# Crawl space moisture



## martin1026 (Mar 20, 2008)

I own a newer house (built in 1994) with a partial basement and crawl space.  The crawl space is pretty typical-dirt flour about 3 feet higher than the rest of the basement, with a vapor barrier.  The past two springs I had some flooding the crawl space after heavy precipitation.  After last year's problem (which was pretty bad), I made sure that the vapor barrier was pulled up along the walls of the crawl space.  I also added a bit more grade to the outside of my house to improve drainage (my downspouts all appear to be working fine).  Unfortunately, I still got some standing water this spring.  It wasn't nearly as bad, however, especially considering we got 20 inches of snow last week and a few inches of rain the past couple of days.  I have noticed that the dirt under the vapor barrier is pretty saturated this time of year.  My question is, should I just add more grade and check for rips in the vapor barrier, or are more dratic measures needed?  I should note that while I haven't checked if there is a 5% grade away from the house, there is a definate slope.
thanks


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## inspectorD (Mar 20, 2008)

You are ok, as long as the water stays under the plastic, you are done. You always have moisture and water under the slab, you just don't see it.
If you want, you could add a dehumidifier if the levels of humidity in the house get to high. As long as nothing is growing in the crawlspace...take a break.


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## guyod (Mar 21, 2008)

I would put wireless thermometer under the house that reads humidty. that way you can monitor the levels comfortable from your home. if the level is constantly over 60% then you might want to do something but there is no hurry like the inspector said as long as you dont see anything fuzzy you will be alright but keep in mind that after 30 years of high humidy you might have dryrot problems


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## frozenstar (Feb 16, 2011)

A dehumidifier can really help you out with your problem I think. There are lot of dehumidifier brands in the market that you may want to look at.


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