Is tearing up the subfloor a viable means to access crawlspace?
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Pag11888742
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I have a rank smell coming from under 10x14 laundry room floor. Access from basement is very tight. Is it a viable approach to tear up the subflooring to get clear access to crawlspace?
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What about calling an exterminator? That will cost less than ripping up the floor then replacing it. If you decide to go ahead, be careful not to damage any of the floor joists because they will be expensive to repair or replace.
Hi Page, In my opinion, you have two choices: 1. Hire someone who is able to get thru the very tight access. or 2. Tear up the floor to gain access to crawl space. It would be ideal if someone could reach access and take pics so that you will know what you are dealing with. I would hate for you to tear up your floor and find zilch. The source of the smell may be in a wall, for instance. I hope this info helps you. Best of luck to you.
Sounds like a leak and a major mold problem. Personally, I would rather open up the crawl space than let all that mold in my house. But opening up your floor is an option. I would put plastic over the door, any HVAC vents and exhaust the fumes hopefully from a window in the space.
What kind of flooring do you have in your laundry room? Depending on the type of flooring, you might want to squeeze in through the basement access. Or have someone do it for you if you can't. If not, don't tear up the whole floor. You could cut a hole. Cut a spot between the floor joists and long enough to get down between them. The joists should be 16 inches on center. Make the cut about halfway onto the joists, but don't cut them. Then lower yourself down with a good flashlight.
You can buy what they call a Borescope Snake Camera which has LED lights around the camera and comes with varying lengths of cable if you have a pretty good idea where the smell is coming from under the floor. Your cell phone acts as the screen so you can see what the camera sees. You could just drill a hole through the subfloor and snake the camera thru, rather than cutting a large access hole. Then if you need to cut an access hole you can fit through to fix the problem you can do that. They have the cameras at Walmart and Amazon as well as many online sources.