One of the disadvantages of remodeling an existing home vs. building a new custom home is that with a remodel you aren’t working with the home features you want; instead, you get to work with what you’ve got.
I am a not fan of crawlspaces because they violate many basic principles of modern building science and building envelope management. However, our Dade City remodel project has a crawlspace, and thus we need to work with a crawlspace.
The solution for this renovation was a complete crawlspace encapsulation. In short, the entire crawlspace is sealed and becomes part of the living space of the home. No more water, moisture, humidity, smelly air, dirt, bugs, animals, or the like. Instead the crawlspace becomes a beautifully clean and dry space.
Once complete we will share more information about the details of this encapsulation and how we ensure the encapsulation is a success.
If you want to build a custom home then nine times out of ten I will recommend building on a backfilled stem-wall (especially in the Dade City area where most building lots are not flat) but if you need a remodeling contractor and you have a crawlspace I will recommend encapsulation ten times out of ten!