The Benefits of Crawl Space Inspections

Investing in a Crawl Space Inspection: Why Bother?

As a homeowner, you may wonder if you even need a crawl space inspection if you’re not storing anything in this space below your house. And even if you do, couldn’t you handle the inspection yourself if you had a checklist on hand?

The short answer is no.

Licensed crawl space repair and encapsulation specialists have the proper training, certifications, and safety gear to work in the conditions that they do. Their certifications note that they’re able to detect problems with your crawl space that the untrained eye might miss. If you try to do their work for them, you may end up overlooking a substantial problem and costing yourself more money in repairs over the next few years.

The actual cost is another factor homeowners are concerned with. At Tar Heel Basement Systems, we provide free inspections and no-obligation repair estimates. After the evaluation, your inspector will note any problems they found with your crawl space and provide you with a cost quote and financing options. It’ll be up to you, after that point, to choose whether or not you want to have your crawl space repaired.

Breaking An Inspection Down

Say, then, that you schedule a crawl space inspection. What do these inspections typically look like, and what is your inspector looking for?

Crawl space inspections can be broken down into three phases: entry, superficial observations, and detailed observations.

The entry process is just what it sounds like – your inspector will look over the entry to your crawl space and make sure they can easily get inside.

If an inspector can get into your crawl space, you’ll move on to the second part of the inspection. This step involves a crawl space inspector looking over your entry point and the body of your space to see if any nails are loose, any electrical wires are hanging out, or if you have standing water making your space unusable.

Finally, should an inspector not notice any of the aforementioned problems, you’ll move on to the detailed inspection. During this process, an inspector will keep an eye out for:

• Insect/pest infestations
• Moisture
• Mold clusters
• Rotting wood
• Open vents
• Previously installed vapor barriers

As long as your crawl space is termite-free and otherwise clean, you’ll pass your inspection with flying colors. If the inspector does find something off in your space, they’ll provide you with a quote for repair or encapsulation services. You won’t have to commit to repairs at the moment, but they’ll be worth addressing quickly.

Why Address Crawl Space Problems Now with Professional Help

The longer crawl space issues go unrepaired, the worse they will become, spawning other problems. You might end up with a serious pest infestation, worsening health problems, structural damage, and an unsafe living environment.

When you have a professional crawl space inspection, you’ll better understand what you’re up against and how you can fix the issue.

Our expert team will repair and protect your crawl space with encapsulation measures, waterproofing, dehumidification, support jacks, and other beneficial solutions tailored to meet your needs.

Don’t let your crawl space repairs get away from you. You can schedule a free inspection with a local inspector to keep your space in tip-top shape.

Holly Richards-Purpura

Content Writer

Holly is a Content Writer for Groundworks who has written and edited web content for the foundation services industry for almost 10 years. With a background in journalism, her passion for the written word runs deep. Holly lives in Columbus, OH, with her husband. Along with educating homeowners, she also has a big heart for the Big Apple.