Armed Polite Society
Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: Ben on March 08, 2022, 05:53:18 PM
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I just finished one of my most hated homeowner duties: inspecting the crawlspace. I just loathe it. This is the first place where I have had a crawlspace, so I don't know how "normal" mine is.
Half the time I'm belly crawling rather than crawling crawling, and while I see there are what appears to be manways between the footing sections, where instead of 16"OC it's 32"OC, and the footing is cut down lower to the ground, some dummies decided those were easy places to run big ass ducting, so I mostly have to squeeze through the elevated 16" spaces to get from one side of the house to the other.
Then there's the dust, for which I always wear an N95 mask because I'm afraid it might contain dead mouse or who knows what. I have looked at crawlspace inspection websites where they show a space like mine, with the same plastic sheeting that I have, but they look like a freakin' clean room where you could eat off the floor. I don't know if that's more normal or if mine is more normal.
I inspect mine usually three times a year. For you guys with crawlspaces, how often are you in yours? I have no idea if I'm in mine a lot or not enough. I was mostly in it this time because my patio is slumping and I was concerned there might be some water intrusion or something affecting the foundation. Dry as a bone and looks shipshape at that corner of the crawlspace though, so that's a relief.
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I got to do that as a kid, mostly because I was the only one who could fit in all the nooks and crannies. Always took a hoe with me because it was a rare day if there weren't also a couple of rattlesnakes there.
Brad
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I'm usually in mine a couple times a year. Mostly for inspections. Occasionally for minor repairs.
The SE corner where the access is located is the highest, where I can actually sit up comfortably between the 2X10 floor joists, tapering to belly crawling through the dug out passages I dug out 26 years ago on the NW corner. Getting old and stove up sucks.
Because of the shoulder problems I hadn't been under the house for almost 3 years. I've got a section of floor that has sunk a little and I was worried it was due to termites.
I got under there a month or so ago and found that it was just due to poor construction and bracing. A more or less easy fix except for the 40+ foot of belly crawling and dragging tools and material to the area I need to fix. Probably try to get that done before the end of the month.
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My house is on a concrete slab. Is this space between the house and the ground or something else?
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Slab construction = no crawl space.
Pier and beam = crawl space.
Brad
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Weird, just today I got a FB ad on my feed that was advertising crawl space encapsulation.
https://www.baycrawlspace.com/encapsulation-the-dos-and-donts-of-crawl-space-encapsulation/
bob
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That link has a picture. Thanks. I doubt people put much in those spaces down here due to flooding potential.
I was told my great grandfather put quicklime or something like that under the house to keep stuff out. I don't supposed people do anything similar to keep animals from nesting there beyond screening them in.
I remember buying some extra smoke bombs for my boss at the fireworks stand so he could smoke out any animals that might get under his house. He never used it partly due to the fire hazard.
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Weird, just today I got a FB ad on my feed that was advertising crawl space encapsulation.
https://www.baycrawlspace.com/encapsulation-the-dos-and-donts-of-crawl-space-encapsulation/
bob
I've gone back and forth on that. We have such low humidity here most of the year that I'm not sure it's worth it for me.
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That link has a picture. Thanks. I doubt people put much in those spaces down here due to flooding potential.
That picture is an encapsulated crawlspace. Kind of that "eat off the floor" thing I mentioned earlier. I would not store anything in mine. Well, maybe bury some guns and ammo when the country goes full totalitarian. :laugh:
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I’ve always hated crawlspaces. Friend of mine does pest control and a lot of his business is putting in the vapor barrier and encapsulation work.
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I go in mine all the time whenever I need to do work. I'll be running some coax cable this weekend. It sucks going down there but it's better than having a slab and having no possible way to modify anything.
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Ugh, I hate them.
I've done work in them plenty, either for ductwork changes or on the rare occasion someone sticks their furnace down there.
My requirements for the house I'm in now were brick siding, a full basement, and single story. I can maintain and work on everything and it's not a PITA.
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Never had to deal with one, thank God.
Full basements are common here on the East Coast.
When I make my retirement move to the area I'm looking at, though, then I'll likely have to deal with a crawl space.
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I will say that doing a belly crawl over the entire area and slithering sideways up and over piers and through studs is a really good full body workout. It's just a crappy workout environment. :laugh:
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My crawlspace is about four feet high and the dirt is covered with heavy duty plastic. Reasonably clean, dry and critter-free. I use it for storage, like the Christmas decorations. The hatch is in the garage at floor level, so I have a stepladder permanently in place at the hatch so I can easily climb in and out.
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I have crawl space under part of my house but it’s 42” and concrete floor dry as a bone.
The house I spent most of youth in was 18-24” deep and gravel base, don’t know if there was plastic sheeting or not but my dad cussed it at least once a year. I remember helping him sweat a copper supply line repair that had been leaking for awhile before we discovered it. Lots of adult words that day laying on our backs and torch sweating at cross eyed end of his nose distance.
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When I was in the home maintenance and remodel business I spent a lot of time in attics and crawlspaces. I used to re-level mobile homes and repair plumbing under them. I insulated attics and floors after site built homes were built. That was 40 pounds ago. I can't say I ever enjoyed it, but it kept the bills paid. Attics and crawlspaces come with all kinds of fun stuff, from beer cans and cigarette buts, to cockroaches, snakes and spiders, oh and bats.
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I have crawl space under part of my house but it’s 42” and concrete floor dry as a bone.
Mine is probably about that high, but there are pipes and stuff all over the place running under the joists that keep you from "regular crawling" more than a few feet, and I'm always worried about not paying attention and smacking into a waste pipe and breaking it open, so I just belly crawl everywhere. :laugh:
I have the heavy plastic sheeting all along the ground, but it's just plain dirt underneath and runs from dry to moist. I have one area where I have occasionally seen a small amount of water, but I know exactly where it is coming from - a weirdly laid out part of the roof that funnels water in the rain enough to really saturate the ground there. I'll be working on the exterior ground in that area this Spring to improve the slope and drainage.
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Heard those Giant Parachuting Spiders like crawl spaces
=D
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Several years ago, I wrapped the distribution ducts with insulation. That was the last time I was in my crawl as I am no longer "flexible enough" to do that crawling, especially not on my knees. :old:
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We have a crawlspace. It's the world's worst basement. We store stuff in plastic covered totes and I have an air rifle pellet trap at the far end.
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Once again, I'm glad I live in basement country.
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My current one averages about 60”. I have more grief with my basement when it rains and catches my sump pump off guard leading to 12”+ flooding. Only happened twice in ten years but one cost me an hvac board.
In Newport News I had a great one that was 18” max and had construction and remodeling debris from 1920 on. I just assumed any wire was hot until proven otherwise. Dust and spiders like no other.
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I have only necro'd the thread so that I can complain that I had to crawl through the crawlspace again. =D
I just hate it so much. I was actually down there for nearly an hour just now because I wanted to do a careful check of all the wood for moisture or rot (all the wood appeared both solid and dry). I've done interweb searches to the point of driving myself crazy looking for acceptable humidity levels for crawlspaces. I have seen everything from "under 40%" to "up to 60%". The "under 40" sites seem to think your house will collapse if humidity gets above that, and the "up to 60" sites seem to care less, even stating that higher levels for shorter periods, depending on season and climate, are not a big deal.
Mine averages 50% (at least at the one spot where I have a meter). In the dead of Winter I have seen it in the high30s (but mostly 40s), and this year, when we had an unusually high humidity level for nearly three weeks in the Summer, I saw it get into the 70% range, even peaking around 75% at the hotter parts of the day. During that time, it averaged in the low 60s for over a month.
I keep my vents open from ~APR-NOV and shut the rest of the year. I haven't figured out if that's good or bad. It's another area where there are a ton of opinions. I'm almost thinking of maybe keeping them closed for the full year this next go round to see what Summer humidity levels are then.
Anyways, I HATE CRAWLSAPCES! :rofl:
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Haven't you filled that thing with bodies yet?
Jeesh, get a move on!
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Haven't you filled that thing with bodies yet?
Jeesh, get a move on!
That would increase the humidity to excessive levels. Might smell unpleasant, too.
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If John Wayne Gacy could figure it out, I know Ben can do it! :rofl:
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Freeze dry.
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If John Wayne Gacy could figure it out, I know Ben can do it! :rofl:
I'll just get some lime from Mr Limehouse. =D
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I just caught the edges of a documentary on Gacy. Apart from filling up his crawlspace with them, he planted them all over the area including by the river. Thirty-three total.
The crawlspace in my old farmhouse had a decent height to it. You could "crouch" through it. Even so, I hated replacing the water pump from the cistern. That was one of those Sears kit houses. All the structurals had ID numbers on them. I say "all," but at least all I happened to look at.
This was very nearly the same as mine. You'll notice the first floor was about three feet above ground level, hence the generous crawl space.
(https://inspectapedia.com/Design/Sears-Kit-House-Mardesen-IAP.jpg)
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Also, &^%*$^% ((*@!!$^ !@#&%^$%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After my last inspection, I ordered a humidity monitor with three remotes, thinking I would space them around the crawlspace to get a more accurate humidity reading in case my current remote is in a bad spot. At the time, I decided I wasn't going to go back into the stinkin' crawlspace yet again after only a couple of days and told myself I would install them this time.
I forgot to install them. ;/ :mad: :mad:
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Pier and beam = crawl space.
Or = basement.
The house I live in was built for my parents in 1950, on a tight budget. One of the places they scrimped was to have a full basement under half the house, and a crawlspace under the bedroom end. IMHO, that was NOT money saved wisely. There isn't a week goes by that I don't curse that crawspace, and wish I had that as full basement so I could use it to organize storage and have some space for a basement workshop.
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Also, &^%*$^% ((*@!!$^ !@#&%^$%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After my last inspection, I ordered a humidity monitor with three remotes, thinking I would space them around the crawlspace to get a more accurate humidity reading in case my current remote is in a bad spot. At the time, I decided I wasn't going to go back into the stinkin' crawlspace yet again after only a couple of days and told myself I would install them this time.
I forgot to install them. ;/ :mad: :mad:
Well, you'da had to replace the batteries in them periodically anyhow. So that's a silver lining. So quitcher bellyachin'.
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Well, you'da had to replace the batteries in them periodically anyhow. So that's a silver lining. So quitcher bellyachin'.
Two year batteries. The current one is going on three. =)
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periodically
I admire your scientific attitude. I'm a mensuration nut and have placed sensors in weird places just because.
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This house was built in 1961 and I bought it in 2004. Between 2005 and 2010, I got in the crawlspace and used the foil type duct tape to seal the joints on the ducts, then wrapped them with the foil-faced fiberglass to try and insulate them. I also went through and put foam pipe wrap on the pipes that I could. Unfortunately, many of the water pipes are mounted directly to the bottoms of the floor joists. I started to put some of that R-10 pink styrofoam boards (2" thick) on the main plenum to keep more of the HVAC in the ducts. I got as far as putting the pieces on the top of the plenum but stopped when someone more knowledgeable than me said my water pipes might freeze if I wrapped the entire plenum. Those pipes on the joists would have no protection from the cold, so that job was never finished.
I also put some low voltage lights in the front and put the transformer in the crawl, but I can't remember when I did that. I don't believe that I have been down in over 7 years as there is no need to anymore.
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Yup.... Still enjoying my full basement, thanks for asking. =D
Don't worry, I won't mention it as many times a Mike will inevitably tell us how awesome his pellet stove is this winter. :P
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Yup.... Still enjoying my full basement, thanks for asking. =D
Me too, and an attic I can almost stand up in.
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Yup.... Still enjoying my full basement, thanks for asking. =D
Don't worry, I won't mention it as many times a Mike will inevitably tell us how awesome his pellet stove is this winter. :P
I have a pellet stove AND a full basement.
I'm *expletive deleted*ing golden. >:D
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Me too, and an attic I can almost stand up in.
That's the one thing there aren't a lot of in this area -- attics. At least not in the town homes or newer houses. Older houses have attics, or at least some storage space.
I thought about putting a floor in my attic area for storage, but the more I thought about it the more I thought how useless it would be because the scuttle is so small and it doesn't have a ladder.
Putting a floor in would have also severely impacted my ability to add more insulation up there, as there wasn't nearly enough.
So I said to hell with the floor and blew in an additional 25 or so inches of cellulose on top of the highly inadequate 4 to 6 inches that were already up there. Best decision I ever made. House is so much more comfortable.
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Yup.... Still enjoying my full basement, thanks for asking. =D
Don't worry, I won't mention it as many times a Mike will inevitably tell us how awesome his pellet stove is this winter. :P
I would have loved to have a basement. They seem more available on the East side of the state for some reason though.
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I have a pellet stove AND a full basement.
I'm *expletive deleted*ing golden. >:D
You can't kid us. That's not gold. I know that's only titanium nitride.
"Because of TiN's metallic gold color, it is used to coat costume jewelry and automotive trim for decorative purposes. --Wiki"
So now I wonder if you really have a pellet stove and a full basement.
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That would increase the humidity to excessive levels. Might smell unpleasant, too.
If John Wayne Gacy could figure it out, I know Ben can do it! :rofl:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYEMNHKP-Lw
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You can't kid us. That's not gold. I know that's only titanium nitride.
"Because of TiN's metallic gold color, it is used to coat costume jewelry and automotive trim for decorative purposes. --Wiki"
So now I wonder if you really have a pellet stove and a full basement.
Speaking of TiN, back when I worked for American Rifleman I was given a bunch of TiN-coated neck expander balls in various calibers. I kept the .30, .243, and 6.5mm ones and parceled the rest out.
Those things were the schnizzle.
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Speaking of TiN, back when I worked for American Rifleman I was given a bunch of TiN-coated neck expander balls in various calibers. I kept the .30, .243, and 6.5mm ones and parceled the rest out.
Those things were the schnizzle.
I wish I had gold expander balls...
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Why? Are yours blue?
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I wish mine would shrink a bit! :old: