How Do I Prevent Wood Rot?

Wood rot debilitates the joists in your foundation, causing a slew of structural issues like uneven floors and wall cracks. There is only one way to prevent wood rot in your foundation, and that is to control the humidity levels of the space. Without being able to control the humidity, the chances of clearing wood rot from your crawl space or basement are next to impossible. 

This is mostly due to fungal species like dry rot. Dry rot is able to absorb moisture from afar, so even if the foundation looks dry, if there’s a bit of humidity somewhere, the dry rot will thrive. 

Waterproofing 

The first step in making sure that there is no wood rot in your foundation is to make it impossible for water to get inside. As long as there is standing water in the foundation, there will be humidity, so waterproofing measures must be implemented. The first thing every Charlotte home needs is a sump pump, which is a device that collects water that enters the foundation and then pumps it out. 

You’ll also want an interior drainage system  to go with the sump pump to deal with the surrounding groundwater. Groundwater can leak into the basement through the joints and the concrete itself, so the less groundwater there is, the less moisture will enter your foundation. 

Humidity Control 

For humidity control, you’ll want a vapor barrier and a dehumidifier. A vapor barrier is a thick sheet of polyethylene. It is applied to the walls to stop water vapor from permeating through the concrete. In crawl spaces, vapor barriers can be used to completely encapsulate the crawl space so that no moisture can get in or out. Without the vapor barrier, the air in the foundation would be constantly humid. 

A dehumidifier is a must if you want to take control of the humidity levels in your crawl space or basement. Dehumidifiers absorb humid air and guide it into its cold coils. The contrast between the warm, humid air and the cold coils creates the perfect temperature for condensation. The dew drops are collected in a basin, and the moisture can be sent to the sump pump. With a dehumidifier, you can manually determine how humid or dry the foundation can be.