Don’t let mold grow inside your home or office!
Vapor barrier installation: is it essential for your crawl space? If you live in Fuquay-Varina, NC, the chances are you have a crawl space under your home. Do you know if you have a vapor barrier in it? Also, when was the last time you had a crawl space inspection done by Sealed Solution to ensure your space is still moisture-free and sealed?
If you have yet to invest in vapor barrier installation or need to replace it, you may wonder how to install it. Do you need to hire someone to do the job for you, or can you do it yourself? There’s a lot to consider, especially with installing vapor barriers and how they work. It may sound like a lot, which is why we’re here to help you through this journey with your crawl space.
Keep reading below to learn more about vapor barrier installation in Wake County and everything you need to know about vapor barriers.
What Is a Crawl Space Vapor Barrier?
So what is a crawl space vapor barrier that you can add to your Fuquay-Varina, NC home? A vapor barrier is a plastic sheet placed on the ground of the crawl space. Dirt usually covers the floor of the space, and soil allows moisture to grow easily. That’s why vapor barriers exist: they keep the moisture in the dirt and out of the crawl space.
What Do They Do?
Vapor barriers are simple, but they do a lot to protect your Wake County home’s crawl space. The goal of vapor barriers is to keep moisture from entering your crawl space and potentially damaging your house and health. Moisture can cause mold when it accumulates, which can cause your household to suffer the consequences. Along with insulation, vapor barriers can help fend off moisture.
This works by covering the dirt floor. The water can’t pass through the barrier, so the barrier effectively keeps water out of the crawl space itself. However, if water enters from outside—like it would if you have open vents—the vapor barrier may not help. Vapor batteries are most effective when you have a sealed crawl space.
How Do They Work?
As we mentioned, having vapor barriers on the floor will keep moisture in the dirt from coming up through the barrier to the crawl space. However, you can also put vapor barriers on the walls of the crawl space. This can add an extra layer of protection if you already have an insulated crawl space. If you’re unsure if you already have a vapor barrier or what kind of insulation you have, you should call Sealed Solution for a crawl space inspection. Especially if you want to have a vapor barrier installed, you must ensure it’s sealed and free of moisture, mold, or wood rot.
Are They Necessary?
So are vapor barriers necessary? While insulation can keep your crawl space safe, how well it keeps moisture out will depend on the type of insulation you have. If you have fiberglass insulation, you may find yourself with mold growing in your crawl space. Fiberglass doesn’t handle moisture as well as other types of insulation, such as spray foam. Therefore, moisture can damage the insulation and make it ineffective.
Even if you have new insulation, you should take extra precautions to keep your crawl space and your insulation safe. Why wouldn’t you take all the necessary steps to protect your house? Therefore, you should have vapor barriers in your Wake County home.
Things To Consider
Are you taking the vapor barrier installation into your own hands? If so, there are a few things you should consider. This process is a bit complex, but you can perform it effectively with careful planning and knowledge. Also, it’s relatively inexpensive. If you choose to go with a professional, like Sealed Solution, we can install vapor barriers in a day. So if you’re not up for the DIY project, call us. Otherwise, read the tips below for vapor barrier installation in Fuquay-Varina, NC.
Tips for Installing Vapor Barriers
First, ensure you seal the whole crawl space. That means that you must seal every possible crack. That’s why getting a crawl space inspection by Sealed Solution is essential before starting your vapor barrier installation. Professionals are best for this job because they know what to look for when seeking damage. They investigate crawl spaces every day, so turn to the experts to ensure your crawl space is ready for a vapor barrier.
Also, make sure you measure your crawl space thoroughly before cutting your vapor barrier. While you may have a large crawl space, many are small and require you to crawl around—as the name suggests. Due to this, you don’t want to do the measuring, cutting, and placing while inside the space. To ensure you have enough room to stretch out while you cut the vapor barrier, measure the crawl space, then cut the vapor barrier outside of it.
Install insulation if you don’t have it already. While fiberglass is easy to install on your own, you should stay clear of it. Only choose insulation meant for crawl spaces; this insulation can stand up to moisture and keep it out of the space. If you have fiberglass insulation already in your Wake County crawl space, remove and replace it before you move forward with the vapor barrier installation.
Conclusion
A vapor barrier is essential for your crawl space as it keeps moisture out so that you and your family can stay safe. Before installing the barrier, consider whether you have the time, patience, and skills to do it right. If you don’t lay the barrier right, you can risk moisture entering the crawl space without you knowing, allowing mold to grow.
If you need a crawl space inspection in Fuquay-Varina, NC before installing your vapor barrier—or if you want the professionals to install it—call Sealed Solution at 919-302-1081 today. We’ll take care of your crawl space so that you never have to worry about mold or wood rot again.
Fuquay-Varina is a town in southern Wake County, North Carolina, United States, lying south of Holly Springs and southwest of Garner, and north of the Harnett County town of Angier and west of the unincorporated community of Willow Springs. The population was 17,937 at the 2010 census, and estimated at 30,324 as of July 2019. The hyphenated name attests to the town’s history as two separate towns. Fuquay Springs and Varina merged in 1963 to create the modern town. Economically, the town initially grew due to tobacco trade and agriculture, but has seen recent population growth and real estate development due to its proximity to Research Triangle Park.
Frenchman William Fuquay first settled in the small farming town of Sippihaw, named for the original Native American tribe that inhabited the area. Although there is no history of a tribe called Sippihaw, there are historical accounts in the area of a tribe called Susippihaw. In the mid-19th century while plowing the fields of the family plantation tobacco farmer Stephen Fuquay, great-grandson of William, discovered a spring. Originally the spring was used solely for drinking water. Stephen soon came to the conclusion that the mineral water flowing from the springs had healing properties. As word spread, locals began to help the springs establish this reputation, which brought residents from neighboring communities and counties to its waters. The springs were eventually walled in to better serve the tourists coming to the area by road or rail. In 1860, Fuquay sold the springs to a group of local investors who formed the Chalybeate Springs Company to market the attraction and its waters.
At that time another Sippihaw resident, J. D. ‘Squire’ Ballentine, was returning home from the Civil War. Ballentine had been the town’s schoolmaster before going off to fight for the Confederate Army. During his tour of duty, he had received letters from one of many southern ladies who wrote to the troops to improve their morale. Originally signing her name ‘Varina’, perhaps an homage to the wife of Jefferson Davis, Virginia Avery would later meet and fall in love with Ballentine. He continued to call her Varina throughout their life together. When he became the first postmaster at the new post office in town in 1880, he named it ‘Varina’ in her honor. A community grew just south of the springs, near the post office and the couple’s Varina Mercantile Company general store. In time, it adopted the same name. Ballentine’s business success allowed him to construct the Ballentine Spence House in 1910, the first house to have plumbing and electricity in the area. This house, a local historic landmark, still stands today.
Ben Wiley Hotel
The Fuquay Mineral Spring’s popularity grew in the 1890s and around the start of the 20th century as local businessman John Mills developed the idea to offer ‘Moonlight Excursions’ to the springs. He fitted flat rail cars with seats and offered nighttime train trips to southern Wake County from Raleigh. As more guests came to the springs to ‘take the waters’, a group of small hotels sprung up in town, along with restaurants, barbecue stands, and a dance pavilion with a player piano. The town became a tourist destination and was the site of special celebrations on Fourths of July and Easter Mondays. During these events, residents of Raleigh would take the train down to watch the accompanying baseball games and participate in the dances and celebrations. Hotels like the Ben Wiley Hotel catered to the out-of-towners and became as much a center of town life as the springs. In 1902, Sippihaw was renamed ‘Fuquay Springs’ in honor of its founding family and was officially incorporated in 1909.
Learn more about Fuquay-Varina.
Here are some inspection-related links:
← Previous Service LocationNext Service Location →
