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Primarily cost and contractor availability. We have plenty of masons in the market, but fewer poured wall contractors that are willing to do short walls for a crawlspace. Block is also less expensive in our market.

@@weeweed86 the French drain is installed on top of the footing where it meets the wall after the waterproofing is applied to the transition. The interior grade of the Crawlspace is higher than the top of the footing.

@@LockedUpLarry you can install two adjacent to one another but you can’t really fasten them together like dimensional or engineered lumber. Is there a specific scenario you are referring to?

@@weeweed86 we always incorporate the access through the floor of the house. This results in great storage access and a storm shelter of sorts. It also prevents homeowners from doing dumb things, like putting the lawnmower under the house in a conditioned Crawlspace.

@@coloradoseodesign5926 I suggest contacting emporia to discuss the best option for multiple panels. They can certainly provide the best option. I tried a Sense years ago but it had some difficulty detecting the variable speed heat pump that doesn’t have a distinct electrical signature.

@@jwhite4 you shouldn’t have any problems with either option with such a short run. If it were me, I would run a solid metal 4” pipe 6’ then transition to flex to make the connection to the wall cap. We don’t typically insulate the duct on exhaust fans running horizontal here in climate zone 3.

@@raulacosta6020 not sure I understand your situation. Do you mean just a bare concrete wall? If so, I would install continuous insulation such as foam board.

@@derbygirle66 if the bathroom has a shower, I typically locate the fan equally between the shower and toilet.

@@katkilr7685 What was the problem you experienced?

Not really sure - we do not and would not use block for basements. While some still do, it is not as strong and precast or poured concrete. To construct a block wall basement properly (in my opinion), you would need rebar into the footing, bond beam block with horizontal rebar, and the cells filled with concrete. Exterior waterproofing, interior continuous insulation, and framing would still be required, so I'm doubtful there would be any significant savings over precast Superior Walls.

You're very welcome! Glad it was helpful!

@@IFixStufff it’s actually not that expensive. More like $10,000

Awesome! Glad it helped!

@@Punkydoodle007 I would have to see the floor plan to identify alternate routing. One solution for the 90 degree elbows is to replace them with “dryer ell” long sweep 90s that do not have the same equivalent link penalties that hard 90s have.

Thank you. I will look into that.​@@AddisonHomes

There are a few options that I can envision: 1) The brick veneer can extend up from the foundation with flashing and weeps to drain above the concrete porch. The corrugated steel pan supporting the concrete porch slab can then be supported with steel angle anchored to the brick veneer and through to structural framing behind. The keys here are a) structural attachment, and b) thorough flashing on the wood framing behind the brick veneer that is self sealing. 2) Support the brick with a steel angle that also extends far enough to also support the corrugated steel pan for the concrete. This would require an engineer to properly size the steel angle and attachment to the framing. Flashing is crucial here between the steel angle and the wood framing and weeps above the concrete slab for drainage from behind the brick. 3) Pour the concrete over the steel pan and lay the brick on top of the concrete porch. Construction details are critical for proper installation of the control layers and flashing/drainage.

I saw @Renovision do it in their video: th-cam.com/video/gnNhSzRjliY/w-d-xo.htmlsi=37zLTWqPjHQ4x1zz

@@BFugate59 I always use continuous insulation to reduce the condensation potential at the foundation wall which the Tyvek will not do. Tyvek is vapor open so vapor from any condensation between it and the wall could still come through.

@@lorimcquinn3966 high water table would be a challenge to any foundation - especially a basement! Moisture must be controlled in any building, especially in tighter homes. Tighter homes allow for improved control of indoor air quality (including moisture) and greater energy efficiency that are not possibly in leaky homes. But all buildings function as a system and you cannot build a tight home without paying attention to proper HVAC design, exhaust ventilation of point sources of pollution (including bathroom humidity from bathing), and properly design ventilation.

@@AddisonHomes Thanks for the reply and tips, starting a new home in May. I live in a state with high humidity levels along with higher than normal water table levels. It seems when the houses became tighter and tighter, issues with mold and moisture damage started to surface regularly. Moisture that use to dissipate normally now is trapped, causing issues. It's difficult to find a piece of property that isn't affected by the flood plain. Materials used in new houses seem to accelerate issues and an unbalanced method of construction plays heavily into all of this.

Thank you so much! Your positive comment means a lot and inspires me to keep making videos to help folks understand some of the better construction practices available based on the region. You are so right that better practices vary based upon climate and location! There is no "one size fits all"! Thanks again for the support!

Sounds like you've had a bad experience with them. Where are you located? We've been using Superior Walls for 22 years and had 1 wall leak at a brick ledge in 2002 that they promptly repaired. Aside from this one issue, we've had nothing but excellent performance from the product!

You could use a wye, but would need to install backdraft dampers so that one fan operating wouldn't blow back into the other. It would also be good practice to increase the duct diameter after the wye. This might be more challenging than running each separately. Alternately, you could use a central exhaust fan remote blower that pulled from both bathrooms.

Actually there is no corrugated metal pan/decking under the concrete. Instead, we frame a sloped deck under the concrete, incorporate continuous insulation, waterproof it, and pour the concrete on top. This provides the ability to install cavity insulation on the underside between the joists which would be impossible with a metal pan. The space beneath the front porch is conditioned space.

It would depend on the energy performance of the building and how much heating was required. You would also need to check with the manufacturer to see what capacities they have at extremely low outdoor temperatures in your area of Canada. Worst case, you could have a backup heat source such as a furnace that could supplement the heating output at extremely low temperatures.

That would be our recommentation! Don't forget to seal the seams in the foam board or use two layers and stagger the joints.

If you are renovating, you could reframe and add continuous insulation against the wall. Alternately, you could excavate the exterior and add exterior continuous insulation. Otherwise, do your best to make sure that the drywall is airtight against the framing and control the dewpoint in the space with dehumidification.

@@ptech88 Interesting. Where are you located? Perhaps a cold climate? A poured concrete foundation is definitely an option, albeit significantly more expensive and carbon intensive.

​@@AddisonHomes Carbon intensive...yr gay.

@@meatballmagoo6134 Don't understand the comment but happy to discuss carbon intensity versus other solutions if that's your concern.

@@Jacob_Studer I’ve seen similar crawlspaces in Montana. Is the access through the floor of the house into the Crawlspace? The fan that is running - where is it moving air from/to?

Yes through the floor. I know the fan is venting air out through a pipe that outlets high up on an exterior wall (one of those louvre vents like with a bath fan). I’m not sure if there is an inlet somewhere as well? There may be? If there is, I think it’s another pipe fed one with a covered vent high up on an exterior wall (haven’t moved in yet so can’t confirm). I’m basically just curious if there’s anything that I specifically shouldn’t store down there. It seems very well suited for storage.

@ yes it’s a great place for storage! We generally recommend that clients protect the vapor barrier by putting down some indoor/outdoor carpet or mats under anything you store. I was curious if it was conditioned or if the fan is pulling air out continuously. It could be a radon exhaust vent - is it piped to pull from beneath the vapor barrier / liner? Idaho has some high radon areas across the state.

@@AddisonHomes That's a great idea on protecting the vapor barrier with mats, I will make sure to do that. Thanks! I will have to double check on that. I do need to get the radon tested anyways. I dont think they have a radon vent like yours. It is pulling air out continuously, and they are calling it a "conditioned crawl space"

@ interesting. Not sure how it’s conditioned if it is just pulling air out of the space and dumping it outside.

@@connorcoones3862 System size in our region are based on number of bedrooms and soil conditions. This system had good soil and 3 bedrooms.

@@BobbyFerguson-t4n you can definitely use closed cell spray foam - you just want to be sure to get an uninterrupted layer of foam between the studs and the poured wall. This will provide a complete thermal break and dramatically reduce any chance for condensation.

If the laundry room is on an outside wall, straight out would be best. Often the laundry room is not on an outside wall and we have to go up or down with the dryer vent ducting

@@iwastoldtherewouldbenomath6869 Some folks do spray foam on the band but our termite folks have challenges fully bonding the home for termites when the band cannot be inspected. The interior termite inspection gap allows them to see termite tunnels coming up the interior of the foundation walls but if the tunneled up in a crack in the filled cells of the CMU foundation, they could be hidden my the closed cell foam. It’s very easy for them to remove and reinstall the insulation batts around the band for full inspection. We also treat the band and wood 3’ from contact with masonry with boracare to reduce the chances for termite damage - but termites are tough and will often find any weakness to exploit! I prefer a 100% no questions asked termite bond as backup for our customers.

We are also a fully qualified termite company as well so I am intimately familiar with the behavior patterns of subterranean termites. If you treat with either boracare which we also use plus termidor as needed on the inside and outside plus regular inspections to see if any mud tunnels are present above the reveal we can easily warrant the installation. Batted insulation in a rim joist it's just ineffective as an air barrier since it isn't an air barrier. Granted you do have foam board on the outside at the thermal break which should mitigate some air flow. Regardless, most of the times we're not doing new construction work which would be completely different.

@@MrOddBallZ Great points! I’ll also note that the relationship between builder and termite bonding company is critically important to ensure that our clients have no “surprises” with coverage in the future which is why we worked with them to come up with an approach that they were comfortable standing behind. Each company has different risk tolerances and we worked together in partnership to come up with this approach. You are dead-on with insulation batts not being an air barrier - and we are not relying on it to be an air barrier. Our air barrier is on the exterior with our insulated sheathing with all joints taped including the joint between the sheathing and foundation where we use the Siga Fentrim tape. Airtightness is critical for the thermal performance of the building envelope and is also critical for humidity control in conditioned crawlspaces. Another note on spray foam along the band is cost and finding a foam installer that will mobilize for such a small job. We do not use spray foam in our walls and avoid it on the roof deck. If we wanted to spray foam the band, it would be extremely expensive - regardless of the conflict it would cause with our termite bonding provider.

​@@AddisonHomes For whatever reason YT decided to use my other account. Our principal is an entomologist so we are comfortable with our solutions. As for the spray foam, no mention of the LF but typically we're charging around $10.50 to $11.95 per LF for 2 inches of CCF. We're actually losing money on it now because the cost is so high but the product is so effective. It just works so well for us and we get such good results. We also do not use it anywhere else other than if we do a flash and batt in vaulted ceilings; spray foam base and batted fill. That is quite effective and economical given the cost of CCF. Our big point with termite treatment is annual inspection. If they don't do it the warranty is voided, simple as that. Never mind the repairs we have to do due to termite or other WDI damage. It's quite lucrative.

@@iwastoldtherewouldbenomath6869 definitely. We encourage all of our clients to continue their termite bond which requires annual inspections. It’s such inexpensive insurance! Where are you located?

@@RFMTL the Panasonic fans in that range are typically 4” diameter.

@ should i use flex pipe? or rigid? does it have to be insulated

@ my hood vent in the roof is full of water drips and condensation. how can i get rid of this?

@ 1) make sure it’s air tight where it passes through the attic 2) ensure it has a damper at the roof termination, 3) adamper at the hood is helpful too. If this doesn’t solve the issue, insulate the pipe in the attic.

@@RFMTL rigid is best for as much of the run as possible. You can transition to flex at the vent cap. Shouldn’t have to insulate it but if it’s running through the exposed attic like your range hood, that would be a good idea.

@@GForceFitness1 We used Keene rainscreen. Will definitely make a step by step video. Thanks for the suggestion. For reference, the steps are: 1) Install the weep screed and flash (tape) into water resistive barrier (in this case, Zip sheathing) 2) install secondary water resistive barrier (in this case Tyvek stucco wrap) and lap over the weep screed 3) Install rainscreen with no woven facing out (to prevent clogging with mortar) 4) install metal lathe 5) base coat of mortar onto lathe 6) install stone with mortar

@@AddisonHomes, thanks! That's very helpful.

@@stevenporter7969 Full brick veneer would typically have an air gap between the brick veneer and the sheathing allowing for drainage with proper flashing and weep holes at the bottom of the wall but above grade. Products like mortar net can help the weeps stay open at the bottom of the wall. Adhered masonry products like synthetic stone, stucco, and thin brick would all need a rainscreen for drainage behind them as demonstrated in this video.

@@AddisonHomes Great detail. What size is the weep screed you are using? Meaning how far is off the wall? Are taping the weep screed to the zip sheathing with zip tape and then putting the Tyvek over the top of the Zip sheathing and weep screed?

@@RealPropertyShow the weep screed where it kicks out is about 3/4”-1” off the wall. You’re exactly right- the weep screed is nailed/screwed to the sheathing, zip tape over the top of the weep screed, and Tyvek and rain screen over the weep screed which brings out any water behind the stone.

@@stonebody I’ve used PVC before to provide a low static smooth vent pipe, but never less than 4”

Thanks for your input