Why Is It Important to Keep the Crawl Space Dry with Drainage Matting?

You don’t use your crawl space as an entertaining area. You may not even use it as a storage space. Why is it so important that you install waterproofing measures like drainage matting to keep your crawl space safe? 

Water Damage and Your Home’s Value 

Your crawl space has more influence over the value of your home than its size suggests. As moisture makes its way into this space, it can actively begin to destroy the structural integrity of any supports you may have in place. As this crawl space damage sets in, you can begin to see symptoms of it throughout the rest of your home, ranging from sagging floors to bowing walls. If you let these conditions go untreated for too long, you may find the damage spreading down into your foundation, where it can destabilize the whole of your home. Not only will you eventually have to invest in comprehensive repairs, but that process may extend far beyond your crawl space, to the point where you need not only home waterproofing measures but to excavate and restore your entire foundation. 

This process isn’t just inconvenient for you as the home’s current tenant. If you want to put your home on the market at some point in the near future, you’ll want to make sure you’ve done as much as you can to keep that unwanted moisture out of your crawl space. The kind of damage that a damp crawl space can foist upon you can cost you up to 30 percent of your home’s market value, especially if you opt to sell your property without first investing in repairs. Not only that, but you will have to disclose any untreated crawl space water damage to potential home buyers, meaning that you may have a more difficult time ensuring that someone takes your home off your hands. 

Water Damage and Your Family’s Health 

It isn’t just your home’s value that crawl space moisture can play with, though. Moisture originating in your crawl space can also have a detrimental effect on the health of your family. Residents with allergies or respiratory issues can see their conditions rapidly worsen. Even family members without these conditions can see them develop over time, especially if you don’t make a point to attend to the damage that you’re facing. 

All these conditions can worsen before mold has a chance to take root in a damaged crawl space too. If you find yourself contending with mold, you’ll want to do what you can to either tend to your crawl space or relocate your family as soon as possible. Most types of mold, if allowed to flourish in your home, can cause health problems ranging from a persistent cough to long-term lung damage.