General Home Improvement Contractor or Basement Finishing Specialist?

When homeowners think about hiring a contractor to remodel a part of their home, they typically think “general” contractor. Why “general” contractor? or general home improvement contractor?

Would you go to a chiropractor if your foot hurt? Would you hire a landscaper to paint your house?

Of course not. But when it comes to a home improvement project, be it a bathroom or kitchen makeover, window replacement, roofing, or even basement finishing, most people simply look for a home improvement contractor as a one-size-fits-all solution.

And yes, Consumer Reports reports that about 10% of people who have a remodeling project done in their home are dissatisfied with the work. It’s really amazing that only 10% complain!

Any general home improvement contractor will tell you that there’s nothing to finishing a basement, wood studs, drywall, paint, drop ceiling, a carpet and you’re done, 4 maybe 6 weeks tops, or at least finished by the holidays (hopefully). Problem is, everything mentioned above slowly gets ruined in a damp environment, and when that groundwater or plumbing leak occurs, you need to start again.

Using materials only suited for the upstairs in a basement is like building a remodeling project into your basement. But hey, who doesn’t want a band-new basement every 2 to 10 years. It’s not the general home improvement contractor’s fault that this happens, it’s just that they don’t know. Really, who knows hardly anything about basements anyway?

Basement Systems does. After 21 years of basement waterproofing and basement environment control, we know a lot about basements. And the Total Basement Finishing (TBF) basement remodeling system by Basement Systems is the right choice for a basement. Plus, the system is designed to make the basement environment as comfortable and healthy as the upstairs. Read more about it at the TBF Web site.

So always hire the expert, not the generic contractor for the right job – you go to the best doctor, dentist, mechanic, why not the best contractor… after all it’s for your house, you live in it.