Whats the Right Approach – a Crawl Space Heater or Proper Insulation?
We’ve had some very frigid days in the northeastern US and Canada the last few weeks. Those of us who have a crawl space underneath part of our home have felt plenty of chilly floors underfoot and cold air on our ankles. You may think that putting a heater in your crawl space will leave you with warmer feet. But in fact sealing and insulating your crawl space will not only address your indoor discomfort with cold, drafty floors, it will also avoid problems such as mold and rot in the crawl space itself, and will improve the health of your home overall. For starters, let’s clear up a common mistake about the air flows in a crawl space. For many years, homeowners, homebuilders, and building inspectors have believed that a crawl space needs exterior venting on opposite walls, so that air can flow from one vent to the other, drawing out any extra dampness from the enclosed space. But the most recent studies show that ventilating a crawl space creates a very different result, known as the s
