Don't Ignore Your Charlotte NC Crawlspace
2011-11-25
Don’t Ignore Your Charlotte NC Crawlspace
One of my Charlotte
NC home sellers is learning this lesson the hard way. We have his home
under contract and his crawlspace is creating numerous costly problems for him.
The reason?
He’s owned his home for ten years and has ignored the crawlspace the entire
time.
The result?
Standing water in the crawlspace over those ten years created a wet
atmosphere that rotted the floor substructure and allowed mold to grow
throughout the space. After adding a drain system to dry the crawlspace, he had
to add additional piers and joists to strengthen the areas of the floor system
that had the most deterioration. Thousands and thousands of dollars of
work.
Then, the buyer of this home tested the interior of the home for mold. More
bad news. The heat exchanger and ductwork in the crawlspace has blown the mold
into the interior of the home. Now the home needs a full mold remediation. More
work in the crawlspace and scrubbing of the indoor air of the house. Thousands
and thousands more invested by the seller.
I feel really bad for him. Learn from my Charlotte NC home
seller’s mistakes. Pay attention to your crawlspace.
What can you do to protect your crawlspace?
- Either spend some time in the crawlspace yourself or hire a professional to
check it out.
- If the ground in the crawlspace is wet, ask a waterproofer to prepare a plan
to dry it out.
- Have an annual termite inspection of your house and ask the pest control
person if the crawl space is wet.
- Make sure that your gutters and downspouts don’t spill water under the
house. Ensure that the ground slopes away from the outside walls of your home.
- Keep the air vents in your foundation open. Crawlspaces need plenty of
ventilation.
The photograph above shows a healthy crawlspace. Clean joists free of mold
and mildew. A dry dirt floor with a drain system.
What if you are planning to sell your Charlotte NC home?
Have a home inspection before you put the house on the market. And if you
find problems in the crawlspace, have them addressed before you put the sign in
the yard.
Thinking of selling your Charlotte NC home? Request a free
online
market evaluation.
Copyright 2011. Carol Fox. Allen Tate Realtors. *Don’t Ignore Your
Charlotte NC Crawlspace*