Bare dirt, torn plastic or a musty smell under the floor? We clear the space and lay a cover that reaches every corner and post.
A crawl space vapor barrier is a sheet of plastic laid over the dirt under your house. For homes in Seaside, it helps hold down the moisture rising off that soil so it doesn't settle into the space under your floors. If your crawl space is bare dirt or the old cover is torn, it's usually worth doing.
Most people call us after they've shined a flashlight through the hatch and seen bare dirt, an old sheet of plastic that's torn or bunched up, or stains on the posts, and they want to know whether to fix that before they think about crawl space insulation. The price mostly comes down to how big the space is, how much has to come out before the cover goes down, how many posts and footings the plastic has to wrap, and whether you're keeping the vents open or sealing the whole space. The schedule depends on what we find under there, because a leak or pest damage gets fixed first, and on whether your job needs a permit. Your own figure comes from the estimate, once I've been under your floor.
I look under your floor, write the estimate myself and tell you what I found, good or bad. Our installers do the work, and when they're done I walk through it with you so you know exactly what we did and why. Backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
I did upkeep for a property management company for years before starting this business in Seaside in 2023, and I've seen plastic laid over problems. If there's a leak or old wiring under the floor, I'll tell you to fix it first instead of selling you a cover that won't hold up.
We're licensed and fully insured. California's contractor license classes include General Building, Residential Remodeling and Insulation and Acoustical, so it's fair to ask any contractor which class they hold before they go under your house. Call (831) 204-4546 or use the form below to set up a visit.
Send the form or call (831) 204-4546, and we'll reply within one business day to set a time for me to come out, look under the house and write you a free estimate with no obligation. If you can, tell us whether the crawl space has vents, whether a gas furnace or water heater sits down there, and what's stored inside.
For a crawl space vapor barrier in Seaside, the permit question belongs to the city. Seaside's Building & Code Enforcement Department asks owners to contact it before any building project or major repair to find out whether a permit is required, and we don't assume either way for a ground cover. So before we start, we check with the city or county building office for your address, and where a permit is needed, we take care of the paperwork and set up the inspections. If you'd rather apply yourself, the city takes applications in person at the Permits & Inspections counter in City Hall or by email at building@ci.seaside.ca.us.
The Central Coast, Monterey included, gets moist, foggy air off the Pacific on many mornings, most of all from May to August, and that's part of why we talk through the vents with every owner here. Under the houses we see, it's common to find bare dirt, plastic pushed aside by years of repair visits, and boxes stored right on the soil. We're based in Seaside and do the same work in cities across Monterey County, into Santa Cruz County and over to Gilroy, including Marina and Monterey.
The best way is to plan the whole crawl space as a sealed space, because just blocking the vent openings can raise the moisture down there. It can also turn deadly if a fuel-burning furnace or water heater sits in the crawl space and depends on that open airflow. That's why we look at the equipment, the air and the cover together before any vent gets closed.
The city's building office makes that call, and we ask it before we start, as I explained above. If your job needs one, you won't be left sorting it out on your own.
Yes. A well-installed cover helps keep soil gases like radon from coming up out of the dirt, along with the ground moisture. It isn't a radon test, though, and we can't tell you your home's level. If you want to learn more about your area, the California Geological Survey publishes a report on radon potential in Monterey County.
When a vented crawl space is being turned into a sealed one, it gets inspected first for water getting in, moisture and pest damage, and you get a list of any problems before the work goes ahead. That way the fixes become part of the plan instead of something hidden under new plastic. It's also fair to ask how the crew will reach every corner, post and footing in your space.
I can't give you a fair number until I've seen the space, because two crawl spaces the same size can be a simple ground cover or a full sealing job with repairs first. A ground cover with the vents left open costs less than sealing the whole space, and anything that has to be fixed first adds to it. Moving your own stored things out before we come can keep the clearing part smaller.
