Your crawl space is more than an empty area beneath your home; its walls make up the foundation of your home, and the space itself provides access to essential features, such as your home’s frame, electrical equipment, and plumbing system.
Maintaining your crawl space can help you protect these other important features of your home. Here is everything you need to know about crawl space maintenance.
Install a Durable Crawl Space Door
One of the earliest steps to take in crawl space maintenance is to install a crawl space door. A crawl space door provides a barrier over your opening to prevent moisture, pests, and other issues from causing recurring problems. Additionally, further maintenance practices will be more effective once you properly seal the crawl space with a door.
The durable doors from Cathmer Crawlspace Doors are made of PVC with no hinges, eliminating rust. Instead of a latch, our doors feature a magnet inside the door that is out of the way, allows for clean lines, and has fewer opportunities for latch failures.
Even if you have never undertaken this type of project, it’s a fairly straightforward process. The most complicated part of installing your crawl space door is to ensure you order the correct size door for your crawl space access point.
You can use our convenient measuring guide to simplify this step.
Seal Vents, Gaps, and Cracks
Although installing a crawl space door will make it easier to control moisture and humidity, these environmental factors might have already affected your foundation walls. If you don’t address flaws in your foundation early enough, they can worsen and seriously impact the condition of your home’s frame.
Look for gaps and cracks in your foundation walls, as well as erosion around the crawl space entrance. You’ll need to repair the entrance before installing your crawl space door. If your crawl space has vents to promote air circulation, install screens over the vents to eliminate pest and debris access.
Address Moisture and Flooding
Soil moisture is one of the most common crawl space problems, as most don’t have a finished concrete floor. A crawl space door can help prevent flooding during heavy rainfall, but soil moisture might still be a problem. Moisture causes soil to expand, spreading this moisture to your crawl space.
Install a drainage system in your crawl space to deliver moisture out of the area and away from your foundation. If you experience heavy rainfall on a frequent basis, flooding can still spread via the soil in and around your crawl space. Installing a sump pump can address this issue.
Install Foam Board Insulation
Temperature and climate control are crawl space concerns that can affect your entire home. While a crawl space door helps maintain a more consistent climate, your crawl space might still face issues with humidity and moisture. In addition to promoting mold growth, these factors can adversely affect the temperature.
Foam board insulation is moisture resistant and helps retain heat, making this an ideal option for insulating many crawl spaces. Your crawl space will remain warm and dry with proper insulation. When you take steps to maintain a consistent crawl space temperature, you’ll conserve energy in heating and cooling your entire home.
Schedule Routine Pest Inspections
Rodents, reptiles, insects, and other pests can cause significant damage to the underside of your home. They can destroy organic materials, such as wood framing, electrical wiring, and drywall. Some pests — including termites and carpenter ants — consume these materials for nourishment. Other pests use these materials for nesting.
Installing a custom crawl space door is one way to prevent pest access. Unfortunately, some pests can burrow through the soil to gain access to your crawl space. Regular pest inspections can reduce the likelihood of an infestation. Keeping your crawl space clean, dry, and free of humidity will also make the area inhospitable to many pests.
Top-Quality Crawl Space Doors
A quality crawl space door can help with many of the maintenance tasks your crawl space may need. No matter the size of your crawl space, you can find the right high-quality door for your home. Shop today.