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Crawl Space Safety: Checklist of Unsafe Crawl Space Conditions
InspectAPedia^® -

Safe procedures for inspecting building crawl spaces

When to enter or not enter a building crawl area

List of crawl space safety hazards: shock, rodents, snakes, chemical contaminants, risk of structural collapse, mold, respiratory illness, hantavirus, asbestos exposure, etc.

List of safety procedure steps for home inspectors & electrical inspectors

Our site offers impartial, unbiased advice without conflicts of interest. We will block advertisements which we discover or readers inform us are associated with bad business practices, false-advertising, or junk science. Our contact info is at InspectAPedia.com/appointment.htm.

This article lists potentially dangerous or un-healthy conditions that should be evaluated by an inspector or worker who is expected to enter, inspect, or work in a crawl space anywhere in a building. Readers whose crawl space or basement have been flooded should also see FLOODS IN BUILDINGS-priorities.

Contact Us by email to suggest changes, corrections, and additions to this material. The crawl space shown in our page top photo was in our opinion not a readily accessible area. This decision is made by the inspector on the scene, not by anyone else. © Copyright 2009 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

Crawl Space Safety for Home Inspectors

A number of conditions besides the old saw "accessibility" or size of the crawl space opening should be considered carefully by the home inspector, electrical inspector, or anyone who is deciding if it is safe to enter an crawl area anywhere in a building.

Here is a list of some safety and health considerations that the inspector should evaluate before deciding to enter a crawl space:

Is there standing water in the crawl area?

If so there is risk of electrical shock (if wiring or electrical devices are present).

There may also be a chemical contamination risk, especially in older buildings where pesticides may have been applied in the crawl area.

Is there excessive debris in the crawl area? Nails, splinters, and possibly rodents may be in the debris in our photo at left.
Are there wet crawl area floors or other surfaces? Crawling exposes a lot of body surface to the ground or other surfaces and limits movement. There maybe shock hazards or chemical hazards even if there is not actual standing water.

Beware also of evidence of structural collapse when looking at a flooded or very wet crawl space. Piers are undermined, foundations may be collapsing.
Are there chemical odors in the crawl space? If so there is an increased risk of chemical contaminants that could be hazardous. You should not enter such an area without proper protective clothing, respirator, etc.

Is there evidence of asbestos insulation, especially disturbed,damaged, or deteriorated asbestos insulation?

Do not enter such an area without protective equipment; take care that you do not track hazardous materials out of the crawlspace and into other building areas.

Often we find a crawl area in which the asbestos pipe insulation is not just hanging (photo at left) but has fallen onto the crawl space floor.

Is there evidence of mold contamination such as areas of wood, paper, or other material covered with mold or mold-suspect material. Do not enter such an area without protective gear.

Is there evidence of rodents or snakes or insect pests in the crawl space? Rodent hazards include bacterial and viral and respiratory illness; there is the obvious risk of snake bites in a confined space, and more than once we've been run out of a crawl space by bees or hornets.

But since you're unlikely to be able to move rapidly to make an emergency retreat from threatening pests, crawl areas are riskier than some other building areas.

Evidence of pests may also suggest risk of improperly applied and unsafe exposure to pesticides.

Is there sufficient space to enter and move safely in the crawl area. Review the OSHA regulations on entering confined spaces. The inspector or worker should decide if s/he a building area is safely accessible. Do not enter a confined space if you are working alone at a property. If circumstances mean you cannot avoid such an entry, be sure you carry:
- A working cell phone that will function in the space
- A spare flashlight
- Appropriate protective gear
- A camera to use for documenting conditions - it's easier than dragging along clipboards and pens.

Is there wet or falling or rodent-infested fiberglass insulation in the crawl area? If so there is a high risk of mold or rodent contaminants that could present a fungal, bacterial, or viral airborne hazard. Do not enter such an area without proper protective gear. See Mold in Fiberglass Insulation.

Is there evidence of risk of structural collapse or even structural movement in or over the crawl area?

Look closely at columns, posts, piers, girders, joists, and perimeter foundations.

It is easy to become pinned or even crushed if you enter an unstable structure.

Examples of Crawl Space Safety Gear for Entering Crawl Spaces & Mold Contaminated Areas

These suggestions are not a complete inventory of all safety procedures nor gear should be used when entering a crawl space. Contact Us by email to suggest changes, corrections, and additions to this material.

Assistant or accomplice: do not enter an unsafe or confined space alone - station an assistant at the entry and maintain contact.
Battery operated flash light and spare flash light. A spare light is important if the crawl area is large and you could be fare from the entry - to avoid being trapped in darkness if your first light fails. Dragging an extension cord and trouble light into a crawl area, powered by plugging the extension cord into a wall receptacle is dangerous unless the cord is protected by GFCI and AFCI devices.
Cell phone or two way radio - to summon help in an emergency
Eye protection - in dusty areas full coverage eye protection or goggles are most secure; in low-dust areas eye protection such as the safety glasses in our photo below have the advantage of less tendency to fog up in humid work areas.
Gloves - to protect hands especially if you need to crawl. The very thick welder's glove on our mock-up photo's right hand offers the good dry-area protection but makes it almost impossible to handle a camera or other equipment. For wet areas we wear heavy rubber padded gloves.
Knee pads - we like the gel-type knee pads shown in our mock-up photo - they make crawling easy on the knees, and their thickness keeps the legs and knees up off of damp surfaces.
Protective clothing - jump suit, tyvek suit (shown in our photo), padded clothing
Respirator, with cartridges rated for both organic chemicals and fine particulates - a HEPA filter and charcoal filter or other special filters may be required. Do not rely on a simple paper dust mask.

Soft hat for head protection in tight spaces (C) Daniel Friedman

Hard Hat for crawl spaces (C) Daniel Friedman

Head protection - depending on space this may be a hard hat or if that is impractical because of limited space, a soft padded hat may be useful. Watch out for protruding nails or other sharp objects that can poke right through a soft hat like the one we show at left. .

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Safety for Building Inspectors
Safety for Electrical Inspectors
Safety for Septic Inspectors

Electrical shock injury statistics: www.healthatoz.com - September 2008;
Thanks to Alan Carson and Bob Dunlop, Carson Dunlop, Associates, Toronto, for permission to use illustrations from their publication, The Illustrated Home which illustrates construction details and building components. Carson Dunlop provides home inspection education, publications, report writing materials, and home inspection services. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.
"Frequency of Occurrence and Sources of Rust and Corrosion in Electrical Panels," Daniel Friedman, IEEE HOLM Conference, Philadelphia PA, 1992 - see ELECTRIC PANEL RUST for an online version of this article.
Jim Simmons: Personal communication, J. Simmons to Daniel Friedman, 9/19/2008. Photographs contributed to this website by Jim P. Simmons, Licensed Electrician, 360-705-4225 Mr. Electric, Licensed Master Electrician, Olympia, Washington Contact Jim P. Simmons, Licensed Master Electrician, Mr. Electric, 1320 Dayton Street SE
Olympia, WA 98501, Ph 360-705-4225, Fx 360-705-0130 mrelectricoly@msn.com
Kenneth Kruger: Original author of the sidebar on testing VOM DMM condition: Kenneth Kruger, R.A., P.E. AIA ASCE, is an ASHI Member and ASHI Director in Cambridge, MA. He provided basis for this article penned by DJ Friedman.
"How to Use DMM's Safely," Leonard Ogden, CEE News, 888 Seventh Ave., New York, NY 10106, Dec 1990 p.10.
Dr. Jess Aronstein, consulting engineer, Poughkeepsie NY, 1991 protune@aol.com
Rex Cauldwell, master electrician and contributor to the Journal of Light Construction on electrical topics
New York State Central Hudson Gas and Electric Company, G&E/1-2/85 consumer safety pamphlet
American Society of Home Inspectors, ASHI Training Manual, Al Alk -[obsolete, and includes unsafe practices-DF]

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

Our recommended books about building design, inspection, and repair, and about indoor environment testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore.
* Safety Hazards and Safe Inspection Procedures for Electrical and Home Inspectors at Residential Electric Panels
Aluminum Wiring Information Website Aluminum Electrical Wiring Hazards and Repairs: in-depth authoritative info, photos, documents including selection of proper vs. ineffective repair methods. E.g.: Ideal 65 "Twister" purple connector fails in field and lab testing with aluminum wire.
Ampacity of an Electrical Service: How to determine the electrical service size or ampacity entering a building
Circuit Breaker, a bad one fails to trip failure at aluminum bus-to-circuit breaker connection - field report and photographs
Electrical Panels, How to Inspect in Buildings, safety for electrical inspectors, electrical panel, fusing, wiring defects, defective products. Inspection Class Presentation
Federal Pacific Electric (FPE) Stab-Lok Circuit Breaker Panel Hazards Website - Latent fire hazards, in-depth authoritative research, documents, advice on Stab-Lok electric panel and circuit breaker failures and what to do when this equipment is found in buildings.
Lightning Strike Risk Assessment, Protection Systems & Services
Multi-wire branch circuit inspection and defects
Rust and Corrosion in Electrical Panels, A Study and Report on Frequency and Cause for Electrical and Home Inspectors at Residential Electric Panels
"Electrical System Inspection Basics," Richard C. Wolcott, ASHI 8th Annual Education Conference, Boston 1985.
"Simplified Electrical Wiring," Sears, Roebuck and Co., 15705 (F5428) Rev. 4-77 1977 [Lots of sketches of older-type service panels.]
"How to plan and install electric wiring for homes, farms, garages, shops," Montgomery Ward Co., 83-850.
"Electrical System Inspection Basics," Richard C. Wolcott, ASHI 8th Annual Education Conference, Boston 1985.
"Simplified Electrical Wiring," Sears, Roebuck and Co., 15705 (F5428) Rev. 4-77 1977 [Lots of sketches of older-type service panels.]
"How to plan and install electric wiring for homes, farms, garages, shops," Montgomery Ward Co., 83-850.
"Home Wiring Inspection," Roswell W. Ard, Rodale's New Shelter, July/August, 1985 p. 35-40.
"Evaluating Wiring in Older Minnesota Homes," Agricultural Extension Service, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota 55108.
"Electrical Systems," A Training Manual for Home Inspectors, Alfred L. Alk, American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI), 1987, available from ASHI. [DF NOTE: we do NOT recommend this obsolete publication, though it was cited in the original Journal article as it contains unsafe inaccuracies]
"Basic Housing Inspection," US DHEW, S352.75 U48, p.144, out of print, but is available in most state libraries.
Electrical System & Wiring Hazard Inspection, Detection, Cause, Remedy, Prevention - Main Electrical Page
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