What Should You Do About Humidity Levels Under Your Home?

Learning that there’s a moisture problem underneath your home is concerning. Excessive dampness in this area can lead to serious humidity effects that may include mold growth, musty odors, insect infestations, structural decay, foundation deterioration and HVAC damage.

Possible Causes of Excess Moisture/Humidity Under a Home

The first step in solving your humidity problem is figuring out the cause, which may be one or more of the following:

• Plumbing system failures. You may have leaks in the plumbing fixtures or appliances in your bathroom, kitchen or laundry room, or in the water pipes or sewer lines.
• Sprinkler system defects. There may be leaks in the fittings or water lines of your sprinkler system. Or, your automatic system may be watering the foundation perimeter too much or too frequently.
• Drainage issues. A deficient gutter system or inadequate ground slope may be allowing rain water to pool around the foundation and seep under your home.

How to Fix Humidity Issues Underneath Your Home

What you need to do depends on the cause and extent of your humidity problem, but it might require:

• Getting the plumbing fixed. Have an experienced plumber find and fix any leaks where water is escaping your plumbing or sprinkler system, so it doesn’t get beneath the house.
• Correcting gutter defects. Fix any flaws in the guttering, and make sure your system is sized so it can handle the quantity of water coming off your roof, and that the downspouts are depositing water an adequate distance from your foundation.
• Improving poor drainage. You may need to get the ground slope increased or a french drain installed around your foundation to stop water pooling.
• Increasing ventilation. Your crawlspace may need more vents, or it may be necessary to install a ventilation fan may to clear out moisture and humidity more effectively.
• Adding a vapor barrier. Installing a well-sealed vapor barrier may be a way to help keep dampness from seeping up into the space under your home.

If you need help solving a moisture problem to minimize humidity effects under your Orlando-area home, contact us today at Rinaldi’s Energy Solutions.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Orlando, Florida and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). 

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