johnnymo wrote:
Ok crawlspace gurus.....

I just bought my first house for a pretty good deal (I think), but the
crawl space needs work. It is an older 1968 ranch house located in
Atlanta with about a 3 to 4 foot crawlspace. I noticed the crawlspace
was kind of moist when I bought it, but I recently did some work on one
of my bathrooms and had the complete bathroom floor pulled up down to
the joists and noticed that on heavy rains (recent effects of FL
hurricanes), water is just flowing in like a slow creek. How did I see
the water...b/c I don't have a vapor barrier either. So the water is my
first issue, but I don't want to put a vapor barrier before getting the
water to stop.

Second issue: Venting? I have some vents that have been blocked off by
the previous owners (piece of sheet metal or something). Not all of the
vents are blocked though. So, what is the rule of thumb for this. Are
there certain vents you block due to the direction they are facing?
Should I block them all? Block during certain seasons?

I had a crawlspace "expert" give me an estimate of $10,000 to cover
1000 sq feet of crawlspace. I politely declined his offer....

Any suggestions on steps to improving my crawlspace?

Look at the Building Science Corporation web site.
It includes researched suggestions for a lot of issues from crawl space
to attic.
I use it with success for work in and around Charleston SC.
Atlanta means you probably have clay soil which doesn't drain well.
Look at the surrounding land forms and talk to your neighbors.
The standard first steps are to move water from the roof away from the
building, and make sure surface drainage is away from the building.
It's usual for planting around the building perimeter to raise the
ground surface above the crawl space and so cause water to drain into
the crawl space and sit.
Long term water in the crawl space leads to deterioration of the wood
frame as a result of high humidity.
Let us know more detail.
TB