My neighbor on Moreland told me to quit worrying about my crawlspace and now I can't sleep
He's lived in his Kirkwood house since 1989 and says he hasn't gone under his place in 15 years. Meanwhile I spent $1,400 on a dehumidifier and vapor barrier last spring and I'm still down there with a flashlight every weekend. Do you all really just leave yours alone, or is he out of his mind?
Fifteen years without even looking? Not once? I get lazy about stuff but a crawlspace is where all the bad stuff hides, like that slow leak you don't see until the joists are soft. My uncle skipped his for maybe six years and found mold up the whole north wall plus a raccoon family living rent free. Your neighbor is playing a risky game and getting away with it so far, which is not the same as being right. Keep your flashlight habit.
What did his house look like when he sold it, or is he still there? Because the guy who brags about never checking is the same guy who lists it as is and lets the buyer eat the cost. A crawlspace can rot slow for years and the house still stands fine, so fifteen years of nothing going wrong on the surface doesn't prove much. Your $1,400 was cheap compared to what his neglect would cost him at closing.