Is your crawl space protected in Central Houston?

Think of a crawl space as a place where you store important things, like important documents in a cabinet. You know they are there, but you really don’t take a look inside too often. Do you ever go into your crawl space? There are important essential elements that can succumb to significant damage without you even knowing it. 

You should check out your crawl space every few months because water damage is fairly common. You should act quickly if you see something doesn’t look right. 

Obviously if you see standing water when you open the crawl space door, you have a problem. You must be wondering where it came from. Do you need professional restoration?

What should you look for when checking your crawl space for potential damage?

Leaky and/or broken pipes: If when entering your crawl space, you see just a puddle of water, you most likely have a leaking or burst pipe of some kind. It could be an incoming or outgoing source of water. Two possible ways to tell is, if the water smells musty, like the smell from wet clothes that have sat around too long before drying, then it is most likely incoming clean water that has sat around too long. If the water smells like sewer, then it’s most likely outgoing water from your toilet or drains.

Roof Leak?: You don’t think about a roof leak going into your crawl space, but some houses have a crawl space attached to their roof. If this is the case, the walls and ceilings of your crawl space or the wooden joists could have water damage. If a leak finds itself being redirected inside of a wall or into the attic, it can go from there into your crawlspace. 

Too much Humidity: Older homes with broken window seals are notorious for having excessive humidity problems. If unsealed, the crawl space can increase the problem especially if the crawl space has a dirt floor. Water will evaporate out of the dirt and into the crawl space. This will cause mold growth and poor air quality in your home as well as water damage which could cause serious health issues.

If you suspect crawl space water or mold damage, seek help form a professional qualified water damage or crawl space restoration/encapsulation company.