DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Finishing a basement

With the new baby on the way we need to add some space to our house. Our basement was finished back when the house was built in the 50's with paneling. But this was damaged and warped when we bought the house and I have since gutted the basement down to the studs. I then painted the concrete block with Drylock.

The ceiling was a white insulated looking material that was held to the floor joist with fur strips and tacked with nails. I tore this down as well. The height of the cielings is approx 8'6".

So you can picture the layout...

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!            !            !
!            (*)          !
!            !     D      !
!    C       !            !
!            --------(*)---
!            (*)          !
!-(*)---------            !
!        ! = !     B      !
!   A    ! = !            !
!        ! = !            !
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A = Laundry Room - 8'x6'
B = Bedroom - 12'x18'
C = Man Room - 10'x22'
D = Furnace/Random Toilet/Tool Room - 12'x10'
(*) = Door
!=! = Steps
 

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I don't have the type of cash needed to finish this on my own... so I will need to take a home equity loan. I was wondering if anyone had a rough estimate to how much something like this might cost? I can pretty much do everything within the family... meaning I pay my family in 30 packs and a place to crash if they ever need it.

If any of you have finished your basements, can you share your thoughts as well? I see the ads for Owens Cornings basement finishing systems, but, I am guessing that is pretty pricey. The basement is pretty dry. Not totaly though, as observed by me when ripping down the 50 year old paneling. Thanks...

So the studs are staying...
is the electrical in place and reusable?
Light fixtures?
Cheap carpet, good carpet, stone, tile?
Do you need to reinsulate exterior walls?
doors and frames will all be new?
drywall ceiling or suspended?
HVAC in place and reusable?

So the studs are staying...
YES

is the electrical in place and reusable?
FOR THE MOST PART YES... THE BOX IS IN ROOM C AND I MIGHT WANT TO ADD A FEW MORE OUTLETS BUT NOTHING BIG...

Light fixtures?
NEEDS MORE LIGHT DOWN THERE... ONLY ONE RECESSED LIGHT IN EACH ROOM RIGHT NOW

Cheap carpet, good carpet, stone, tile?
DURABLE CHEAP CARPET... BUT IT CAN'T BE BERBER AS MY DOGS TEAR THAT STUFF UP... I REALLY WOULDN'T MIND TILE BUT THE GROUND DOWN THERE IS NOT FLAT IN SOME AREAS AS IT HAS TO DRAINS IN THE BASEMENT.

Do you need to reinsulate exterior walls?
YES

doors and frames will all be new?
YES THEY WILL ALL HAVE TO BE NEW

drywall ceiling or suspended?
I LIKE THE LOOK OF DRYWALL... BUT IF ITS CHEAPER AND QUICKER FOR SUSPENDED I WOULDN'T MIND

HVAC in place and reusable?
YES ALL IN PLACE AND REUSABLE

Being a basement, I would assume all your piping, and heating/ AC ducts run between the floor joists?

If so, then I would consider a drop ceiling to make access to those pipes and ducts easier without tearing down the ceiling. Also, allows for a little more sound insulation.


If you worry about water, or dampness, consider a tile, or laminate wood, or even linoleum floor, and then have area rugs that are easily removed in flooding, etc.

If you plan on adding more outlets, be sure to do this before you start the rest of the work, it's easier to do it now than later. Lights go along with outlets, but even easier to add.

Are you planning to put full finishes in all rooms including laundry and furnace?

All I can say is go with a commercial type carpet (not for the wear factor). Do NOT put pad down - as you said the basement is "pretty dry, but not entirely). Pad is a sponge, and water will get all over if their is pad under the carpet.

Why does that matter? Pad will not dry, WHEN it gets wet. Oh, sure, it will dry in time, but by the time it does, you will have a nasty odor. And it very well could lead to mold. Bad thing.

Personally, I wouldn't even glue down the carpet (commercial grade - you know, walk into an office building - best way I can describe it without using technical terms. ) Get the carpet installers to cut the carpet to size, then tell them to put it in, but not glue it down.

Trust me. By doing so, you will save yourself a bundle when the basement floods, or even gets wet. I could go on, but I won't. I deal with things like this quite often, as carpeting is how I make my living.

Is not having a pad a bad thing? For a basement, it's a great thing. It will not be as soft, obviously, but ..................don't put pad in your basement. Also, hopefully you have a dehumidifier. If not, get one. Actually, get 2. And they should be running all day every day. You said the basement is not completely dry, right? Even if it is, you need, at a minimum, 1 dehumid. going all the time, ideally "hosed" to the sump. And, speaking of sump pumps, do yourself a favor and buy a backup sump - let it sit on a shelf somewhere - just make sure you know how to undo the other one and install the new one. Plus, get a battery back up sump - you know, for when a rainstorm comes and knocks out power. It'll buy you time until a: power comes back on, or b: you can get somewhere to rent a generator to run your main sump (and other things as needed). Actually, buy a small generator, and make sure you have enough cord (of the proper gauge) to run your sump.

Wet basements put food on my table. Take the precautions, have the backups ready, know how to use them, and then you won't ever have to call someone like me. (trust me, the bills are big when dealing with insurance companies for flooded basements - the liability itself on someone like me that dries it out is huge, plus, there are certain things we HAVE to bill for, in order to keep the insurance company from denying a claim).

Also, since you pay in beer, if you were close, I'd come help. As far as finishing the basement that is.

Thats why I suggested tile.. tile with some decent throw rugs can allow you to have carpet where you need it... but you can roll it up and take it outside to dry if it gets wet... and the tile can drain right to the drains....

I plan on only finishing the bedroom and "man room"...

All very good recommendations. I didn't think of the ease of access thing for the ceiling. I guess my main convern with that is the height of the cielings; being only 8 1/2 ft. Can I drop it only a few inches?

Also the recommendations on having commercial carpeting is a very good one. I'll look into that as well. So the carpet will lay nice and flat without being glued down you think? As stated before I would tile but the floor slants to the sewar drains in a couple areas. Not areas I would carpet over though... just in the laundry room and furnace room.

Again thanks all.

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I guess my main convern with that is the height of the cielings; being only 8 1/2 ft. Can I drop it only a few inches?

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Actually Lowes and Home Depot have a tile ceiling that screws directly to the joists and uses a clip system, so you get the benefit of replaceable tiles, but it's no thicker when it's done than drywall... It looked sort of pricey when I saw it, but I was looking at individual pieces... I have no idea how it would compare to drywall or standard suspended... sounds like it's worth checking into though.

If it is too expensive, the answer to your original question is still yes, you could still easily have an 8'2" finished ceiling if you have 8'6" to the joists....

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So the carpet will lay nice and flat without being glued down you think?

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Pretty much. If you put the base on and then shoe mold after the carpet, tight to hold it down and keep the edges from rolling up, then sit some furniture on it... it won't go anywhere.

And never having to call you is worth a lot....