Fixing Drafts and Cold Rooms and Floors in Mechanicsville, VA

Challenge

This Mechanicsville, VA homeowner reached out to us because their home was drafty and cold. They wanted to know what their options were to make their home more comfortable.

At the inspection, we found that their biggest area for improvement in keeping the home comfortable was the crawl space. As air escapes out of the top of the home, new outside air is pulled in through the crawl space. The fiberglass insulation in the floor joists was acting as a filter for the air being sucked up into the home, offering little protection against the cold.

Solution

With the insulation in the crawl space being fairly new and undamaged, the homeowners didn’t want to remove the material when encapsulating the space. We left the existing fiberglass in the floor joists and removed any debris and the tattered 6-mil liner.

We then installed a heavy-duty, 20-mil CleanSpace Vapor Barrier. This crawl space liner is designed to withstand service persons crawling on it and working in the space without worry of it being dislodged or easily torn. It is sealed at all seams, wrapped, and sealed around all piers, and attached and sealed to the crawl space walls.

Our team then seals the crawl space vents that allow cold outside air to flood in as well as the sill plate and rim band. Closed-cell spray foam is then applied to the foundation walls leaving a 2-inch viewing strip for termite inspections. A friction fit door is installed behind the exterior crawl space door that both air seals and insulates. Finally, a dehumidifier is installed to control relative humidity in the space and protect the crawl space against future mold growth.

This system will not only help reduce the drafts in the home and keep the floors warmer, but it will also protect the home’s substructure from moisture damage during hot and humid months.

Project Summary

Vapor Barrier: CleanSpace

Dehumidifier: SaniDry Sedona

Insulation: Closed-Cell Spray Foam