Every room presents its own special remodeling challenges, and the basement has more than its share. This is why it's so important not to cheat your budget here. If you do not refinish this room using the same like-quality materials as the rest of your house, then it will usually remain a "basement" and by no means turn out to be the "lower level" of your dreams. When remodeling your basement, you might need to address one or more of the following issues:
Darkness: Basements generally have fewer and smaller windows than the rest of your house, so do not skimp on the lighting. Incandescent recessed lights give off a brilliant white light and brighten the room.Additionally, maximize any obtainable natural light either by enlarging basement windows where feasible, or by tunneling sunlight from the roof to the basement stairway via a "skylight tube," a little tube with a superreflective interior.
The skylight tube functions a clear, weatherproof dome on top that extends via the roof and a light diffuser on the bottom that mounts in the room's ceiling and looks like a regular ceiling light fixture. These tubes are especially great for providing energy-efficient, natural lighting for entranceways, pantries, and stairwells. Some models include an exhaust vent fan for use in bathrooms and built-in electric lights for use at night.
Dampness: Your lower level will by no means be more than a "cellar" until you take care of any moisture problems, regardless of whether they're caused by internal forces, external forces, or perhaps a combination of the two.Wrapping pipes in insulation and running a dehumidifier should solve your condensation problems, as does occasionally cracking open a couple of basement windows when the dehumidifier is turned off.
Fixing external water damage is usually more complicated and costly. It might be essential to regrade the soil around your foundation so that it gradually slopes away from the house at a distance of two inches for every horizontal foot for a distance of 3 feet. Additionally, make sure your rain gutters are totally free of decaying leaves and other debris and that they empty away from your home's foundation. Standing water is an invitation to mold, a blight that can wreak havoc not only using the equity in your home, but your family's health as well.
Wet or damp carpet is really a mold magnet, so forgo installing wall-to-wall in your basement and install vinyl or ceramic tile instead. If you must have some carpet, use region rugs instead. They will offer warmth along with a decorative element, but they can be routinely pulled up and checked for mold or discarded if they get wet and cannot be cleaned.
Low ceilings: To counteract the claustrophobic feeling of low basement ceilings, use horizontal lines that emphasize the room's length rather than vertical lines that highlight height. For instance, setting floor tiles in a diagonal pattern will make the room feel wider. Do not install a suspended ceiling. They not only visually shorten a room that is already lacking height, they're completely passé. Lastly, hang any artwork slightly lower than you'd on other floors of your home.
Ugly support columns, beams, and duct function: Messing with your home's support system is generally by no means a great idea. Instead, conceal the worst visual offenders in soffits, walls, or built-in cabinets.
Ugly concrete walls: You will find two fixes for this issue and both camps have their fans and detractors: Those who advocate drywall and those who champion prefinished panels.While drywalling a basement is more time-consuming, paneling naysayers say drywall is more appealing and lasts longer.
But paneling advocates say that the latest advances in building technology provide almost limitless options for dressing up your basement walls, including real wood mounted on plywood panels, simulated wood grain printed on paper and then fused to plywood panels, solid tongue-and-groove wood panels, and wallpaper panels that have a special clear topcoat.
Also gaining in popularity is the Owens Corning Basement Finishing System. It consists of 4-by-8-foot fiberglass panels, snapped into PVC structural framing, that are damage, fire, and mold resistant. These "breathable" panels can be removed in order to access the interior foundation walls. Because the prefinished panels have built-in insulation and sound control properties, the system doesn't require extra insulation, drywall, taping, or painting.
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