Water, Mold and Spiders Invading Mount Vernon Crawl Space

The odors from their crawl space were giving David and Bonny R. headaches and making them feel ill. They reached out to Rainy Day, looking for a solution to their broken sump pump and leaking crawl space, as well as the problems that ensued such as water damage, mold, mildew, wood rot, rust, poor insulation and insect infestation.

Mold and mildew love wet, warm and damp environments, making the before crawl space a hospitable home. The 13 wide-open vents around the crawl space allowed water and dirt in, providing a foundation for the mold and mildew to start, grow and spread.

Bugs and other pests such as spiders like rotting materials like wood. As seen in the before picture, a large spider is making himself a cozy home next to the mold on the ceiling. There were spiders and eggs all over the crawl space, making matters worse.

After cleaning out all the muck—rotting wood pieces, rocks, mold, webs, the old plastic liner—we leveled the uneven surfaces. Then, to solve the leaking, mold and odor issues, we installed a full drainage and encapsulation system.

As seen in the after picture, we placed SilverGlo and CleanSpace on the walls after removing the mold and debris from the ceiling and pipes. Both SilverGlo and CleanSpace are durable, providing insulation for the crawl space, keeping condensation off the walls and creating a barrier from outside air, dirt, and pests. CleanSpace and SilverGlo are also inorganic, so they will never mold or rot. The heavy-duty white CleanSpace liner is flexible, puncture resistant and creates a healthy and welcoming crawl space.

For more information and pictures on this project, view the photo album.