Dear procrastinators,
In about a week, we’ll be entering the two wettest months of the year. If you haven’t gone over your winter preparedness checklist, you cannot afford to wait any longer. It’s Go Time! Your procrastination clock has run out. So, why don’t you run outside and check you home for areas that could be vulnerable to moisture?
Money is a concern for everyone. Even the richest person complains about money, so the average joe homeowner probably can’t afford to let moisture issues build up in their home. A little mold in the bathroom after poor ventilation is salvageable, but, ignored moisture issues can end up destroying the integrity of your home, leaving you with thousands of dollars in reconstruction repairs.
The longer you ignore moisture issues, the more expensive it will be to repair
And, once you’ve broken the bank fixing your home, you have all the wonderful medical bills to look forward to as you deal with the health risks associated with mold.
If you catch moisture problems early, chances are you can fix them yourselves before the problem gets out of hand. And if left untreated, it will get out of hand. To fix the problem, you have to find the root of the problem. Let’s get started. We’ll start from the top down.
Clogged gutters and spouts are the number one reason that homeowners have water problems
Once you’ve cleaned your gutters – or hired the local handyman to do it-, look at the bottom of your home, where the ground touches your foundation. Does the ground slope away from your home? It should. That way moisture will drain away from your home, and not towards your home.
Homes built on crawl spaces are also vulnerable to moisture issues. The ground is going to hold a lot of moisture that could evaporate up into your crawl spaces creating a safe-haven for toxic mold to colonize. Talk to a contractor about installing a vapor barrier in your crawl space to hold out moisture.
The time to check your home is now. Once you’ve finished inspecting your home, you can start procrastinating on all your holiday gift shopping.
Sincerely,
