Key Elements for Your Basement Remodel

Basement

Basement Remodel

Finishing a basement is an exciting project that can add a lot of living space to your home. It can also be an expensive and time consuming adventure. The best way to avoid unwanted expense and wasting of time is to thoroughly plan your basement remodel. By taking into consideration several key elements, planning your remodel will be a snap.

The first and most crucial step in your basement remodel is determining the purpose of the room. Will it be one large space to be used as an additional living room or play area for your children or will it be developed into a sort of efficiency apartment complete with kitchenette and bathroom? Making these choices right from the beginning and mapping out the dimensions of the room will allow you to accurately budget for the project as well as develop a construction timeline that is feasible.

Probably one of the biggest expenses is heating and cooling and determining which of the various methods you will use is critical. Many heating and cooling elements will have to be put into place prior to building the walls, so it is important to plan this step carefully. Some of the options that are available for heating and cooling a basement are: radiant heat, forced air, hot water and baseboard heat.

If you plan to utilize part of the space for a bathroom or kitchenette, drains and water lines will need to be installed. You will want to make sure that your current water tank is capable of handling the additional load. If it is not, you will need to look into installing a larger tank or possibly an additional one.

If your basement space is going to include a kitchenette or bathroom, additional ventilation will be required. Also, if you plan on using the space for entertaining, ventilation for smoke is an excellent idea.

When remodelling a basement, it is important to include safety features. You will want to have the basement tested for Radon, a possible carcinogen. Installing smoke detectors as well as carbon monoxide sensors is also important.

When designing your new basement, it is important to take into consideration the amount of additional electricity that will be needed. It may be necessary to update the electrical system. At the very least, planning where to drop electrical outlets, light switches, cable and internet hook-ups. If you basement will include appliances such as microwaves and stoves, remember these will draw an especially large amount of electricity, so plan accordingly.

Have you encountered any moisture problems in your basement space? If you have determining the source and correcting it is of paramount importance. If the problem is not resolved all of your hard work and money may be for naught the first time it rains.

By taking the above items into question and carefully planning your remodel, you will be able to create a functional living space suited to whatever your purpose.

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Making Improvements to a Basement in Easy Stages

Basement

Basement Improvement

Lots of people want to improve their home as a means of boosting its value; the questions they often ask are: what should I do, and it what order? When it comes to a basement that’s unfinished, there are a number of steps you can take to slowly and easily improve it.

First, as most basements are below ground, ground water is an issue. So, you want to try and dry the place out initially. The simplest way to do that is be buying some moisture sealant at a local hardware store and apply it to the walls and floor like paint. This will make them all waterproof. Now, if you find that you still have a problem with the floor, if the water table is very high, an easy way to fix that is by digging a sump hole in the lowest point of the basement. If the floor is solid concrete everywhere, you’ll need to break out a section to create the sump. The easiest way to do that is with a saw fitted with a blade to cut concrete. Most large hardware stores rent such saws by the hour or day, and you can get the job done in just a few hours. Once the area is cut, break up the concrete with a sledge hammer – be sure to wear goggles and a face mask.

After that, the next step is warming the basement up. In general, keeping it cool is never a problem; so you’ll want to install some space heaters to warm the place up. All of these steps are fairly cheap and easy to do by yourself. The next steps will cost more, and you’ll probably have to hire someone to do some of the tasks.

The next thing to do is put down a decent floor. Depending on the condition of the basement floor, you may need to create a levelling course to get it flat and even, and fill in any cracks or holes. After that, lay down a vapour barrier and then install some kind of flooring: tiles, hardwood, linoleum etc. Once the flooring is done, the walls are next. While a waterproof sealant is fine for a simple barrier, like the floor, a vapour barrier is best. Tack it up to the walls, put on some insulation, and then attach studs to the exterior walls. After that, you can add drywalls to create a nice finished surface.

At this point, you’ll have a nicely finished basement that is ready to be used for just about anything. To get beyond this point to something specific, you’ll need decide exactly what sort of use you intend: playroom, craft room, workshop, and so on, and then tailor the basement to that use. By following these simple steps, you can at least create a nice living space that will add value to your home.

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Basement Electrical Work

Basement

Home Basement
So often, basements are dark and dank places, ill-suited for any sort of niceties of life. One way to change that is by installing some decent lighting. Now, electrical building codes will vary from one municipality to another, so these ideas are strictly an overall outline of how to do it.

First, ask yourself if you’re qualified to do electrical work. If not, hire an electrician; people get hurt and even killed fiddling with high voltage power lines! Once you’ve made that determination, check on the size of your home’s electrical service. If you have an older home, you may not have a lot of amperage to play with; you don’t want to overload your fuse box. If necessary, you may need to upgrade your service to accommodate the new fixtures.

Next, locate all of the available electrical lines running through or near your basement. Ideally, you want to tie into what’s known as the “homerun”, the main line running through your house from the fuse box. The reason for this is that the line is capable of carrying the heaviest power load.

Once you locate the lines you want to tie into, determine which circuit they’re connected to. Many professional electricians work on power lines without turning off the circuit – do not try this if you’re not a professional!

From your building department, you can learn which type – which gauge – of electrical wire to use. The last thing you want to do is install the wrong wiring and have to replace it later. Another key point to consider is this: grounding. If you have an older home, your outlets may have only two prongs, which means they are not grounded, and the wiring may not have a ground line. But, most modern appliances have three prongs. This means either using adapters, or replacing all of your outlets with new ones. In some cases, some building codes require you to also replace the old wiring, and this can significantly boost the cost of the work. If you’re lucky, you can just go with the grounded outlets, which are available in any hardware store, and are easy to install.

In terms of lighting, you’ll need to consider your ceiling. Very often, basements do not have well finished ceilings – as they are essentially the floor of the ground floor – and you may be dealing with rough beams and joists. So, you may have to finish the ceiling. A hanging ceiling is an inexpensive means of doing so, and thus allows you to put in recessed lighting. This can be key because if your basement has a low ceiling, any sort of hanging light fixtures could get bonked by any tall members of the family. Also, a switch for the main light at each door of the basement is best. That way, no matter which way people come in and out, they can turn the light on and off.

Browse Basement Tips
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Making Improvements to a Basement in Easy Stages
Key Elements for Your Basement Remodel
Preparing a Concrete Basement Floor
The First Steps to Remodelling a Basement
Issues of Drainage with Basements