Healthy Spaces is the Authorized Basement Systems Dealer in IN http://www.indianacrawlspace.com Healthy Spaces Basement flooding is now being recognized as a potentially serious problem. There are many negative consequences associated with basement flooding, above and beyond the inconvenient mess and disruption of household routine.Give us a call for a free inspection (812)476-9708 http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Basement-flooding Wed, 07 Apr 2010 10:30:04 -0400 Excessive watering of flower beds and shrubbery around the foundation wall. Once the upper soil layer or mulch bed air spaces are filled with water, the excess water either runs off or seeps into the ground next to the wall. Prolonged and excessive watering can contribute a large amount of water to crawl spaces or basements. http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Watering-you-Landscaping Tue, 06 Apr 2010 10:23:24 -0400 Concrete block vs. poured walls     I have been asked over the past couple of months what is better - concrete blocks or poured concrete when building a house. Most people believe that a solid poured wall will not leak at all - that is simply not true. Here are the differences that I found to help you come to your on conclusion when building.   The first thing to realize is that concrete block is made from poured concrete. The primary ingredients in concrete block happen to be: Portland cement, gravel aggregate and sand. These are the same ingredients you would find in a poured concrete foundation. The only difference being the size of the gravel used in each application. Typically you will see gravel stones as large as three-quarter inch diameter in a poured concrete foundation. A concrete block may have gravel no larger than the size of a pea.   Poured concrete foundations are solid through and through. This happens by default as the plastic concrete flows from the ready mix trucks into the foundation forms. The typical concrete block foundation is not solid. The concrete blocks that are used to build block foundations, by their very nature, are hollow.   When concrete blocks are stacked on top of one another, you can look down through the center of the foundation. After the concrete blocks are laid, the voids can be filled with a cement-based mortar or poured concrete that contains small pea gravel. If the builder does this, then the filled concrete block walls are nearly identical to poured concrete walls.   But simply doing this is not enough to satisfy myself, code officials and structural engineers. Concrete and things made from concrete or cement tend to have fantastic compressive strength. Often it is measured in the thousands of pounds per square inch range. But the same material typically has only one-tenth the strength when you apply a tension or stretching force to it. Bending a poured concrete or concrete block wall creates tension. Backfilled soil against a wall produces tension as the soil pushes against the wall. Poor quality soil creates tension on a foundation as more and more weight is added to the foundation as the house is built.               You can strengthen poured concrete and concrete block walls by including reinforcing steel. Often you will see horizontal steel bars placed in the lower and upper sections of poured foundation walls. This steel often has a tensile strength of 40,000 pounds per square inch. This horizontal steel helps prevent vertical cracks should the foundation drop or heave. Horizontal wire fabric can also be placed in the mortar joints between layers of concrete block to achieve the same result in a concrete block wall.               Vertical reinforcing steel is also very important. This steel can be put in both a poured concrete foundation and a concrete block wall that will have the hollow voids filled with cement grout or pea gravel concrete. The reinforcing steel should be one-half inch in diameter and these rods should be connected to the poured concrete footer that the foundation rests upon. This steel should be placed every two feet on center.               Neither wall system will be waterproof. If you want a dry basement or crawlspace you must apply a foundation waterproofing system to the exterior of the foundation walls after they are built. In addition, a drain piping system needs to be at the base of the wall on top or the footer. The water that flows through the soil and makes it to the pipe is then drained to daylight if the house is built on a sloping lot. If the house is built on a level lot, the drain pipe often empties into a sump pit.               If you are building or planning on building please give us a call to speak with a qualified inspector about your waterproofing options. 1 (812) 476-9708   http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Concrete-block-Vs.-Poured-Walls Tue, 01 Dec 2009 04:13:45 -0500 What is Waterproofing a Basement All About?  The basement waterproofing systems and how they work. Let's take a look at the time and tested waterproofing of basement and how it works. If you imagine how a basement is first built, when the house it is sited in was first conceived, then basically the following happens. A big hole in the ground is dug, the footer or foundations are laid, the walls of the basement are built and then the rest of the house follows.  The important point to note is the first one in the list above -- that big hole in the ground.  The construction of basement walls invariably leaves a void on the exterior which requires backfilling. Loose backfill is used to fill in the gap. The problem here is that water looks for the path of least resistance, and you've just given it just that with a huge pile of loose backfill, no matter utilize water drainage pipes that often become silted. The water is naturally bringing all sorts of silt, sand,and dirt no matter how well it's been compacted.  Water will constantly ooze into this area.  The system can overload if the pipes get over-filled and then the pressure of the built up water would be concentrated on the outer basement walls. Water will work its way through even the smallest gaps, even though basement walls are waterproofed in some way. This type of problem doesn't usually go away because the pipes that are supposed to take away the excess water gradually worsen over time. A lot of the time a huge mistake is made by not providing access to these pipes. To keep water out of a basement waterproofing is also applied to the external walls. The WaterGuard system is a better system that works by getting rid of water pressure in the walls. Water is controlled, collected and allowed to flow through drainage channels either to natural drainage or to a sump pump where the water is removed away from the property. Waterproofing a basement is when they are installed internally, have easy access ports for removing silt, and can be installed in basements where other methods have failed. So to summarize, a good basement waterproofing system will:  usually be a permanent or long-term solution stop both ways by which water can enter through the walls and up from the floor not disturb landscaping, decks, patios, driveways, etc usually be an approved waterproofing method for home loans often be substantially cheaper than other waterproofing methods  Choose a reputable basement waterproofer when protecting your home, remember it is economically foolish not to waterproof, because the increased value from waterproofing will definitely exceed the cost of the waterproofing.  In conclusion, you want a basement waterproofing system that will deliver:  a permanent or long term fix stop water through the floor and walls not disturb the exterior appearance of your home an approved method by home loan lenders more affordable than other methods  Waterproofing your home is an investment. http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=What-is-Basement-Waterproofing-all-About Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:26:58 -0400 Insulation or Not     Few crawl space have insulation in the floor above, and some do not. One reason for insulation in the floor above is that the crawlspace is so cold in the winter due to open vents. These vents should be closed for good that will make a huge temperture of the floor above   Fiber glass insulation only works in a closed cavity. Fiber glass insulation is mold candy other than that it ts not doing much in your crawlspace with it being so loose and air passing right through it   The best way to go if you want your crawlspace insulated is cellulose (spray foam)the next would be rigid foam board. Pluming leaks are bound to happen it is just a matter of time in the event that it does happen you don’t want the insulation to get destoyed and start causing you home more problems   To have one of our inspectors to come out for a FREE inspection   GIVE US A CALL 812-476-9708   http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Insulation-or-Not Wed, 30 Sep 2009 04:04:58 -0400 Solutions to for your Basement or Crawlspace     Healthy Spaces offers basement waterproofing to turn your wet basement into a completely dry basement. Crawl space encapsulation, basement finishing, crawl space entrances are the other services that we provide with the help of a professional team of experienced basement repair experts. We also offer a number of innovative and technically sound basement finishing products for a cleaner and drier basement. Apart from basement waterproofing systems, we also provide wallboards such as the Brightwall and Zenwall. Our Thermaldry floorings use state-of-the-art technology and a natural system that works round the clock to keep your basement dry. Our sump pumps will help you to keep the basement of your house free of water all through the year. Basement water leakage is one of the biggest concerns for those who build their homes in regions having humid soil, such as in the states of Indiana and Kentucky.   Give us a call for a free Inspection 1-800-894-8024 http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Solutions-For-your-Basement-or-Crawlspace Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:29:40 -0400 Are You Selling Your Home?Healthy Spaces offers a free pre-inspection to be performed before or at the time a home owner places their home for sale. We are able to forewarn the home seller of any concerns existing in the Crawlspace or Basement of their home. The home owner can than address the concerns before a perspective home buyer could be scared away from closing on the home. The main reasons why a prospective buyer will back out on buying a home are issues that are in the crawlspace or basement. Let Healthy Spaces eliminate that concern in your Crawlspace or Basement. The result is selling your home with fewer issues, in a shorter amount of time. For A FREE Inspection call 1-800-894-8024 http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Selling-your-Home? Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:31:11 -0400 A couple of Causes for a leaky Basement               If no surface water sources are found, then the source of the water is likely subsurface groundwater under hydrostatic pressure. Unfortunately, subsurface groundwater problems are more difficult and more expensive to fix than surface groundwater problems.   When the groundwater levels outside the basement rises above the level of the floor, the basement acts like a boat in a pond. If a boat is sitting in water, water will leak in through any open cracks or holes. It works the same way with a basement. Hydrostatic pressure can push water through hairline cracks.   Symptoms of this are water coming up through cracks in the basement concrete floor or water coming in at multiple locations.   If you have an older house within town and the house has a basement with no sump pump, it is likely the perimeter foundation drain system connects directly into the city storm sewer system. If the level of the basement is below the street level, there is the potential of storm water backing up in the city storm sewer system and being pushed into the perimeter foundation drain system. This can saturate the soils around the house at the basement level with storm water under hydrostatic pressure, causing water to leak in.   Another source of subsurface groundwater is an underground spring.   No matter where it is coming from, the best way to control subsurface groundwater is to install the Water Guard drain system to relieve hydrostatic pressure. The groundwater is pushed into the drain system and not into areas where it can damage carpets, walls or belongings. The water drains by gravity into a sump pit where a sump pump discharges it out of the house.   There are two basic types of drain systems for wet basements. One is a perimeter above-slab gutter system installed at the base of the exterior foundation walls on top of the floor slab. It doubles as a base material for the wall. The other type of drainage system is a below slab perimeter drainage system. The below slab system requires the partial removal of the concrete floor slab and installation of drainage pipe making it more expensive than the Dry Trak system.   It is believed that an under-floor drainage system is better because the under-floor drains are believed to relieve the hydrostatic pressure before the water reaches the bottom of the floor slab. Give us a call for a FREE INSPECTION 476-9708 http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=A-couple-of-causes-for-a-leaky-Basement Fri, 04 Sep 2009 03:26:43 -0400 Concrete crawlspace floor Most people believe that having a cncrete floor in a crawlspace is going to solve all the problems that homes have with dirt floors. Actually the only thing that concrete floors help out with, is they will last with someone crawling aroound on top of them. Concrete doesnt allow water from the wall or the floor to drain to the sump pump.The fact of the matter is water vapor goes right through a thin layer of concrete like what might be in a crawlspace. If you are building a New Home or have an existing home that has a concrete floor we have a solution for you Give us a call for a free Inspection 476-9708   http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Concrete-crawlspace Thu, 27 Aug 2009 04:28:34 -0400 Rain is here and is going to be for most of the week nobody opens there windows when it rains because they dont want there floors getting wet. Most people dont think about there vents in there crawlspace they are just like minature windows and they are leTting the moisture into your house every time it rains when the humidity is high outside the vents let the humidity into your house. If you have vents on your house there maybe problems in your crawlspace that you dont know about. Give us a call for a FREE INSPECTION so you will know about your crawlspace and what we can do to save you money. http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Rain,Rain,Rain Thu, 20 Aug 2009 08:51:25 -0400 Thank you Tri State for 10 years of service, we would not be here without you. We enjoy serving our homeowners on a daily bases. We hope that with us growing and the Healthy Spaces Division being open and growing strong that we help you with your indoor air quality needs. http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Thank-You-Tri-State Sat, 11 Jul 2009 12:02:10 -0400 Swat Pest Night with the Otters, we have tickets at our office. Come out and join us July 17, 2009, the game starts at 7:00! http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Swat-Pest-Might-With-the-Otters Sat, 11 Jul 2009 11:35:33 -0400  Dirt Crawl Space Problem The problem is moisture inside of the home – particularly because a home is made of organic materials, filled with objects made from organic materials, and lived in by a family    The moisture comes from two sources –ground and air   Moisture from the ground, exposed earth contributes a lot of water vapor into the crawl space air. The earth is damp, as that soil dries into the home, the water vapor moves upward into the house. There are several ways water gets into a house leaks, ground water seeps, and humidity through vents, under the footing, between the footing and wall and through cracks in poured walls.   Air is an efficient way to move water. Air, especially humid air, moves with ease in and out of places. Air moves all around us in vast quantities through large and small places. Air brings its moisture content wherever it goes. When air is heated or cooled its relative humidity changes. Warm air holds more moisture them cool air.   Crawl spaces are cool, because the earth is 55 degrees year round. So when we bring warm humid air into a crawl space, the air is cooled, and the relative humidity goes up. High relative humidity causes rot, mold, energy loss and attract pest                    Healthy Spaces can help you so you don’t have these problems with our clean space encapsulation system give us a call for a FREE ESTIMATE   (812)476-9708   http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Dirt-Crawl-Spaces Wed, 08 Jul 2009 01:57:19 -0400 We want to welcome Andrew Kemp into or Healthy Spaces family Andrew will be one of or installers for Cleanspace and Basement Systems   http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Welcome-Andrew Tue, 14 Apr 2009 12:52:43 -0400 Thank you Everyone for a Great April 3, 4, 5 Home Show!     We would like to also thank all the sponsors for putting the home show on this year.  If you didn’t get a chance to come out, here are some of the pictures from the show.   Tim and Jimmy did an awesome job with the display.        Everybody pitched in and did a really good job.       http://www.indianacrawlspace.com/blog.php?post=Thank-you Wed, 08 Apr 2009 04:22:28 -0400