Before & After Photos

A homeowner in Henrico, Virginia called us out to insulate and seal their crawl space from any outside influence. We installed a heavy-duty CleanSpace vapor barrier over the dirt floor, wrapped it around all piers, and mechanically fastened it to the foundation walls. This will help to keep the earth's moisture from rising into the area and increasing the relative humidity. We also covered any open vents and applied a spray foam over the foundation walls, which at an inch and a half thick will act as an air barrier and vapor retarder. With the walls and dirt flooring sealed and insulated, the crawl space will be less affected by outside air and moisture.

The original liner installed in this Henrico crawl space was a flimsy 6-mil vapor barrier. There were gaps in the liner, exposing the crawl space to moisture rising from the earth. This moisture can increase the relative humidity, which can lead to mold or mildew growth, condensation, and higher energy bills. We replaced this old liner with our 10-mil CleanSpace Light vapor barrier, which gets wrapped around all piers and mechanically fastened and sealed six to eight inches above outside grade on the foundation walls. CleanSpace will help protect the crawl space from moisture rising from the earth and comes with an antimicrobial, called UltraFresh, built into the material to help mitigate mold growth on the liner, itself.

The porous foundation walls on this Henrico, Virginia crawl space were left exposed, allowing moisture to seep through them and raise the relative humidity. The chalky-white efflorescence covering the crawl space walls indicates moisture infiltration. The open vents lining these walls also allowed the outside air and moisture to seep through them, which added to the overall relative humidity of the crawl space. To protect the crawl space from the outside, our installers sealed the open vents with precisely cut foam board pieces, which were placed within the vents and sealed with can foam. Then, our installers sprayed 1.5 inches of closed-cell spray foam insulation over the foundation walls. This amount of insulation has an R-10 value and will act as an air barrier and vapor retarder, protecting the crawl space from the outside air and moisture. A two-inch viewing strip is left at the top of the wall for termite inspectors.

The existing vapor barrier within this Henrico, VA crawl space was failing at protecting the crawl space from moisture rising from the earth. There were holes and tears in many areas, exposing the dirt floor of the crawl space. There were also large puddles in certain spots, and the floor was littered with debris and building materials. Our installers cleared the crawl space of the existing vapor barrier, as well as any debris and trash. A 20-mil 7-layer polyethylene vapor barrier, called CleanSpace, was installed over the dirt floor of the crawl space. This heavy-duty liner is wrapped around all piers, sealed with special vinyl tape, and mechanically fastened over the foundation walls six to eight inches above the outside grade. With this vapor barrier in place, the earth's moisture will find it much more difficult to infiltrate the crawl space and raise the relative humidity.

A 20 mil vapor barrier is laid, seams are taped, and it is adhered to the crawl space walls, replacing the old and torn 6 mil vapor barrier. Spray foam insulation is installed on the crawl space walls and the sill plate, rim and band, and vents are sealed.