Damp Crawl Space in West Long Branch, NJ

Before	After

This homeowner in West Long Branch, NJ installed a store-bought dehumidifier for his basement. As most homeowners soon realize, these humidifiers simply aren’t enough for the damp, challenging environment of crawl spaces. In these areas of the home, dehumidifiers must work overtime to keep down humidity to acceptable levels where mold can’t grow. Also, generic dehumidifiers aren’t very powerful. At most, they can cover 500 square feet. This crawl space was almost triple that size. This homeowner realized that he would need to buy something else that actually works. These types of machines aren’t generally available in the big box stores, and after doing the research, he contacted Cowleys. A two-person team came out to install a commercial-grade SaniDry Sedona dehumidifier. We set it up to drain directly into the sump pump. This fully automatic dehumidifier is specifically designed to work in crawl spaces and basements. It, is maintenance-free with no water pan to empty or worry about overflowing. Also, these machines work in spaces as large as 3000 square feet, far more than the footprint of most homes.

Proper dehumidification is essential to prevent mold growth in basements and crawl spaces. Mold will thrive if the moisture content in the air is too high. You don’t need a major water intrusion like a leaky pipe for mold to form. High indoor humidity can trigger dangerous mold growth, and humidity levels are probably the most frequent causes of mold formation that we come across with Jersey Shore homes.

This dehumidifier keeps basements and crawl space below 55% relative humidity. At low humidity levels, mold can’t grow. As an added benefit, dust mites die off. Perhaps the only thing worse than mold spores floating around in your home is dust mite fecal matter. No wonder indoor allergies are so common! We have gotten great homeowner feedback from these Sedonas. They noticeably improve a home’s indoor air quality and help get rid of those stinky musty smells from crawl spaces and basements that waft into the living areas of the home.

Raccoons tear soffit and get into West Long Branch, NJ home.

Before	After

Recently, a homeowner in West Long Branch, NJ contacted Cowleys so that we could capture and relocate some raccoons that infested the roofline area, and after capture, repair the damaged building materials. Raccoons are large, dexterous animals capable of causing a significant damage with their razor-sharp teeth and claws. Here, raccoons damaged some soffit and fascia materials in order to gain entry. 

We secured baited traps on the roof of the building around their pathway that they were using to and from their entry point. Sure enough, the very next day, the raccoons were captured, and we then released them in a safe location in a much more suitable habitat. With the animals removed, we could  remove and replace the damaged fascia and soffit materials. Once the repair work was done, the home looked as good as new. No one would have ever guessed that there was a recent raccoon infestation.