During the recent hurricane, Isabell, a friends waterfront home was flooded with seawater. The water entered the crawlspace, but not the house proper. Naturally, the little critters that were washed in are now starting to stink. Does anyone know of an effective sanitization process, short of removing all the crawlspace fill and replacing it?
Similarly, the lower foot or so of the garage walls (including drywall & insulation) was saturated. My research leads me to the conclusion that the only effective fix is complete removal, drying, and replacing the insulation and drywall. To leave it is to invite mold and mildew. Any comments?
Thank you,
David DiSpirito, CPBD, AIBD
Replies
Sounds to me like you already know the bad news. Sanitizing the crawlspace must include removal of the "organic materials" -- including anything that swam in, crawled in, or was washed in. If that list includes sewage, then the job is nastier, but even more necessary.
And yes, the drywall in the garage will need to be replaced. The stuff goes soft once it's been soaked, and nothing can be done to repair it in place. You should probably plan to replace all of it that is within a foot (or more?) of the waterline, since the water may have wicked up inside the wall.
And the insulation should be thrown out too. Miocroscopic organisms were in the water, and are now in the insulation. Drying it out and putting it back invites later problems.
Our thoughts are with you, and the thousands of others who share your plight.
Once Insulation gets wet it looses it's R value for good. Throw it out.
Have you considered calling a Pest company? There are plenty of deodorizer's and sanitizers available through them.
Rake it all out, get some heavy duty fans blowing under there and have it Sanitized--deodorized.
I hadn't thought of the pest company idea for sanitizers. I'll have to look into that one. The crawlspace has been opend up and a fan put in the access space. I suppose a rake would be able to get the big stuff.
Do you think seawater trapped in the voids of the concrete blocks will pose a problem?
Think petrie dish.
Who ever invented work didn't know how to fish....
If your Concrete Foundation walls are "block" and are not sealed, meaning concrete sealer--primers, then as porous as block walls are, I highly doubt it will pose any problem.
What type of soil? I presume sand?
Another alternative to the whole "petrie dish" idea is to have your home "thermally heated" they will force 200 degree hot air in there to reach core temps in walls and wood of 150-160 degrees, this can easily be done under the home, without endangering anything "inside" the home. And will not only take care of most spores it will kill pests if present.
The crawlspace floor is sand with a poly vapor barrier, which is being removed to further the drying process, and then a new barrier will be installed later.
The heating idea is interesting. Who does this process? Is it effective over the entire crawlspace (about 2500 sf)?
Termite companies do the heating, 2500 sf is nooo problem.