Don’t let mold grow inside your home or office!
If you live in Benson, NC, you may have a crawl space in your home. In the absence of a basement, crawl spaces are essential in maintaining the temperature in your house. However, do you know if you have crawl space ventilation? While you may not think about your crawl space or its ventilation, there are many reasons that you need to.
If you don’t know if your crawl space has ventilation and whether that’s helping your home, now’s the time for a crawl space inspection in Benson, NC. Call Sealed Solution, and we’ll help you learn everything you need to know about crawl space ventilation.
Below, we’ll discuss what a crawl space is, if you need ventilation, and what you should do with your ventilation—should you keep it closed or open? Keep reading below to learn about crawl space ventilation for your Johnston County home.
What Is a Crawl Space?
Before you can call Sealed Solution to give you a crawl space inspection, you need to know whether you have a crawl space. A crawl space is like a basement, residing underneath your home’s first level. However, it’s different because it allows outside air in through vents. Some crawl spaces are the height of basements, while others are so small that you have to crawl through them.
But why do Benson, NC homes have crawl spaces? The vents allow outside air to come inside and circulate. This helps regulate the temperature in your home. This not only helps keep your feet warm when you’re walking around your house, but it can also lower your heating bill.
While vents help with circulating air in your home, are they helpful or necessary for your crawl space? There’s some debate about whether your Johnston County crawl space needs ventilation. First, let’s discuss why you need ventilation.
Why Do You Need Ventilation?
Crawl spaces are most common in warm, moist climates. Because of these conditions, homes can suffer from moisture damage if they don’t have something to keep the moisture out. That’s where crawl space ventilation comes into play.
Moisture can cause many problems if it enters your crawl space. First, a damp area is perfect for mold and mildew growth. While you’ve heard of mold before, you may not know how damaging it is to your health. Mold can cause symptoms similar to allergies: runny, stuffy nose, coughing, and more. Prolonged mold exposure can be dangerous. Symptoms of long-term mold exposure can include memory loss, insomnia, confusion, anxiety, and depression.
With symptoms like this, it’s essential to keep mold out of your home. It can prove harmful to you, your family, and your pets if you have any. Keeping your crawl space shielded from the outside is vital in keeping the moisture out. That’s why many crawl spaces contain vents.
Moisture can do more than cause mold, though. Often, the foundation of your crawl space is wooden. However, this moisture can cause wood rot. The last thing you want is wood rot taking over the foundation of your crawl space. Your whole Johnston County home sits on top of this space, so wood rot can bring your house to the ground if you let it get too far. That’s why you need a crawl space inspection done to ensure if wood rot or mold starts to form, you can stop it before it gets too bad.
Does Crawl Space Ventilation Work?
But does crawl space ventilation work? Not necessarily. Having vents in your crawl space can cause one big issue: lack of moisture control. While vents should keep moisture out, they can bring it into your Benson, NC crawl space.
The temperature outside your home may be different than how warm or cool you keep your house. When the outside air enters your crawl space, it meets with the air in your home. If these temperatures don’t match, condensation can form. Therefore, your attempt to keep moisture away causes it to form.
Should You Not Vent?
Does your crawl space have a vent? If not, you may wonder if you should have one installed. There are other ways to protect your crawl space from moisture now. You can install insulation and a vapor barrier to keep your Johnston County crawl space moisture-free. If you want to consider your options for your crawl space, you should get a crawl space inspection done and call Sealed Solution to determine what will work best for your home.
Should You Open or Close the Vents?
If you have vents, you may not know what to do with them. After reading about its moisture issues, you may wonder if you should close your vents or keep them open. To keep moisture out, you should keep your crawl space ventilation closed. However, there are other steps you can take to ensure you keep moisture out: consider sealing your crawl space as well.
Should You Seal Your Crawl Space?
If you want to keep your crawl space safe from mold and wood rot, you should consider sealing your crawl space. However, have a crawl space inspection done before you seal it. If you seal your crawl space with moisture, mold, or wood rot inside, you can risk damaging your crawl space and your house further. After all, the mold and water cannot exit your crawl space, so they will only continue to grow in the enclosed space. Call Sealed Solution to do a thorough inspection before you consider sealing it.
Conclusion
So is crawl space ventilation necessary, and does it work? While it helps circulate air in your home and could save you money on your heating bill, vents can cause moisture to build up in your crawl space, leading to many possible issues. If you can, seal your crawl space and close your vents to keep the space moisture-free.
If you need a professional that you can trust to seal your crawl space, call Sealed Solution at 919-302-1081. When you choose us, you’ll never have to worry about your crawl space again. Ensure you take care of your Benson, NC crawl space, so you can keep yourself and your family safe.
Benson is a town in Johnston County, North Carolina, United States, near the intersection of Interstates 95 and 40. Each year Benson celebrates Mule Days the 4th Saturday of September, a festival that attracts over 60,000 people each year. In 2010, the population was 3,311, up from 2,923 in 2000.
The town of Benson, which derives its name from early settler Alfred Monroe (‘Mim’) Benson, owes much of its historical development to the railroad line which passed through the present location in town in 1886 on its route between Fayetteville and Contentnea. More information on the history of Benson and the surrounding communities may be found at the new Benson Museum of Local History located at 102 W. Main Street, next to the Mary Duncan Library.
Mr. Benson’s purchase of a 402-acre (1.63 km2) tract along the Smithfield-Fayetteville Road in 1874 initiated the settlement of the area now known as Benson. During the 1880s Benson sold portions of his original tract to incoming settlers, many of whom were farmers. Benson was incorporated in 1887 and soon attracted a number of entrepreneurs wishing to take advantage of this new town along an important transportation route.
A prominent early resident of the Benson area was John William Wood Sr. (December 28, 1855 – October 31, 1928) who rode to Benson each morning on a mule and wagon from his home at Peacocks Crossroads near Meadow. After having served on the Board of Education and as a county commissioner, where he was known to be a watchdog of the treasury, he was elected to a term in the State House of Representatives in 1927. Meadow School was built on land donated by him.
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