Completed exterior drainage and gravel bed beside a Florida screened porch

Sarasota, FL

Closing the house for summer?
Leave the air conditioning on.

About 15 percent of the homes in Sarasota County are held for seasonal use and many sit closed through the rainy season. We serve Sarasota, Bradenton, Venice, Siesta Key, Gulf Gate and the broader Sarasota County area with foundation waterproofing, mold remediation and 24/7 emergency water damage response.

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Sarasota & Surrounding Counties

A house left closed all summer grows mold from the inside

Sarasota County counts about 85,000 seasonal residents on top of its permanent population and census figures put about 15 percent of the county's homes in seasonal use. Many of those houses sit closed from spring until fall, through a rainy season the National Weather Service dates from mid-to-late May to mid-October.

A closed house with the air conditioning off has nothing pulling moisture out of the air. Add one small leak at a window, a roof flashing or the joint where the slab meets the block wall and a wall can grow mold for months before anyone smells it.

On a Sarasota block home, what we waterproof is the block wall below grade and the slab edge where the wall meets the floor. That is where summer rain soaking into the sandy soil pushes water into concrete that looked dry in spring. If you are comparing waterproofing companies, ask each one which of those two it treats.

Sources: Sarasota County demographics, US Census Bureau, ACS 2020 to 2024, table B25004 and NWS Tampa Bay rainy season.

Before you close the house

Leave the air conditioning on
UF/IFAS Extension says to set it no higher than 85 degrees. Above that, indoor humidity climbs past 55 to 60 percent, which can lead to mold.
Get the humidistat checked
If your system has one, UF/IFAS advises having your air conditioning company calibrate it before you close the house.
Aim for humidity under 60 percent
That is the EPA target where possible, ideally between 30 and 50 percent. A humidity meter left in the house lets a neighbor or manager read it for you.
Have someone look in after heavy rain
A musty smell, a stain under a window or a damp patch along an exterior wall is easier to deal with in July than in November.

From UF/IFAS, Closing Your Seasonal Home and the EPA guide to mold and moisture.

Milton came ashore before most owners were back

Hurricane Milton made landfall on Siesta Key at about 8:30 p.m. on October 9, 2024, as a Category 3 storm. Sarasota County calls it the first storm to make landfall in the county since 1944, with the worst impacts in South County.

October comes before the winter season, when the county's population swells past 570,000. So a seasonal house that took wind-driven rain or surge that night could sit wet until its owners came back. Walls that were never opened and dried are the ones to check first.

Sources: National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Milton report and Sarasota County. Our Sarasota storm watch carries live alerts and radar for the county.

Coming back to a closed house

Four of our nine waterproofing and mold services, from one crew, so you are not coordinating two contractors from out of state.

Exterior block wall showing moisture wear identified during a Florida mold inspection

Free Inspection

Mold Inspection Sarasota

Back after a summer away and something smells musty? We go room by room with a moisture meter and leave you written findings. No air samples or lab tests and homeowners pay nothing.

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Technician checking moisture beside localized wall staining in an older Sarasota laundry room

Licensed Specialists

Mold Remediation Sarasota

Mold you can see, on the walls, in the closets or in a crawl space. We take it out, fog the ducts with an antifungal and waterproof the spot where water got in, so it is not waiting for you next season.

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Fresh waterproofing seal applied along the exterior base of a Florida home after water intrusion

24/7 Emergency

Water Damage Restoration Sarasota

Water got in while the house was empty. We pump it out, open the walls that need it, dry the structure and close the entry point. The phone is answered 24/7, including when you are calling from out of state.

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Deep trench dug along a house foundation, with the wall below ground coated in grey waterproofing

Lifetime Warranty

Foundation Waterproofing

The same corner takes water every rainy season. We seal the block cracks and the joint where the wall meets the slab, with a lifetime warranty on the work.

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Mold Remediator License #MRSR5565

Lifetime warranty on foundation waterproofing

200+ completed jobs across Florida

We cover Sarasota, Bradenton, Venice, Siesta Key, Gulf Gate, Palmer Ranch, The Meadows and the surrounding Sarasota and Manatee County communities.

Seasonal homes in Sarasota: what owners ask

Should I leave the air conditioning on in my Sarasota house over the summer?

Yes. UF/IFAS Extension advises leaving the air conditioner set no higher than 85 degrees in a closed seasonal home, because above that the indoor humidity climbs past 55 to 60 percent and mold can follow. The EPA's target is below 60 percent where possible. Have your air conditioning company check the humidistat before you leave and ask someone to look in after heavy rain.

My Sarasota home was empty when Milton hit. What should I check?

Start with moisture readings, because a wall that took wind-driven rain or surge can dry on the surface and stay wet inside. Check the walls that faced the storm, window and door sills, the slab edge along exterior walls, closets on outside walls and the air handler. Our free inspection covers all of that and gives you written findings. It takes no air samples or lab tests, which a licensed mold assessor does as a separate paid service.

Does my Sarasota house need waterproofing or just a dehumidifier?

Look at where the moisture is. If walls and floors near the slab edge read wet after rain or the same corner stains every summer, water is coming through the block and waterproofing fixes that. If readings are even across the house and the air simply feels damp, humidity is the problem and running the air conditioning or a dehumidifier deals with it. Moisture readings in every room tell the two apart.

Back in Sarasota? Book the free inspection before you unpack.

Moisture readings in every room, written findings you keep and a written estimate before any work starts.