[WillK]

So, between Christmas and New Years I'll have a week off of work during which I might get some time to work with my crawlspace. I might not have a lot of time, the kids will also have the week off and my wife will not. I'm looking for any ideas about what I can do without a great deal of time and expense about my crawlspace.

I don't want to invest a lot because in August, we'll be tearing down the house to have a new one built.

My plan had been to live with it, but upon recent inspection, I've found that it's to the point that I have mushrooms growing in my crawlspace now.

Changes I've done are that I did add a sump pit and pump (no particular drainage system) and I have a dehumidifier running, and a lot of debris has been removed. Also I put in 2 bathroom fans to ventilate the crawlspace to outside. I have turned one of those on at this point, and it seems to have helped... I suspect that without a lot of investment of time and money, running the fans and staying out of the crawlspace is probably the best option.

The crawlspace is dirt floor, the house was built in 1917, the house doesn't have a proper foundation, just 'piers' of concrete blocks - 3 of these are on footings, the others are mostly just on dirt. It's an enclosed and heated crawlspace.

There was a large tree which probably was taking moisture, due to proximity and at the time having a plan to put in a foundation under the existing house, I had the tree cut down last year.

 

[joecaption]

Add a 6 mil. black plastic vaper barrier on the ground, just hold it down with 16" insulation hangers bent in half.

 

[WillK]

Add a 6 mil. black plastic vaper barrier on the ground, just hold it down with 16" insulation hangers bent in half.

Okay, I'll go ahead with that... I had actually purchased a roll, but before I got to laying it out is the point my plan changed from fixing the house to demolishing and rebuilding it, and it's a bit overwhelming thinking about how to have to cut and fit to get around all the supports and the horizontal furnace.

 

[joecaption]

It's not as hard as you may think.
Go under the house and take some measurements between the piers,
Roll the plastic out in the yard, take that measurement and add 2', cut the plastic. Most often I try and lay it out along the base of the foundation to get my apx. length I need.
Do all your precutting then roll it up before going back under the house.
Drag it under the house by the end of the piece, stake it down on just the very end. Now turn around so your now crawling on the plasic not the ground, roll it all the way out before staking.
Once it's all rolled out pull it tight and stake out the end, work your way back staking and cutting around the piers as you go.
Done right you should end up with an over lap between the piers.

 

[creeper]

Since the house is coming down anyway, I may be inclined to just spread some absorbant powder around, such as borax or other powdered laundry soap. Or even baking soda if its cheaper