Most Jamestown homeowners arrive at crawl Space Vapor Barrier Installation having noticed something else first: a smell, a soft patch in the floor, or insulation on the ground. The inspection decides whether this is the right stage to start at.
Bare soil under the house is evaporating moisture into the space every day.
Vapor barrier on lowcountry and coastal plain ground
A barrier earns its keep faster around Jamestown than almost anywhere. With the water table close to the surface the soil underneath is damp more or less permanently, so an uncovered crawl space floor is evaporating into the space every day of the year.
Coastal Berkeley County humidity is the other half of it. For much of the year the outside air here is wetter than the crawl space, so any approach that relies on ventilation to finish the job works against itself.
Jamestown at a glance
| County | Berkeley County |
|---|---|
| ZIP | 29453 |
| Elevation | about 39 ft |
| Region | Lowcountry and coastal plain |
Named water nearby
- Ferry Lake (lake)
- Wittee Lake (lake)
- Guilliard Lake (lake)
- Dawhoo Lake (lake)
Signs you need this
- Bare soil anywhere on the crawl space floor
- Existing sheeting that is torn, bunched or not sealed at seams
- Barrier that stops short of the walls and piers
- Crawl space relative humidity holding above 60 percent
What the work involves
What is included on a typical Jamestown property:
- Clearing and preparation of the crawl space floor
- Reinforced polyethylene barrier across the full soil area
- Overlapped and sealed seams
- Barrier carried up and sealed to walls and piers
Why it is worth dealing with now
The gap between a drying job and a structural repair in Jamestown is usually measured in seasons, not years.
The full method and the step-by-step for this work is on the Crawl Space Vapor Barrier Installation page, and how it behaves across the state is on the Vapor barrier in South Carolina page.
Vapor barrier in Jamestown: common questions
There is already plastic under my Jamestown house. Is that enough?
Often not. Most of what we find has been laid loose, has torn, or was never sealed at the seams and walls. Unsealed sheeting performs much closer to bare soil than to a finished barrier.
Barrier or full encapsulation for a Jamestown home?
A barrier covers the ground and stops soil moisture. Encapsulation seals the walls and vents too and controls humidity directly. Which one your Berkeley County property needs should follow a humidity reading, not a preference.
What should I have ready when I call about my Jamestown home?
Your street in Jamestown, when you first noticed it, and what you can see or smell — standing water, a waterline on the piers, insulation hanging down, or a floor that has gone soft. Photographs help.
Do you cover all of Jamestown?
Yes — Jamestown and the surrounding part of Berkeley County, including the 29453 area. We also work in nearby Bethera, Andrews and Huger.
Does being close to the coast make this worse?
It raises the water table and lengthens the wet season, which is why homes near Ferry Lake and the low ground around Jamestown tend to need drainage as well as a barrier.
What is the difference between a vapor barrier and encapsulation?
A vapor barrier covers the soil and stops ground moisture evaporating into the space. Encapsulation goes further — ground, walls and usually the vents are sealed and the space is brought inside the building envelope, normally with a dehumidifier to control humidity directly. Encapsulation does more and costs more.
Vapor barrier near Jamestown
We cover Jamestown and the surrounding part of Berkeley County. The same service in nearby towns:
Other crawl space services in Jamestown
Crawl Space Water Removal in Jamestown
Standing water pumped and extracted from under the house, then the saturated material taken out.
Crawl Space Structural Drying in Jamestown
Joists, girders and subfloor dried back to a measured target with air movers and dehumidification.
Crawl Space Mold Remediation in Jamestown
Contained removal of mold-affected material, HEPA cleaning, and the moisture source shut off.
Crawl Space Drainage and Sump Pump Installation in Jamestown
Interior drainage to collect water, a sump and pump to lift it, and a discharge that takes it away.
Crawl Space Wood and Subfloor Repair in Jamestown
Rotted joists, girders, rim joists and subfloor sections repaired or replaced once the space is dry.
Or see everything we cover in our Jamestown service area, and how this service works across the state on the South Carolina page.
Crawl Space Vapor Barrier Installation in Jamestown
Call (888) 724-1354 and tell us your street and what the space looks like. We will tell you whether this is the right stage to start at.
Tell us what you are seeing under the house and we will tell you what it needs.