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A crawl space vapor barrier is a vapor barrier that slows down the process of evaporation of ground moisture that is coming into the crawl space air. Although, if a crawl space vapor barrier has a waterproofing system with it, the excess water and moisture can be removed from the crawl space before any kind of problems arise. In other words, no more rust, rot, odors, mold, insects or any other moisture related problems.
Furthermore, there are many crawl space vapor barrier contractors which can help you encapsulate the crawl space vapor barriers. It is essential to keep the crawl space vapor barrier encapsulated. In other words, it is important to keep the crawl space vapor barrier completely sealed in order to prevent various hazardous gases such as radon and methane from coming in the crawl space vapor barrier.
Here are some of the basic tips for crawl space vapor barrier:
Use engineered plastic sheeting
One of the most important tip is to use engineered plastic sheeting. These plastic sheeting are quite durable and are specifically designed to do various things. For instance, blocking out radon, mold and water vapor. Many people make common mistakes when using engineered plastic sheeting. They just buy a big box of plastic from a store and just lay it on their crawl space. This is not how you are supposed to encapsulate it. Make sure you tape the crawl space vapor barrier to the walls and completely tape the seams closed. It is advisable to hire a professional crawl space vapor barrier contractor that can help you with this job instead of doing it yourself.
Tape the vapor barrier
Another tip is that you can tape vapor barrier to the columns and walls. Only laying the vapor barrier next to the columns and walls will not block the mold and other things. It is essential to properly tape the vapor barrier to the walls so that it does not get loose. It is essential to do so that the plastic sheeting does not pull away from the post and the crawl space vapor barrier is sealed completely. It is advisable to use a sealing tape of good quality for this job.
Select the right kind of vapor barrier
Crawl space vapor barriers are available in many different types and sizes in the market. It is quite essential to select the right kind of vapor barrier for you as purchasing a wrong vapor barrier can cause many problems later on. For instance, you will need to buy a crawl space vapor barrier that can hold up to rocks, if you have a rocky floor that you are sealing. Furthermore, you will also need to consider the size of the crawl space vapor barrier that you are buying. If you have a small room, then you will need to buy a smaller vapor barrier.
Tape the seams
You also need to make sure that you are properly taping the seams of the crawl space vapor barriers. It is recommendable to overlap at least 6 inches with tape to the length of the vapor barrier’s seam.
Make sure vapor barrier blocks out mold
Last but the not least, it is essential to make sure that the crawl space vapor barrier you are buying blocks out mold completely. Since crawl spaces are a natural home for the mold as they like breeding in dark and damp places. Make sure you do not waste your time and money on a crawl space vapor barrier that doesn’t block out mold.