Creating a Kitchen in the Basement

Posted by cynthia on Jul 27, 2011 in Basement Design, Basement Finishing, Basement Finishing Contractors, Basement Finishing Permits, Finished Basement Ideas, Home Improvement, Uncategorized |

By Elizabeth Gormley

A kitchen, or kitchenette, in a finished basement has some great advantages.  Maybe you are housing guests, in-laws, a nanny, or you have a tenant living in your finished basement.

A kitchen downstairs allows privacy as well as extraordinary functionality in your home.

Also, a new modern kitchen is one of the most effective ways to add value to your home, and looking to the finished basement is a great way to go at a fraction of the cost an addition would be.

A new kitchen is a tall task for even the most accomplished do-it-yourself homeowner.  Much of the design and execution of the kitchen should be handled by a contractor.  This is particularly true when it comes to installing cabinetry, counters, and new appliances.

Because a kitchen of any sort poses some challenges such as plumbing, grease, smells, noise and cooking fumes, as well as some hazards concerning fire safety, consult your local building and fire codes to see what they recommend and what kind of permits you will need to build your basement kitchen safely and up to code.

One of the reasons homeowners are wary of a kitchen basement is the possibility of flooding.  The appliances are expensive, and the right amount of water can ruin your refrigerator, oven or dishwasher.  It is imperative to seal and waterproof your basement before getting started.  Also, consider that a kitchen is the most common place for a house fire.  There should be an easy escape route, aside from the main stairway.  If there is not, you will need to create one.

The proper ventilation is key in a basement kitchen.  Think about how cooking odors can linger in your upstairs kitchen, and realize the basement is below ground level.  It will be much more susceptible to trapping smells.  Plan on installing a ventilation hole in the side of the basement.  This will be effective against cooking scents and also condensation.  For ventilation and safety, the kitchen should not be tucked into an interior corner of the basement.  It should have at least one wall with open air behind it.

Even if you do not have a tenant or live-in downstairs, a kitchen basement is ultra-convenient in today’s modern home.  Particularly if you have a basement home theater, have friends over for movie night or Sunday football games.  You can fetch snacks and beverages in seconds, with the fridge and oven just a few steps away.

For help with your basement finishing project, enlist the help of one of our skilled Total Basement Finishing contractors! They offer free design consultation, offer full-service basement remodeling and will help you  obtain the necessary permits.

Basement Bathroom Tips: Shower Heads

Posted by cynthia on Jul 26, 2011 in Basement Bathroom, Basement Design, Basement Finishing, Basement Finishing Contractors, Basement Renovations, Energy Efficient Basements, Finished Basement Ideas, Uncategorized |

By Jacques Bouchard

When it comes to a quality basement finishing, it’s all about the details.  A basement bathroom is a fantastic way to improve on your home, and it pays back for itself by 80% or more when the

home is sold.  If you could greatly improve the quality of your space by adding another $50 on to the final cost of the job, wouldn’t you do so?

There are few ways to improve on your home that are more effective than choosing the best shower head possible for your basement bathroom.  You spend a lot of time in front of your shower head, and  the way the water is released makes all the difference.  Enjoying a soothing, comfortable shower is a guiltless

pleasure. And if your family is growing, it may be the only valuable moment of privacy and quiet you’re guaranteed every day.

To help you make the most out of your basement bathroom, Total Basement Finishing offers these shower head shopping tips:

1. Choose a handheld shower head.

Fixed shower heads give a sleek designer look to a shower, but they’re much more difficult to repair and often fall short of the quality of their handheld counterparts.  A handheld shower head is able to be mounted in a cradle that allows for all the advantages of a fixed shower head, but they also are able to be removed to aid in bathing with children and seniors.  Additionally, a detachable shower head allows for ease of use when cleaning the tub, cleaning objects placed in the tub, and bathing pets.  When selecting a handheld shower head, be sure to select one with a high-quality, durable hose that can stand high water pressures without blowing out and can endure daily use without wearing down or forming kinks.  If a handheld shower head is definitely not your thing, remember that you can also install multiple fixed shower heads in a single shower-including one on both ends.

Steps to Remodeling the Basement

Posted by cynthia on Jul 26, 2011 in Basement Carpet, Basement Ceiling, Basement Design, Basement Finishing, Basement Finishing Contractors, Basement Floor Tiles, Basement Renovations, Energy Efficient Basements, Featured, Finished Basement Ideas, Finishing Basement Floors, Finishing Basement Walls, Green Basement Finishing, Uncategorized, Waterproof Basement Flooring, Waterproof Basement Wall Panels |

By Jacques Bouchard

A Monster in your Basement

Imagine this:  Your floor upstairs experiences leaking each time it rains.  Water flows from every crack and crevice in the walls and puddles all over the floor.  Even when there’s no rain at all, it always seems to be damp, humid, and musty up there.  if you store something in the area, you can count on it to grow mold.  If you’ve laid a wood floor and/or carpet in the area, then it’s growing mold and rot while the wood buckles.  All the windows on the floor are rusted and filled with spider webs, and they’re impossible to open.  The floor is cold and clammy underfoot, and the ceiling is sagging and moldy.  In a nutshell, it’s an ugly, smelly, uncomfortable and unhealthy space that you and your family avoid whenever possible.  Could this ever be acceptable?  Of course not!

If it’s unacceptable upstairs, then why would you ever allow it DOWNstairs?

There’s no reason to.  Having an area like that in the home isn’t acceptable.  Your basement is an entire floor’s worth of space, and it’s far too much room to let go to waste.  With the housing market as it currently is, this is a fantastic time to think about how you can take full advantage of every piece of your home you can!  Whether you have a growing family, visiting friends and relatives, or you’re just tired of having a gloomy, dark space in your home, drying and finishing a basement is a great idea.

Basement Design Ideas

Posted by cynthia on Jul 26, 2011 in Basement Design, Basement Finishing, Basement Finishing Contractors, Basement Renovations, Energy Efficient Basements, Featured, Finished Basement Ideas, Green Basement Finishing, Uncategorized |

By Francine Maglione

Designing any room can be tough, but a basement can be especially uninspiring for design ideas. Bad lighting, a cold atmosphere and mechanical eyesores popping out everywhere don’t give homeowners much to work with when they’re coming up with remodeling designs. Use these basement design ideas to guide you as you revamp your basement.

Add Your Individual Style
This basement is yours so all of your basement design ideas should reflect your personal style. Not all trends work for everybody, so it’s best to just use them as inspiration rather than copy them completely. Better Homes and Gardens suggests personalizing the items in your basement, such as repeating a pattern throughout the room by adding it yourself to pillows and window treatments. Choose a color and add squares of paint along the hanging edge of a curtain, and then add painted squares of the same color to pillows.

Basement Layout: What Goes Where

Posted by cynthia on Jul 26, 2011 in Basement Design, Basement Finishing, Basement Renovations, Finished Basement Ideas, Uncategorized |

By Francine Maglione

How do you arrange a room that takes up an entire floor, has poor lighting, and is usually cold and dreary? Where do you even start? There are many ways to approach your basement layout, but you should focus on a layout that adds convenience, organization and function to your home.

Define the Space
First and foremost you must determine what you’ll be using the basement for. Do you want a play area for your kids? Do you need a craft area, guest room or home office? Define the areas before you decide where they should be located in the room. Also, some things in your basement can’t be changed or would be costly to change, such as a metal beam. As doityourself.com says, your basement layout will have to work around these aspects.

Some homeowners may want to build an apartment in their basement with a living room, bedroom, kitchen and full bathroom. Others may want something simpler like a game room, personal gym or laundry room. The website QandAs.com writes that by deciding on the purpose of the space, you can then determine the basement layout. For example, a bathroom may have to be located near a wet bar with a sink to keep the plumbing simple.

Basement Ceilings: How they affect your whole house

Posted by cynthia on Jul 26, 2011 in Basement Ceiling, Basement Design, Basement Finishing, Basement Finishing Contractors, Basement Renovations, Energy Efficient Basements, Green Basement Finishing, Home Improvement, Uncategorized |

By Francine Maglione

Though you may not realize it, your basement ceiling can affect your entire house. The type of basement ceiling you choose can affect how much noise travels from your basement to the rest of the house, how warm or cold the floor above your basement feels, and how well the ceiling repels moisture and mold keeping it from spreading up through your house.

Silence is Golden
Let’s say you decided to turn your basement into a media room. You’ve got a big-screen TV, surround-sound stereo system, and speakers almost as tall as you are. What’s the problem? Your wife can’t make a phone call without the person on the other line hearing an action movie blaring in the background.

It’s important to make sure your basement ceiling is an adequate sound buffer. Drop tile ceilings create a better sound barrier while allowing you to easily access things like plumbing and cables. Using high-quality material, rather than just drywall, will help block sound. Plus, drywall is an organic material, which isn’t the best material to have in a damp, moisture-ridden environment like a basement. It can attract mold, dust mites and other allergens that will make your basement an unpleasant place to be.

Don’t Get Cold Feet
The quality of your basement ceiling can have an effect on how warm the floor directly above it is. There’s nothing worse than waking up on a cold morning and making your way across a freezing kitchen floor to get some coffee. Many basement ceilings can be insulated to keep those feet of yours warm during those winter months. But to maintain a comfortable temperature in the rest of your house, it’s important to use sturdy, quality materials to finish your basement that will eliminate a cold and damp environment and prevent it from spreading up into the rest of your house.

Go With the Best!
Cold, damp and moldy air can make its way through your basement and up into the rest of your house. To keep this from happening, trust the Total Basement Finishing system for your basement remodeling. We offer two types of basement ceiling tiles, linen and prestige, that are firm and solid with a 30-year warranty against sagging. They also come with crown molding for a sophisticated look, and are compatible with 2×2-foot fluorescent lighting and downlighting.

With our basement finishing system of walls, ceiling tiles, floor tiles and windows, your basement will quickly become your favorite room in the house. Get a free quote today and learn how we can help you make your basement beautiful!