House-A-Tosis
House-A-Tosis is my name for sick house syndrome. While sick house syndrome is no laughing matter, it does not have to involve your house. With information in hand on the subject you can be proactive in dealing with this potentially harmful situation. So relax, your house may be sick, but with knowledge we can fix your house by taking things one step at a time.
The one basic cause of House-A-Tosis, is trapped gas. There are a lot of different types of gas but the two major gases involving homes are moisture vapor and earth born gases, like Radon. While cooking can produce some unhealthy gases, they are limited in nature, unless you cook 24-7. House-A-Tosis is caused by the retention of unwanted gases.
What is to follow is my blog on areas pertaining to a house that contribute to House-A-Tosis. Of course these are my observations and opinions, and are open for discussion. Let me hear from you.
I shall break your home into topic areas and go from there;
1. Exterior area
A. Roof
B. Siding
C. Glazing
E. Foundation
F. Landscaping
2. Heated area
A. Ceilings
B. Walls
C. Floors
E. Penetrations
3. Attic area
A. Roof decking
B. Rafters
C. Penetrations
D. Insulation
4. Crawl space area
A. Foundation wall
B. Earthen floor
C. Floor system
D. Ductwork
The number one culprit, in my opinion, is moisture vapor. A definition is in order;
Evaporation
Definition: To convert water into vapor. Click here for more information Or; To go from a liquid to a gas.
Evaporation of water to a gas requires energy (heat) for it to happen. We have all felt the cooling effect of evaporation after a swim or shower. As the moisture converts to water vapor or gas, the action requires heat and leaves the skin cool.
We make use of evaporation to dry out the crawlspace with our system. By introducing dryer air into the crawl, we wick the crawl space dry. Because moisture moves from wet to dry and not the other way around, we can dry out the entire area. By consistently introducing the fresh dry air into the crawlspace and removing the water vapor accumulation, we provide the best solution to your crawlspace problems.
The evaporation of water to water vapor, a gas that is lighter than air, causes it to rise up from the ground. In the crawlspace this is the reason the insulation and the pipes show the first signs of elevated moisture. The bottom of the floor system is the top of the crawlspace atmosphere. If water vapor is allowed to accumulate due to dead air, condensation occurs on the material at hand. Some times the plastic on the ground will be cooler than the air and "dew" will form on it as well. When this happens, you have some very wet air.
Damaging moisture accumulates first at the North-Northeast side of the crawl. This side of the structure is relatively cooler that the South-Southwest end of the crawl (the Sun is to our South). During the winter, if the moisture levels are very elevated, vapor condenses on the wooden members, causing rot to occur. Once the wooden members reach 20% moisture content the cellulose fibers start to break down (rot).
I have seen virtual rain forest atmospheres within the crawlspace area, such as water dripping off wooden members as well as the ductwork and pipes. The water drips to ground and pools accumulate until evaporation takes the vapor back up to the floor system where it condenses and drips off once more. At this point the area is at 100 percent relative humidity and damage is inevitable.
How do you look for and address any crawlspace problem in a logical fashion?
- Make sure that the surface water outside your home moves away from your house. You do not want water to pool, and water jumping the gutters is the worst.
- Clean your gutters and downspouts. Install gutters and downspouts that you took down because they were too much trouble to keep clean.
- Cut your bushes away from the foundation vents to allow air movement.
- Open your foundation vents in the Spring.
- Cover the earth under your home with 6 mm polyethylene.
- Make sure that any standing water under your home is not standing longer than 24 hours. Sump pumps, installed properly, will do the job.
- Inspect your sewage and water lines for leaks.
- Run the dryer vent line completely out from under the house.
- Inspect the North / Northeast corner of the crawl once a year. Really!
- Now, if the above did not completly solve your problem, install our system and you are good to go.
