Crawlspace Dehumidifier in Georgetown, DE
Challenge
The owner of this rural home near Georgetown, DE wanted to reduce the humidity levels in the crawlspace. Lawson Home Services energy auditor, Ryan Wurzel, conducted the audit for this home. He found it to be very well built, and very air tight, by modern building code standards which limit the amount newly constructed homes are allowed to leak air - this is for energy conservation purposes. When a home measures as tight as this one there is no need to do any air sealing, as is typically required for 20+ year-old homes built in the last century. Ryan also checked the insulation and found there to be adequate amounts in the walls, attic, and crawlspace.
Ryan looked in the crawlspace. We can see from the pictures the crawlspace was protected from the bare dirt floor by protective plastic sheeting. While protecting the crawlspace from liquid groundwater intrusion, this sheeting wasn't quite doing the job of blocking the water vapor. As a result the humidity inside the crawlspace was getting too high, creating the possibility for growth of harmful microbes and mold, as well as risking rotting of the timbers of the floor joists above. Damp crawlspaces are also notorious for creating foul musty odors inside the living space.
Solution
The solution was simple: install a Sedona SaniDry™ dehumidifier in the crawlspace. This requires a dedicated circuit which must first be installed by an electrician. Once installed the SaniDry™ removes the water from the air. A condensate pump then pumps the liquid water to the sump pump where it is, in turn, pumped outside the house. It's a fairly simply installation.
The SaniDry™ unit requires only a simple, inexpensive annual maintenance. During this maintenance our technician removes the filters, cleans and replaces them. He checks the condition of the hoses going to and from the condensate pump, cleans or replaces them as necessary to make sure all the liquid water is flowing properly to its intended destination. And finally he conducts a test run of the unit and makes certain everything is performing to proper specification.
The SaniDry™ unit runs quietly and efficiently. You'll never know it's down there working to protect your home 24-7.
