Third in a 4 part series in How Crawlspace Makeovers Beat Water and Clean Your Home’s Air
Problem:
Crawlspaces are built with vents which are supposed to “vent” the bad air from them. Why don’t those vents work?
- Outside moisture – whenever it is wet outdoors, those vents bring outdoor moisture into the crawlspace.
- Summer – imagine a hot, humid day with 90 degree heat. Crawlspace temperatures run cooler than the home. The crawlspace temperature is 66 degrees, with the crawlspace walls and floor being 62 degrees. When that hot air goes into a cooler space, there is condensation which increases the moisture in the crawlspace. Wooden floor joists that get wet with condensation absorb water. This can result in rotting wood and mold growth.
- Winter - when it’s cold outside, cold air from outside can enter through the vents while heat from the home escapes out of them. If a home were a boat, it would be like making the home watertight and insulated from the waterline up and forgetting about the big holes under water.
- Access door leakage – many crawlspaces have old and rotting access doors that may be warped. These dramatically increase venting problems.
Solution:
- Vent Covers – Healthy Spaces technicians use Crawl Space covers from Healthy Systems to cover vents. Made of attractive plastic that will neither rust nor rot, these crawl space covers are fastened to walls and provide additional insulation.
- Access Doors– Older, warped access doors are installed that seal air leakage and add insulation.
- Cleanspace Wall Cap – openings in block walls are sealed if there are gaps that the sill plates do not cover.
- Plugged openings – all crawlspace openings, perhaps from a garage or wire or pipe openings, are sealed.
Next week – How Conditioning the CrawlSpace Air Completes the Crawlspace Makeover
