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Crawlspace controversy

By
Home Inspector with Ellis Home Inspection Services

 

There is lots of controversy regarding the ventilation or the lack of ventilation in crawlspaces under homes. Locally here in Pensacola, FL and Gulf Shores, AL  I have seen only a few crawlspaces that are not vented. Of those few homes I saw which are not vented, they were not updated with a completely sealed structure nor an HVAC system installed. The result was no mold (yet).

The pictures are from a crawlspace I inspected yesterday, which is typical for me to see this type of mold / fungus.

Building code says put a vapor barrier down on the ground and add some vents. It is very rare not to see some mold growing somewhere under these homes. I would like to see some sort of retro fit kit that is easy, quick and relatively inexpensive that would close in and condition crawlspaces that do exhibit mold conditions.

International Residential Code

408.2 Openings for under-floor ventilation. The minimum net area of ventilation openings shall not be less than 1 square foot (0.0929 m2) for each 150 square feet (100 m2) of underfloor space area. One such ventilating opening shall be within 3 feet (914 mm) of each corner of the building. Ventilation openings shall be covered for their height and width with any of the following materials provided that the least dimension of the covering shall not exceed 1/4 inch (6.4 mm):

mold

What do you find in your neighborhoods?

Comments(3)

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Charlie Ragonesi
AllMountainRealty.com - Big Canoe, GA
Homes - Big Canoe, Jasper, North Georgia Pros

In the mountains we have homes built on piers sometimes concrete some times wooden. This is fun for inspectors not used to this to see 

Jul 11, 2008 01:51 AM
Jim Ellis
Ellis Home Inspection Services - Pensacola, FL

Good information with Frontier basements. I would like to see people around here use a service similiar to it. Locally here in Pensacola, FL, if humidity is not near the mid 90's it feels dry.

Jul 18, 2008 04:53 AM
Gene Allen
Fathom Realty - Cary, NC
Realty Consultant for Cary Real Estate

I have seen attics that are not vented and aren't supposed to be and do just fine.  I would think if the crawl space is made that way it should be ok as long as the integrity is kept intact.

Jul 18, 2008 12:46 PM