Most homeowners never go into their crawlspace, and that is reasonable. It is dark, tight, and not where anyone wants to spend a Saturday. But it holds a lot of the systems that keep your house running, and many problems down there are visible well before they become expensive. Here is what to look for, whether you look yourself or have someone do it.
The checklist
Water and moisture
- Standing water or mud, especially after rain
- Water stains or lines on foundation walls
- White crusty deposits on block walls (efflorescence, a sign water is moving through)
- Condensation on ducts, pipes, or the underside of the floor
- A musty smell at the access door
Ground cover
- Is the dirt covered by a plastic liner?
- Is it torn, bunched up, or missing in sections?
- Is there water on top of it or pooled under it?
Wood and structure
- Dark staining, fuzzy growth, or soft spots on joists, beams, and subfloor
- Sagging, cracked, or notched joists
- Shims, jacks, or added posts (worth asking about if you bought the house recently)
- Cracks in foundation walls or piers
Heating and cooling
- Ducts that are disconnected, crushed, or lying on the ground
- Duct insulation that is wet, torn, or fallen off
- Equipment in the crawlspace: its condition, and whether its condensate line drains properly
Plumbing
- Drips or wet spots under bathrooms and the kitchen
- Corroded or stained supply lines
- Loose or missing cleanout caps on drain lines
Pests and wildlife
- Droppings, nesting in insulation, or chewed materials
- Mud tubes on walls or piers, a sign of termites
- Gaps around vents or the access door where animals get in
Insulation and odds and ends
- Insulation hanging down or lying on the ground
- Debris, old construction scraps, or trash
- In homes built before the mid-1980s, old duct tape or wrap that may contain asbestos. It is generally safest left undisturbed, but worth knowing about before anyone works down there.
A word on going in yourself
You can see a surprising amount from the access door with a good flashlight. Going further is a judgment call. Crawlspaces can be tight, wet, and shared with wildlife and wiring. If yours is low or wet, it is reasonable not to go in.
Who can look for you
- A home inspector, as part of a whole-house inspection, usually when you buy. They look at the crawlspace if they can safely get in. Reports often note "limited access" when they cannot.
- Pest control companies, often for termite inspections. Some also sell moisture control.
- Waterproofing and encapsulation companies, which often offer free inspections. A free inspection is paid for by the work it leads to. That is not wrong, but it is worth knowing.
- An independent assessment, like Kachug's, from someone who does not sell the repair.
What a Kachug assessment covers
We send a remote crawler with a 360-degree camera through your crawlspace, including the tight and wet ones that are hard for a person to get through. It covers most of this checklist: water, ground cover, wood and structure, ducts, plumbing, pests, and insulation, with humidity readings recorded in the video. You get the footage, a map of what is under your house, and every finding ranked as inspect soon, address eventually, or lower priority, within seven days. It is not a home inspection, and we do not sell repairs. It is $199, and you pay when your report is ready.
See how it works or book an assessment. Call before you crawl.