Tag Archives: CCHRC

How can I prevent window condensation in the winter?

Windows can be a barometer for how much humidity is inside the home.

On really cold days, you may notice condensation forming on the inside of your windows. This can be caused by one or a combination of factors: excess humidity, inadequate ventilation, or poor windows. To understand and correct a particular issue in your home, you need to know some basic properties of moisture.

Condensation occurs when water vapor (a gas) turns into water droplets as it comes into contact with a cold surface. The point at which this happens (called the “dew point”) depends on the temperature and humidity of the inside air. The warmer the indoor air, the more water vapor it can “hold,” and moisture can better remain in the vapor state. When air moves next to a cold window, the temperature drops and it can’t “hold” as much vapor. That’s when you start to see condensation forming.

For example, if the indoor temperature is 70 degrees and the outdoor temperature is 0, then moisture will begin to condense on a single-pane window when there is roughly 15 percent relative humidity in the house. A double-pane window will cause condensation at around 25-40 percent relative humidity, and a triple-pane window at between 30-50 percent. These are rough numbers are based on average window insulation values.

The recommended indoor humidity levels for occupant health and comfort range from 30-50 percent. The general rule in a cold climate, however, is to target the lower end of this spectrum due to the risk of condensation within walls and ceilings. If your house has adequate mechanical ventilation, humidity is less of a concern. In Fairbanks, it’s tough to maintain anything close to 50 percent humidity in a properly ventilated house, because the winter air is so cold and dry. Because of its low moisture content, the inherent dryness of Fairbanks winter air is good for homes but not always the occupants, since the dryness can cause discomfort.

What can I do about it?

Three things: make sure your home is properly ventilated, aim for less than 40 percent relative humidity to keep both you and your home healthy, and consider replacing your windows or adding moveable window insulation during cold months.

If you already use mechanical ventilation and have low interior humidity, but are still having problems, you may need to examine your ventilation setting. If you have a heat recovery ventilator (HRV), it may be recirculating too often, which can contribute to increased moisture build up in the air. Recirculation mode closes the connection to the outside and brings exhaust air back into the rooms. Recirculation mode keeps the HRV core defrosted and saves energy, but sometimes it can run too long. Some experimentation with the HRV settings may be necessary. For example, in 20/40 mode the HRV brings in fresh air for 20 minutes and then recirculates for 40 minutes, and likewise for 30/30. If you’re getting condensation in your current mode, try decreasing the amount of time the unit recirculates.

Also make sure air is allowed to circulate—either passively or mechanically—throughout the entire house. If you close the door to the bedroom, the air can become cold and moist enough to condense on windows.

Older, poorer performing windows can create problems no matter what you do to your interior air. Bad seals around operable windows, metal spacers between the panes, and inadequate insulating value can cause the window surface to get cold enough for condensation to occur. If you’re not ready to invest in new windows, consider some type of moveable window insulation like foam board (on the outside) or well-sealed plastic film (on the inside). A CCHRC guide to different types of window insulation can be found at

http://www.cchrc.org/evaluating-window-insulation.

UAF Sustainable Village Cuts Energy Use in Half

The Birch House at the UAF Sustainable Village used the equivalent of 367 gallons of heating oil in the first year of occupancy, less than half as much as an average home its size in Fairbanks.

The Sustainable Village homes at the University of Alaska Fairbanks are a new model of energy efficient, affordable housing for Interior Alaska. The four 1,600-square-foot homes were built at the university in 2012 to demonstrate that super-efficient, climate-appropriate houses could be built without breaking the bank. University students helped design and build the homes, adding their own ideas about sustainable campus living.

The homes incorporate experimental techniques, like solar hydronic heating and adjustable foundations on permafrost, that should reduce energy costs and improve the durability of the homes. CCHRC, along with student residents, have been monitoring the energy use and indoor air quality at the homes for the past year.

On average, the homes used less than half as much energy as an average new house in Fairbanks. The lowest user was the Willow house, going through the equivalent of 366 gallons of heating oil No. 1, or 48.3 million Btu, for both heating and domestic hot water from September 2012 to September 2013. The average same-size house in Fairbanks uses about 920 gallons, according to the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation’s database. Even the average new energy efficient house uses about 660 gallons per year. That’s more than the biggest energy user at the Village, the Spruce House, which used only 463 gallons of oil equivalent.

How do the homes save energy?

The homes are super-insulated and incorporate energy-saving features like heat recovery ventilation, triple pane windows and Energy Star appliances. The Willow House has a REMOTE wall with 8 inches of exterior foam insulation and 3.5 inches of fiberglass batts inside the wall cavity (for a total of R-51). That’s more than twice the insulation value of a conventional 2×6 wall with 5.5 inches of fiberglass insulation. Space heating and hot water are provided by a propane boiler and three solar thermal collectors.

The Spruce House, on the other hand, has a double wall filled with 18 inches of cellulose insulation (R-64), and a forced air heating system with a small diesel heater that heats fresh ventilation air.

Because each house has roughly the same heating load, the difference in energy use can be largely explained by the differing mechanical systems and the occupants themselves. What’s the set point of the thermostat? How long are the showers in use?

A cost analysis showed the Sustainable Village homes were competitive with other energy efficient building in the Interior — averaging about $185 per square foot, including water and wastewater, electrical, and roads (not including land).

CCHRC also monitored soil temperatures at the homes to study the effects of different foundations on the ground. The two western homes are built on permafrost, or permanently frozen ground, only 2-3 feet deep in the summer. The trick when building on permafrost is to isolate the house from the ground, so heat doesn’t leak into the soil and thaw the frozen ground (which can cause expensive structural problems). These homes used experimental foam raft foundations, steel floor joists with a thick layer of polyurethane spray foam designed to protect the permafrost. Sensors underneath the house show that the foundations are working so far: the temperature at 4 feet deep has risen less than 5 degrees, and at 24 feet has remained the same.

See the full report on first year performance of the homes here.

Arctic Wall is a new energy efficient construction option in the Interior

The Arctic Wall is an airtight double-wall system using cellulose insulation and is designed to allow water vapor to diffuse through the wall.

CCHRC recently tested a wall construction technique in the Interior that provides very high levels of insulation to maximize energy efficiency. The Arctic Wall is an airtight double-wall system using cellulose insulation and is designed to allow water vapor to diffuse through the wall.

The system was designed by Fairbanks builder Thorsten Chlupp and uses some of the principles of the REMOTE wall—another super-insulated building technique that places the majority of the insulation outside the load-bearing wall.

Conventional cold climate construction calls for a vapor retarder on the warm side of the exterior wall. This vapor retarder typically consists of a layer of tightly air-sealed 6 mil polyethylene plastic sheeting, which keeps water vapor generated in the living space in winter time from getting into the exterior wall cavities. Installing a traditional plastic vapor retarder properly requires a high level of detail around all penetrations to prevent air and moisture movement through the wall assembly. This is a known weak spot for conventional cold climate construction.

The Arctic Wall, on the other hand, has no plastic vapor retarder. Instead of stopping moisture movement with a barrier membrane, it works by remaining permeable so water vapor can move through the wall with the seasons, creating a super-insulated wall that can also “breathe”.

The key components of the Arctic Wall include:

an extremely tight building envelope to prevent air leakage and moisture transport via air leakage through the wall
the majority of the insulation outside the structural framing and air barrier
a wall that is open to water vapor diffusion that has enough capacity within the insulation to absorb and release a heating season’s worth of water vapor without succumbing to moisture damage

Chlupp’s system under study by CCHRC contains a 2×6 interior structural wall filled with blown-in cellulose with taped sheathing and a vapor-permeable air barrier (Tyvek HomeWrap) wrapped on the outside of that sheathing. Spaced a given distance depending on desired insulation thickness from the 2×6 inner structural wall, a 2×4 exterior wall is installed and wrapped around the outside with another air barrier membrane. The space between the two walls is then filled with 12 more inches of blown-in cellulose. See diagram for details. Depending on thickness, a superinsulated wall of this type can attain R-values of 70 or more, more than three times a traditional 2×6 wall system,

CCHRC monitored the Arctic Wall’s performance over 13 months by placing temperature, moisture and relative humidity sensors in the walls. The goal was to determine whether the conditions would support mold growth, and how moisture would move through the walls.

Test results indicated that both temperature and relative humidity levels in the walls were not sufficient to support mold growth. Neither side of the air barrier covering the exterior of the 2×6 structural wall ever approached the dew point (the point at which vapor condenses to water), indicating the structural framing is well protected from moisture.

The relative humidity of the bathroom wall (the one likely to see the most moisture) never exceeded 65%, staying well below the risk level for mold growth.

CCHRC also used moisture modeling software to predict how the walls would perform over a 9-year period, which showed that humidity levels and moisture content within the walls should not reach a level where mold growth would be a concern.

Also noteworthy was the direction of moisture transport in the Arctic Wall—walls dried to the inside in the summer and to the outside in the winter. This is not possible with conventional cold climate construction.

The Arctic Wall is a specific system whose components must be carefully engineered and built to ensure proper performance and moisture management. Based on CCHRC testing, the Arctic wall has done very well in Interior Alaska and provides a new option for a super-insulated house design.

Read the snapshot and full report on the CCHRC website at http://cchrc.org/arctic-wall

New videos on mitigating radon in your home

How to mitigate radon in new construction

The hilly areas containing fractured schist and rock around Fairbanks are known for having high concentrations of radon. A good radon mitigation system will ensure healthy indoor air quality. Your single best chance at dealing with radon issues is during new construction.

In this video, Ilya Benesch, building educator at the Cold Climate Housing Research Center, demonstrates the essential steps of installing a radon mitigation system for a slab-on-grade foundation.

The video follows EPA guidelines for installing radon mitigation systems found here:

http://www.epa.gov/radon/pdfs/buildradonout.pdf

Examining a radon mitigation system

In this video, Ilya Benesch visits a construction site and explores how the contractor has installed a radon mitigation system.

The project was funded by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service. For more information about radon, visit: www.uaf.edu/ces/energy/radon.

Do low-flow showerheads and faucets save money?

Photo by EPA

The “rule of threes” highlights the basic necessities of life: The typical human can survive 3 minutes with no air, 3 hours in a harsh environment with no shelter, 3 days with no water, and 3 weeks without food. Not pleasant to think about, but it does make you consider how you fulfill these needs on a daily basis. And while Alaskans are fortunate to have access to an abundance of water – the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports that Alaska contains more than 40% of the nation’s surface water resources in its thousands of rivers and millions of lakes – getting access to clean water every day can be no small task. In Fairbanks, many people pay for water delivery, or haul water themselves, no easy chore in below freezing temperatures. Additionally, many people heat water for laundry, showers and dishes, which adds to household energy costs.

In order to save both water and energy, many people turn to low-flow showerheads and faucets in their homes. Low-flow devices reduce the water coming from a faucet but add pressure to the remaining flow, so people don’t notice the overall loss in water volume. These devices save money in two ways. First, they reduce water usage. If you pay for city water, water delivery, or for gas to haul your own water, using less water means saving money. Secondly, the majority of homes have a water heater to provide hot water for showers, dishes, and laundry. A low-flow device saves you money because you heat less water overall, which translates into lower energy bills.

If you aren’t sure whether you already have a low-flow device, you can always measure the gallons per minute (gpm) that a faucet or showerhead delivers. A lower gpm rating means the faucet uses less water. The easiest way to do this is with a stopwatch and a gallon-sized jug (for a faucet) or bucket (for a showerhead). Turn the faucet on all the way, then use the stopwatch to determine how many seconds it takes to fill up the gallon jug or bucket. Then divide 60 seconds by that time to get the gallons per minute the faucet produces. For example, if your showerhead filled up a gallon bucket in 18 seconds then it has a flow rate of 3.33 gpm (60 ÷18 gpm).

What’s the difference between regular and low-flow devices?

With a flow rate of 3.33 gpm, a 10-minute shower will use 33 gallons of water. If you pay 9 cents a gallon for delivered water, the shower cost $2.97. Now let’s say you have a low-flow showerhead, which is 2 gpm or lower. A 10-minute shower would use 20 gallons of water, and cost $1.80. While $1 in savings doesn’t seem like much, if you take 5 showers a week it adds up to $20/month or $240/year. And that’s not counting other occupants in the house.

What qualifies as low-flow?

Bathroom faucets must use a maximum of 1.5 gpm and showerheads 2 gpm to receive EPA’s label for low-flow appliances. The certification program, WaterSense, aims to help people use less water in order to preserve America’s water supply. Products must use at least 20% less water with no drop in performance compared to standard options. Look for products with WaterSense labels in stores. As many of these products cost less than $100 and don’t take long to install, it can be an easy way to save energy in a single afternoon.

New standards for the Alaska Home Energy Rebate program

Those building an energy-efficient house in Alaska could qualify for a greater rebate from the state as of July 1. Homes that meet the highest energy standards can be rewarded with a $10,000 rebate, up from $7,500.

The New Home Energy Rebate Programwww.ahfc.us/efficiency/energy-programs/new-home-rebate is managed by the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation and provides incentives to build energy efficient new homes. An infusion of $300 million in state funding took place in 2008 and included money to fund rebate programs specific to both new and existing homes. Since 2008, the rebate programs have received more than $500 million in legislative funding.

Energy standards

The energy standards used in the program (called the Building Energy Efficiency Standards, or BEES) cover thermal performance, air leakage, moisture management strategies and ventilation. Typically builders and homeowners verify that they meet these standards by having an energy rating done from plans before construction begins, followed by a series of inspections during construction, and finally another energy rating upon completion, which also includes an air leakage test. Energy ratings and inspections are performed by a state certified energy rater: www.ahfc.us/pros/energy-programs/energy-rater.

As part of the initial energy rating done from plans, the home receives a certain score based on how energy efficient the building is. Using the rating as a guide, people can then make informed decisions in selecting measures which will reduce energy use, including (but not limited to) options such as adding more insulation to different parts of the structure, increasing air tightness, upgrading windows, or installing more efficient heating devices.

Previously, the highest rating possible was “5-star plus,” which came with a $7,500 rebate. Starting next month, there’s a new level called “6-star.” You must achieve a higher score (95 points or higher) but you also qualify for a bigger rebate — $10,000. The 5-star plus rebate continues to be in effect, however the rebate amount will now be $7,000.

The updated BEES standard also affects anyone applying for home financing through AHFC. To qualify for a mortgage, you need to reach at least 5-star (89 points). Before, you only had to meet 4-star plus (83 points).

These standards appear to be having a significant influence on new home performance. A recent analysis by the Cold Climate Housing Research Center found that about 60 percent of new homes built in Alaska between 2005 and 2009 (those that had an energy rating done) met the old BEES standard.

“It appears that BEES has become an industry standard here in Alaska,” said Dustin Madden, policy researcher at CCHRC. “This update means we should be seeing more energy efficient construction in the state, saving people money on fuel for years to come.”

What would a 6-star house look like in Fairbanks?

A 6-star energy rating can be achieved in a wide variety of ways. For example, a 1,900-square-foot home in Fairbanks could reach this bench mark with R-50 walls, an R-54 ceiling, R-20 rigid foam insulation on the exterior of a below grade floor, U-0.22 windows, a Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) and an 86 percent AFUE oil-fired boiler with an indirect fired hot water tank.

Every home will have issues specific to that structure which will affect the rating, including variables such as the exterior surface area to volume ratio, heating system type and efficiency, foundation type, and square footage of windows.

Consequently, getting on board with the rating process while still in the planning stages allows for maximum flexibility in making changes and adjustments to meet the 6-star (or 5-star plus) standard.

Vapor Barriers and House Wraps: where and why?

House wraps must stop bulk water from entering on the cold side and also be permeable enough to allow water vapor to pass through from the warm side.

The building envelope is defined as those parts of a house that keep the indoor and outdoor environments separate. The building envelope includes the exterior walls, roof, windows, doors and the foundation and/or ground floor.

As elements of the building envelope, vapor barriers and house wraps are a critical part of controlling moisture and air flow through your home.

If selected and installed properly, these products can help you conserve energy, prevent mold growth and maintain the structural integrity of your home. On the flip side, not using these products or using one incorrectly can have the opposite effect.

Vapor barriers on the warm side

A vapor barrier, also known as a vapor retarder, is a layer of material designed to slow or nearly block the movement of water vapor by diffusion. How much a vapor retarder impedes the movement of water vapor is referred to as its permeability rating, or “perm” rating. Six-mil-thick (0.006 inch) plastic sheeting is a typical vapor retarder material prescribed by residential building codes in cold climates, as its perm rating is extremely low.

In standard cold climate frame construction, the plastic vapor retarder is located on the warm-in-winter side of the wall — typically it is applied over the studs directly behind the drywall.

All homes contain moisture inside — cooking, bathing, breathing all create water vapor. In winter time the challenge then becomes keeping this water vapor from reaching places in the building envelope where it can condense.

Ventilation, which is essential to exchange moisture-laden air with clean, dry air, helps reduce the quantity of moisture in a tight home, but not enough to eliminate the need for a vapor retarder.

Where it gets interesting is that 98 percent of water vapor in a home travels by air leakage, while only the remainder moves by diffusion — through solid materials such as the drywall and sheathing in your walls. So, with proper sealing around penetrations and by sealing overlapping layers, we can also rely on the plastic vapor retarder to serve as an air barrier.

House wraps on the cold side

House wraps, on the other hand, are primarily designed to cope with the elements on the outside. They must be permeable enough to allow water vapor to pass through them from the warm side, but still stop bulk water like rain from entering on the cold side — similar to a Gore-Tex jacket.

By nature, house wraps must be vapor permeable enough to allow for drying if moisture finds its way into the wall cavity from either the inside or the outside. In addition, house wraps can help minimize the movement of air in and out of the exterior walls. Air movement through the building envelope in an uncontrolled manner, means you’re losing heat, which can become a burden on your budget.

To effectively repel water and reduce airflow, house wraps must be detailed correctly and applied using the manufacturer’s recommended methods and adhesives. All the penetrations into your walls from the exterior, such as vents, electrical connections, and architectural features, must be carefully accounted for.

The right types of house wraps can perform an important job in windy places by stemming significant heat loss and keeping the framing protected from precipitation that gets past the siding.

Final thoughts

The placement and permeability of vapor barriers and house wraps are addressed by building codes, but vary by region. Vapor barriers are required on the warm-in-winter side of the exterior walls in Fairbanks.

This article only touches on the details required to choose and install vapor barriers and house wraps. Placement and water vapor permeability can be a fairly complicated issue because of the wide variety of products on the market today.

You can find resources at CCHRC, the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service, and your local building department to help you make the right decisions. Doing your research up front will help maximize home performance and prevent problems later.

Shallow Frost Protected Foundations: a good option for the right site

Photo Courtesy Wisdom & Associates. The frost protected shallow foundation uses insulation to create a heat bubble under the structure. The heat bubble keeps the ground underneath and around the structure from freezing, effectively raising the frost depth. The shallower frost depth allows for a shallower footer.

When building homes in cold climates, traditionally the foundation is placed on undisturbed (or compacted) soils and below the frost line to better resist the potentially destructive effects of ground freezing and frost heaving. In Alaska, every region has building codes and/or generally accepted design standards that specify the depth of the local frostline. In Fairbanks, the design depth for footings is a minimum of 42 inches below grade. Installing footings and a foundation wall at this depth can be expensive, and in some cases a shallow frost protected foundation (SFPF) might present a more economical option. As a general rule, a SFPF system is feasible only on ground free of permafrost.

Unlike a standard foundation, a shallow frost protected foundation can be placed well above the frost line — often at depths of about 16 inches below grade, and in some cases less. Since the foundation now rests on soils that normally would freeze seasonally, the key issue is to keep the ground underneath and on the sides of the foundation from freezing. SFPF designs usually depend on foam board insulation laid out far enough horizontally around the perimeter of the footing to ensure that the ground underneath remains thawed year round, no matter how cold it gets. In essence, the horizontal insulation creates a “heat bubble” in the ground under the building. A frost protected foundation can accommodate a variety of designs including thickened edge/monolithic slabs and shallow footings.

By code, the horizontal foam board insulation must be protected from sunlight and physical damage. Typically, this means the insulation will get covered with a layer of backfill thick enough to protect it for the life of the structure — although concrete or pavement coverings also might be options (in a high traffic area, for example). Typically, foundations including SFPF systems should extend a minimum of 6 inches above grade to keep wood framing away from ground moisture. Any vertical area above the horizontal insulation also must be well insulated.

In Interior Alaska, SFPF systems are fairly new and a professionally engineered design will buy a lot of peace of mind. Because of site-specific variations in soils conditions and foundation designs, a professional engineer will best be able to calculate the insulation values and installation methods to ensure the foundation will perform properly.

This model is included just to show how heat leaks from the foundation into the ground. “Warm” colors indicate temperatures above freezing. “Cool” colors indicate soil temperatures below freezing. The dashed blue line is the freezing front, which you do not want to contact the foundation.

How can I use thermal storage in my home?

A 5,000 gallon tank acts as thermal storage in a home heated by a solar thermal system. Photo Courtesy Reina LLC.

CCHRC recently completed a study on how you can use thermal storage as part of your home heating system.

Thermal storage has recently gained interest in Alaska as it has the potential to increase the efficiency of heating appliances, enhance the use of renewable energy in cold climates, and reduce emissions of certain appliances like wood boilers. It is most suited for renewable energy systems such as solar thermal, geothermal and biomass, but can be adapted to a wide variety of heat sources. The report looks at different design considerations and describes several examples in homes around Alaska.

Thermal storage is a common concept. Many households use water storage tanks to provide domestic hot water, which can range from just a couple gallons to more than 100 gallons. Thermal storage also can be used in space heating systems to store heat for a certain period of time. For example, storing the heat from solar collectors in a buffer tank to use at night; storing heat from a wood boiler in a water tank to allow for a hotter, more efficient burn; or storing heat in the ground to harvest later with a ground source heat pump. In each case, thermal storage can be thought of as a “heat battery” because it holds energy to be used later. In this way, it can enable a heat source with intermittent delivery (like the sun or wind) to still meet demand.

Every thermal storage system needs three basic components: a heat source, a storage medium to store the heat (such as a tank of water, rocks or soil), and a discharge method (heat exchanger) to distribute the heat. Technically, any heat source can be used to charge a thermal storage material, however you should select the fuel and storage material based on availability, cost and compatibility with your home’s needs.

Also, many factors will drive the design of a thermal storage system for your home — such as your heating appliance, your distribution system, your heating demand, your lifestyle and many others. The design of the system also will depend on whether the system is being installed in a new home or being retrofitted into an existing one, as retrofits must accommodate the existing distribution system and available space in the home.

There are various applications of thermal storage throughout Alaska. A net-zero heating home built in Fairbanks several years ago uses solar thermal collectors and a masonry heater to charge a 5,000-gallon insulated water tank that provides heat to a radiant floor system.

The tank also heats domestic hot water in the house.

A different system, located at CCHRC, uses a wood-fired boiler to charge an insulated 1,500-gallon tank of water in the lab. The goal was to fire the boiler hot and fast, which produces more Btu and fewer emissions, and save the heat to use when it’s needed, rather than damping down the boiler so the fire lasts longer.

The water tank heats 1,900 square feet of lab space in the building. The tank was sized to hold as many Btu as the boiler could produce in one firing per day and to provide enough heat for the entire lab over a full winter day.

If you’re considering a thermal storage system, the first step is to consider what your goal is. Do you want to use renewable energy instead of fossil fuels? Are you looking for short-term (a few hours or overnight) or seasonal storage? Systems that are recharged daily are smaller and less expensive than seasonal systems.

Check out the report for an overview of various types of systems used in cold climates, case studies in Alaska, and tips for designing your own system.

Report: www.cchrc.org/docs/reports/thermal_storage.pdf

What’s going on in my crawlspace?

Crawl spaces are an area of the house that tends to get neglected. The old adage “Out of sight, out of mind” might apply here. Unfortunately, this also means crawl space problems can go unnoticed until they have an effect on the living space above. At this point, a problem that could have been easily remedied might have progressed into an expensive structural or health-related issue. The crawl space also can present a significant hidden energy drain on a home if not insulated properly.

Good moisture control is of primary concern in a crawl space. This starts outside the building envelope, and many problems can be stopped here in their infancy.

Gutters are a relatively inexpensive addition to a house that can provide huge preventative paybacks. In a climate with lots of rain, a house without gutters can direct lots of water against its foundation. Soils, wood and especially concrete are good conductors of water through capillary action. Picture a paper towel soaking up water — concrete works this way and can carry water great distances. If gutters are not an option, then at minimum the soils around the house should be sloped to direct water away from the building.

Once water reaches the foundation, things get a lot tougher. The structure must be prepared to resist infiltration. Ideally, both concrete and wood foundations should have some form of waterproofing on the outside. If this has deteriorated or was never installed, this might need to be remedied.

Assuming all external sources of moisture penetration have been addressed, the next step is to inspect the interior. With few exceptions, exposed dirt floors should be covered and well sealed with a continuous vapor retarder such as polyethylene with a minimum 6 mil thickness. If the floor will receive traffic, then it might be necessary to use either thicker and/or reinforced polyethylene sheeting or an even more durable membrane such as EPDM rubber. Even a dirt floor that looks and feels “dry” can release significant amounts of moisture, especially after heavy rains.

Another important consideration is radon, a cancer-causing radioactive gas that occurs naturally in the earth. The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service advises that if you have never tested your crawl space or basement, cold seasons are the best times to do so. The negative pressures created by combustion appliances, and stack effect in winter time, can bring radon into the home at a higher rate. Although high radon concentrations are considered hazardous, it’s possible that remediation after detection can be relatively simple. Testing crawl spaces is strongly recommended in areas known to have soils with radon concentrations. Test kits and information are available through the CES at 474-1530.

How well a crawl space is insulated and sealed can affect the entire building envelope. In Fairbanks, building codes require foundations to be a minimum of 42 inches below grade to protect the footings from freezing and frost jacking. Anything above that point could be at risk for freezing during the winter. This can mean serious heat losses if the crawl space is under-insulated.

Inspect the foundation walls and floor system closely. If fiberglass insulation was set directly against the inside walls with no moisture protection, or the dirt floor was left exposed, it might be wet and need to be replaced. If the floor joists were insulated, the floor system should be looked at closely. Any exposed ducting should be inspected to make sure all seams are sealed and connected. Be sure that exhaust fan piping (such as dryer ducting) doesn’t just terminate under the floor, but vents directly outside.

If you need to add or replace insulation, rigid foam and spray foam are good options. These types have high R-values and also qualify as vapor retarders. If you use foam, especially below-grade, make sure it’s approved by the manufacturer for your specific application. Spray foam and foam board may have certain restrictions or limitations in crawl spaces because of local fire codes. Some brands of foam insulation might meet fire code at a given thickness, while others might not.

In addition, it might be possible to use either a coat of fire retardant paint, drywall or fiberglass insulation to protect the foam board if required. The best source of information regarding current fire code considerations for foam insulations can be found at the local building department. Keep in mind that typically the local fire codes will need to be met if the home is put up for resale and is subject to inspection.

Tomorrow would be a good time to peek under the floor. The crawl space is integral to the foundation of the house and, in some cases, the largest source of unregulated airflow into the home. It is not a good place to let moisture, poor air quality or bad insulation go unchecked.