Crawlspace Insulation
in Bridgeview, BC

Bridgeview is a mixed residential and light-industrial neighbourhood in north Surrey, sitting adjacent to the Alex Fraser Bridge approach and close to the Fraser River. The area occupies low-lying ground with a water table profile similar to Newton and parts of Richmond — close to grade through the wet season and subject to periodic flooding during major rain events or high freshet years. Many of the residential homes in Bridgeview are older properties on larger lots, some dating from the 1950s and 1960s, with crawlspaces that have had decades of exposure to these demanding conditions.

The majority of homes in Surrey and the surrounding communities built before 2000 have fiberglass batt insulation installed between the floor joists in the crawlspace. When this insulation was new and dry, it provided reasonable thermal resistance. The problem is that fiberglass batts installed in a vented crawlspace environment in a high-rainfall climate like ours rarely stay dry. They absorb ambient moisture, sag out of their cavities, and gradually collapse onto the ground. Wet fiberglass insulation has essentially zero R-value, adds weight that can pull down on vapor barriers or staples, and provides a hospitable nesting environment for rodents.

For crawlspaces that are not being fully encapsulated, we install new unfaced fiberglass batts or mineral wool between the joists, but only after addressing the moisture conditions that destroyed the previous insulation. Installing fresh batts into a still-damp crawlspace environment means you'll be back in the same situation within a few years. Proper sequencing matters: drainage, vapor barrier, then insulation.