Dayton Home: Fun Projects

DAYTON HOME ›› REMODELING

Fun Projects Finishing a basement can add valuable living space to a home

BY ERIC SPANGLER

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dding valuable living space to a home can be as simple as renovating an unfinished basement. But there are a few issues to keep in mind before hiring a contractor and starting the renovation work, say experts.

First, homeowners should consider what they are going to use the finished space for—whether it’s a recreational space for teenagers, an entertainment space for a man and his friends (man cave), an office or a bedroom, says Ron Houck, owner of Houck Remodeling.

“Once they start saying things like, ‘I’m going to put a bedroom down here,’ that drastically changes what can happen within that basement,” he says. That’s because renovating an unfinished basement into an extra bedroom requires an exterior access for safety purposes, says Houck.

Normally that means workers must remove a window and install an egress window well that allows people to escape quickly and easily from the basement in case of fire or other emergency, he says.

Another important consideration before hiring a contractor is to make sure the basement stays dry during heavy rains. Even if the basement stays dry it’s important to make sure any cracks in the foundation are sealed before the renovation work begins, says Randy Mount, owner of Ram Restoration.

Frequently homes that are two or three years old will have a couple of cracks in the foundation walls and the homeowners are not concerned because the basement

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stays dry, he says.

“Give it another year or two and it will (get wet),” says Mount. “It will come in there. So we see that a lot.” That’s why his company stays busy sealing cracks on basement walls. “We do crack sealing on basement walls probably three days a week,” he says.

And sealing the cracks before construction begins is much easier than having to cut out drywall and pull up carpeting to fix a basement leak after the renovation is completed, says Mount.

A third issue to consider before finishing a basement is the heating, ventilation and air conditioning requirements. “People think, ‘Well, I’ve got a vent coming off the furnace I’ll just blow it into this room,’ and that doesn’t work,” Mount says.

The size of the furnace must be considered as well and whether it’s large enough to comfortably heat and cool the finished

Warm, inviting steps can lead to a finished basement that adds valuable living space to an existing home. basement, he says. “They’re turning that into living space and a lot of times their heating and air was not designed for that to be finished space,” Mount says.

In addition to the size of the furnace, homeowners have to consider the current heating and air conditioning ductwork, says Houck. Most homes that are built don’t have finished basements and the heating and air conditioning ductwork is roughed in, he says.

That means that homeowners have to consider the bulkheads created by the ductwork being installed lower than the basement ceiling, says Houck. “It becomes cost prohibitive to move a lot of that stuff so then you’re faced with bulkheads and what is

Full bathrooms are one of the most requested options homeowners want in a finished basement. that going to do the ceiling height,” he says.

While it may not be as important to someone who has a modern home that is typically constructed with 10-foot ceiling height in the basement, those with an older home may only have an 8-foot ceiling height, says Houck. “Then to save space you may have to rework some of that,” he says.

Permits are another issue that homeowners must consider when deciding to finish a basement. Getting a permit for electrical,

plumbing, and heating and air conditioning requires an inspection, says Mount.

That will ensure the work complies with the building code in that jurisdiction and is done correctly, he says.

“I’ve seen it where guys are like, ‘Just put one (electrical) outlet here and one outlet there,” says Mount. But building codes require a certain number of electrical outlets in a room and receiving a permit following an inspection ensures there are

the correct number of electrical outlets in a room, he says.

“When you don’t have inspections on electrical and plumbing and heating and air that puts everybody at risk,” says Mount.

“Those things are put in place to protect the contractor as well as the homeowner.”

Most people want to finish their basement in order to have additional space for entertainment, says Houck. And that means installing built-in cabinetry to hide the

DAYTON MAGAZINE . February/March 2019

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DAYTON HOME ›› REMODELING wiring for entertainment systems, he says.

“They want to put a TV down there and they want to have a family entertainment area so that’s where they really need to bring in either a home remodeler or their electrical contractor so that they can start planning how the wiring is going to happen,” says Houck.

Many homeowners choose to finish their basements when their children become teenagers, he says. “You normally don’t see people finishing a basement because they have toddlers or elementary school kids,” says Houck. “It’s normally the kids are moving into high school they don’t really want a half a dozen teenage boys or a half a dozen teenage girls hanging out in the family room so they tend to push them down into the basement.”

Mount says his company has converted unfinished basements into suites for a mother in law or elderly parents that include a full kitchen, bathroom and bedroom.

“We’re starting to see a little bit more of that,” he says.

Regardless of what type of use hom-

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eowners ultimately have in mind for their finished basement the work is always enjoyable, says Mount. “Basements are always fun projects,” he says. n

Finished basements are a great way to provide teenagers with a space of their own to entertain friends.