Many of the homes in the Charlotte area have crawl spaces.  With hot and humid summers, moisture can build up and cause a variety of issues:

• Mold, spores, and fungus growth
• Wood decay and rot
• Softening of wood framing and supports
• Wet insulation that loses its effectiveness
• Mildew and musty odors
• Compression and shrinkage

If the moisture builds up in your wood, it can lead to serious problems.  Moisture can seep through your floor, create warped flooring, and erode the integrity of your home.  When damage occurs, repairs can be costly.

Controlling Moisture in Crawl Spaces at the Source

The first step in controlling moisture in a crawl space is to identify the source. 

If it’s from groundwater or flooding, you’ll need to attack that first.  Putting in encapsulation methods would only trap the water inside if you don’t eliminate the source.

When the ground is regularly damp or wet, it can release vapor into the air and keep things constantly moist.  Vapor barriers and crawl space encapsulation can seal off your crawl space and prevent moisture from seeping through.

Humidity can also take a toll on your home.  Warm, humid air in the summer can do serious damage to wood if the moisture isn’t controlled.  Vapor barriers, encapsulation, and adding a seal to crawl space access may be required.  Other solutions, such as dehumidifiers, vents, and monitoring may also be recommended.

A Moist Crawl Space Can Affect Your Health

It’s not just the damage to your home that you have to worry about.  A damp crawl space can impact your health.  Studies show that 40% of the air in your home comes up through your crawl space.  If moisture, mold, dust, and pathogens are entering your home, you’re breathing it in.  

This can impact indoor air quality and aggravate people with allergies or asthma.  Indoor exposure to mold has been linked to upper respiratory symptoms, such as coughing and wheezing.

A damp crawl space also creates a warm, attractive hiding place for pests, such as termites, carpenter ants, snakes, or rodents.  Each can do damage to your home’s structure and they can also create health issues.

A Comprehensive Crawl Space Moisture Control Plan

The best offense against a moisture problem is a good defense!  Let the professionals at Thomas Pest Control create a comprehensive moisture control plan that ensures your crawl space and other moisture-prone areas stay dry and pest-free.

When dealing with crawl space moisture issues, it helps to have a trained inspector investigate and identify the source of the problem and the solution.  With 5 decades of experience, we can diagnose your problem, explain your exposure, and recommend the right solution.

We can help prevent expensive structural issues or pest problems with a range of solutions, including moisture-barriers, dehumidifiers, and monitoring devices that help keep your property’s foundation dry.  We can also modify your existing crawl space to create a less conducive environment for organic growth.

Contact the pros at Thomas Pest Control today and let us show you how we can protect your crawlspace from moisture.