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.

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.

2. Find flow options on your shower head that fit your preference.

Shower heads are made to suit any preference a homeowner might have in water flow and pressure.  If you love the feel of pounding water in your shower but have a basement bathroom with very low water pressure, there are models on the market that can adjust the water pressure to increase the volume of the water coursing through.  More expensive models can even adjust the pressure to a gentle mist, champagne drops (the standard setting), a deep and relaxing massage, or even to a strong and vigorous jet of water.

If you’re interested in saving water for your home, low-flow shower heads are on the market that can save as much as a half gallon of water per minute (10 gallons of water during a single 20-minute shower).  These shower heads can also come with cutoff valves that will allow you to shut the water off while you’re soaping up for increased savings of natural resources.

Many homeowners find themselves scalded by hot water or shocked by freezing cold water whenever a toilet is flushed or a faucet is turned on in the home.  If you’re experiencing these problems, you’d probably appreciate the benefits of an anti-scald adapter or pressure balance valve in your shower.  These products can cost as little as $15

and installs between the shower arm and shower head, shutting the water

off if it becomes too hot.

3. Pick a shower head that’s built to last.

Shower heads come in an enormous variety of pricing- anywhere between $6 and $500.  However, you won’t need to spend excessively to find a top-quality and comfortable one.  For $30-$80, a high-quality shower head will be available for the remodeled basement bathroom that can give you the best value for your investment.

Brass shower will generally provide a reliable, long-lasting option for a remodeled basement bathroom, but they’re also much more expensive than other models.   Whether the shower head is made from brass or some other metal, be sure that the materials are easy to upkeep and will not tarnish.

If you opt for a plastic shower head, find one that can resist lime buildup so it is unlikely to clog your shower head.  All shower heads, however, will eventually develop lime accumulation if it’s present in the water.  If your basement bathroom’s shower head is showing signs of this lime buildup, remove it by wiping the accumulations on the tip of the nozzle away, then use a lime-away solution or a 50/50 solution of vinegar and warm water to help soak the other deposits away.

4. Use a shower head water filter on in your finished basement bathroom.

The water that you bathe in comes from the same source as your tap water.  During every shower, you bring about one cup of unfiltered water into your body, and you soak every surface of your body in this heated tap water.  Any dirt, chemicals, lime, or impurities existing in your well water will also be present in the shower.  If the water contains chlorine, then this chemical will dry out and chance the color of nails, skin, and hair.  Chlorine also strops the natural oils from your skin and can possibhly also cause mild skin and eye irritation.  Heavy minerals present in the water can weigh down hair, and a variety of other cosmetic disadvantages can come into play.  However, with a high-quality shower filter, as much as 98% of these materials can be removed.  The filter will need replacement only every 6 months or

10,000 gallons, and they need minimal personal maintenance.

Adding a basement bathroom is a beautiful addition to any basement finishing

plan. However, there are a great many other important steps in creating an exciting basement makeover.  If you’re interested in creating a basement finishing plan, Total Basement Finishing is ready to help. They have the best finished  basement wall products, basement floor products, and basement ceiling products available for all your basement remodeling needs. Total Basement Finishing provides free, no-obligation consultations and written estimates, and they’re ready to help you with this exciting and important home improvement.

By Francine Maglione

When it comes to coughing up payment to your basement contractor, things can go sour quickly. Is the contractor going to take your money and run? Are you stiffing an honest contractor out of hard-earned money? Too often, the problem lies with the contract and a vague description of payment terms and conditions.

Tim Carter of “Ask the Builder” believes that the best way to pay a contractor is to agree on periodic payments that are based on the amount of work completed. Carter advises against paying for work that has not been performed and recommends getting a breakdown of costs from the contractor before the job begins.

You must also remember to always have enough money to complete the unfinished tasks so you aren’t left with bills you can’t pay and an incomplete job. One suggestion Carter makes is to use a tiebreaker clause in your contract. This has the parties agree on an independent inspector who will give a ruling on the quality of the work done and settle any disputes between the contractor and homeowner.

To read more about Tim Carter’s tips for paying a contractor, check out these “Ask the Builder” columns:

Tips on Paying Contractors

The Other Side of the Fence – Be Fair to a Contractor

When to Pay a Contractor

By Jacques Bouchard

As the real estate slump continues to worsen and homes become more and more difficult to sell, homeowners are finding that the best option for gaining more living space for their family is to finish the basement.  In response to this ever-increasing trend, many companies are designing wall panels especially for use in a basement.

However, these companies are often providing products that are hastily researched, poorly created, or make false or misleading claims about how well they work and how appropriate they are for a basement finshing project.  Before you make a decision on the basement wall product that’s right for your home, consider these five questions:

1. Will my basement walls resist water and moisture?

When it comes to a leak in the basement, it’s not a matter of how, it’s a matter of when. With the pipes, sinks, showers, water heaters, washing machines, toilets, and other water sources in the home, it’s only a matter of time before something breaks.  The water that comes from that break is going to run downhill, and there’s an excellent chance that this means it will make its way into the basement.

Along with plumbing leaks, groundwater and rainwater provides a continuous promise of damaging a finished basement as it sits outside your home.  Without warning, it’s possible for it to leak through foundation wall cracks in the walls and floors, and water that builds up in basement window wells can leak through, pooling on the basement floor.

2. Can the basement walls resist mold?

Whether the basement is leaking or not, water is still able to pass through the porous concrete, stone, or tile foundation walls due to hydrostatic pressure.  This accumulated moisture collects behind and under the basement wall finishings, forming a moist, humid environment.  If these products have any organic material, then this environment will become a reasonable environment for mold, mildew, dust mites, and rot.  Materials like cloth, drywall, fiberglass, wood, string, paint, wallpaper, and most other common building materials will all have at least some organic material and are vulnerable to these types of damage.  As mold and dust mites grow on these materials, they will release spores and waste material into the air that will travel throughout the house and add unhealthy allergens to the home.

3. How durable is the basement wall material?

A basement is finished so it can be used.  This means that you may want pictures, shelves, cabinets, bookshelves, speakers, a plasma TV, mirrors, a wine rack, sports memorabilia, or any of countless other items mounted on the walls.  To decorate your basement the way you want to, it’s best to have a strong, reliable wall material that can hold up to the weight.  Whether you install a game room, a children’s play room, or any other area, you’ll best appreciate a basement wall that will be able to hold up to daily wear and tear without crumbling, breaking, or cracking.  Long-lasting basement walls will also hold wash easily and be forgiving of marks and stains is also important, especially if children or pets are going to be in the room.  Test any wall product you’re thinking of using by drawing a pencil line on a sample of the material.  If the pencil line can easily be removed, then you should be able to wask most stains from the walls.  Additionally, be wary of absorbent basement wall materials- a wall that can absorb moisture can hold water from basement leaks, spilled liquids, and pet stains.

4. How much basement wall insulation is included?

In Canada and northern United States, state building codes are including R-13 insulation on the walls as part of their building codes.  Whether or not this level of insulation is required in your area, it’s good for the energy-efficiency of the home to add effective insulation to all basement walls.   Using hard foam insulation in the basement walls will add to the overall strength of the product, and if the panels also feature a hardboard ceramic panel, then heavy objects will be able to be mounted on the walls with no need to locate a stud.  All walls should be covered in a continuous, unbroken sheet of insulation that travels around the entire perimeter of the home or there will be a hole through which heat can pour out.

5. How well can my basement walls keep sound out?

If you’re planning on using the basement as an area that will generate a lot of noise, you’re going to want a produce that can isolate sound to that area.  However, drywall and other basement wall products do little to keep sound out, and some products even aid in its travel throughout the home!  Hardboard products tend to reflect sound back when it strikes them, making them an effective sound barrier.  Wall panels with soft insulation and cloth covering absorb sound instead of reflecting it, and are therefor effective at giving a room a hushed feel.

Basement Wall Comparison Chart

This chart compares six different common basement finishing wall products. For the sake of this chart, any material not warranted for more than three years is considered ineffective in that category.

* Insulation can be added to these products as well. Be sure it’s warranted against water and mold.

Wood paneling and all types of drywall (including mold-resistant drywall, whose warranty generally runs from 6 months to 3 years) is an inappropriate material for a basement finishing. Fiberglass and cloth basement wall paneling is better to use, with an average R-11 insulation and strong sound absorbtion qualities, but it’s among the least durable and cleanable of all basement wall products, and water and moisture can still damage it fairly easily. Its spongelike insulation will quickly absorb moisture, and unwanted spills, liquids, and pet stains can damage it easily. Wood paneling is more resistant to spills and liquids, but it swells and buckles with moisture.  Wood also easily rots and supports the growth of mold, mildew, and dust mites.  Drywall manages moisture poorly, and when it gets wet, it will become soggy and damaged and will generally need to be replaced.

Hard-board insulation wall panels have the most advantages of all basement finishing wall products. Basement wall panels like Total Basement Finishing’s EverLast Wall Panels include an amazing 50 year warranty against mold and moisture.  EverLast basement wall panels are durable enough to hold an amazing 300 pound per square foot with no need to locate a stud – a half inch drywall board using nylon wall drills has a 17.5 pound safe shear rating, and most soft insulation wall panels can hold no more than ten pounds! Hardboard wall panels with dense, solid foam insulation provide a reliable sound barrier and, and they’re much more durable than any other material when it comes damage from dents and impacts. EverLast wall panels come with with an industry-leading R-13 insulation rating, reflecting back 99.987% of all heat and ensuring that the materials will be code-compliant for decades into the future.  These hard-foam insulated panels also include a Class A fireproofing rating, helping you home be safer than ever!

When you’re looking for the best basement wall panels on the market, look for water-resistant, mold-resistant, durable material. The materials should include soundproofing properties and at least an R-13 insulation rating. The best way to make sure you’re using the best product on the market is to ask many questions, do a lot of research, and above all, check out the warranty!

By Jacques Bouchard

I did a little spring cleaning over the weekend.  Among other things, I brought four 60-gallon Rubbermaid containers into the basement.  Four. More. Giant. Containers.

In all, I have three dozen of these storage units now– all filled to the brim with things I’m not likely to touch (or think about) again for the next five years.  As I stacked the containers, I thought of the most common reason homeowners never finish their basement:

“I’d never be able to finish my basement with all that stuff in there!”

Pishposh. Remodeling a crowded basement IS possible.  Here’s what you should do:

Don’t Plan to Finish the Entire Basement

Most basement remodelers do not recommend finishing every inch of your basement.  While an entire floor of your home is overkill, SOME storage space is a good thing.  Allocate one-half to one-fourth of your basement as a dedicated area for storage, utilities, and laundry.

If you have a little extra in your budget and would like the storage area to look its best, try out some inexpensive upgrades.  Basement Systems Inc. offer the  ZenWall product to give it the same look as the finished space. Alternatively, line it with rigid, white plastic boards (BrightWall) and waterproof floor tiles as a cost-effective upgrade.

Let Some Things Go

If you haven’t looked at it in five or ten years, what’s the chance that you really need it?  Finishing the basement is a great reward for finally organizing all that junk, sifting through your photos, and finally tossing out Aunt Edgar’s old rocking chair.

Yard sales, Goodwill, and your local waste disposal & recycling company are the way to go.  You’ll be surprised how good you feel without all that stuff weighing you down!

Use Vertical Storage

Of course, some things have to stay.   But if you stack those boxes and crates one on top of the other, it’s not going to be accessible.  The solution?  Vertical storage.

Storage shelves are relatively inexpensive and can do wonders for adding available space to your home.  Over the weekend, I personally picked up mine from Seville Classics, and in two hours I’d at least doubled the available space in my closet.  Awesome!  But whatever brand you use, you’re going to be very satisfied with the end result.

Ask Us for Advice

At [dealer], we’ve been remodeling basements in [state] since [date opened], and we’ve got tons of great ideas on how to maximize storage space in your home.  Additionally, we’ll be able to help you build custom shelves, cabinets, and closets to optimize what you have.

We’d be glad to offer you a free, no-obligation basement finishing consultation and cost quote if you live in the [state] area, including [cities].  Give us a call today to get started on your new & improved home!

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.

Make the Most of What You’ve Got!

At about 50% of the cost of building an addition to the home, a basement finishing is the best way to gain new living space without the need to sacrifice lawn space or endure the hassles of building upwards.  Even with the current poor housing market, Remodeling Online reports that the resale value of a home with a basement finishing increases by as much as 97% of

the cost of the installation! Click here to go to Remodeling Online’s web site and view the full report.

Even barring all numbers, a basement finishing is a great idea.  If your basement is leaking, you have the opportunity to take a significant problem in your home and turn it around completely.  Here’s just a few of the problems a damp or wet basement can cause:

1. Water is able to collect around foundation walls in the loose backfilled earth around the outside walls.  As this water soaks concrete, grout, and mortar, it will make its way into the basement air.  Even when the walls look dry, you can be sure that moisture is still seeping through and being pulled into the air, much like dirt in a flower pot is dry even when the pot is heavy with moisture.

2. When a basement is humid, it creates a perfect environment for mold growth. If the moisture is allowed to remain, there’s nothing stopping mold and dust mites from living, thriving, and surviving on all things containing organic material in your basement, including drywall, carpet, fiberglass, and hardwood floors.

3.

When a basement has a musty, moldy smell, it comes from mold spores and the airborne fecal material created by dust mites in your basement.  This basement air moves upwards in your home in the same way that air moves through the hose like in a chimney.  Because this air travels upwards in your house, the airborne materials within the air will also rise into the main home where you breathe.  This can agitate asthma, allergies, and create a variety of other health disadvantages.

4. When a basement leaks, it ceases to be an acceptable area for storage.   Christmas ornaments, books, wedding memorabilia, seasonal clothing, unused furniture, and valuables will not be able to be safely stored in these flooding conditions.

A Beautiful Finished Basement

If you’ve decided to keep the basement a moldy, wet, and smelly space, then the basement will have little potential for improvement.  However, this is what a dry, healthy basement could become:

• A beautiful basement living room with couches, a TV and a game table
• A peaceful, private home office
• A family game room with a basement wet bar for entertaining guests
• A home gym with weights, mats, and exercise equipment
• A safe, secure children’s play area
• A beautiful and convenient wine cellar

If you’re finishing the basement, it’s wise to use basement remodeling materials that can create a safe and sound vapor barrier between your living space and the cold, damp basement walls and floor.  On the walls, a solid, free-standing cement board with hard-foam insulation with an R-13 rating is best.  With solid materials like this, you’ll be able to attach shelves, cupboards, pictures, a plasma TV, sports memorabilia, or any of countless other decorations and accessories with confidence. The windows in the basement should be installed with double-paned glass and a vinyl frame for the best options for insulation and soundproofing.  The basement ceiling is best installed with a drop ceiling that can absorb noise from both the basement and the  floors above.  The basement floor should be installed with water resistant vinyl tiles that block vapor barrier from the floor while creating a thermal break that allows the surface of the floor to be as much as ten degrees warmer than the floor below.  All surfaces of the basement should be inorganic to prevent mold and able to resist water in case of a flood.

Even if the basement has the best waterproofing products in the market and a vapor barrier is installed on all surfaces, the basement can still be affected by leaks from water heaters, bursting pipes, overflowing sinks, bathtubs, toilets, dishwashers, and countless other things in the home that hold water that can flow downhill into the basement.

Basement Waterproofing Basement Remodeling Contractors in your Town

Not all basement waterproofing and basement remodeling contractors are created equally.  When searching for the best one for your home, it’s best to find a well-established contractor who you can count on to still be in business if you need to service your installation or have warranty work done.  The small business administration reports that 50%

of contractors have their business fail in the first year, with over

96% closing shop within the first five years.  There’s a good chance that you’ll want the company someday in the future to modify, add on to, or service the job.  Find a company that can still be there when you need them most.

Remodeling a basement can be a difficult job. How differently should you treat it compared to any other room in your house? Follow these do’s and don’ts and you’ll be well on your way to a nicely refinished basement that you’ll be pleased with for a long time.

Do:

Eliminate moisture problems in the basement. Moisture can really do a number on a basement. Home improvement expert Danny Lipford notes that a basement can let in an average of 18 gallons of moisture each day. Lipford suggests looking for these telltale signs of moisture problems:

• Musty odors
• Rust on metal surfaces
• Peeling paint
• Discolorations on walls and ceilings

Don’t let moisture ruin your basement refinishing job! The TBF system can eliminate moisture problems by installing an Energy Star dehumidifier and by using an exclusive selection of basement finishing products that can’t support mold or be damaged by moisture.

Double-check Building Codes. Different areas have different building codes. For example, if you build a home in Cincinnati, you don’t need to waterproof the exterior of the basement walls. However, if you want to finish the basement a year later, basement walls will require a waterproofing treatment. “Ask the Builder” columnist Tim Carter recommends checking with your local building department before you begin to work on your basement.

Accentuate the positive. While your basement doesn’t have as much natural light as the rest of the house, it does have a solid floor that can be an ideal base for a pool table, arcade games, or a treadmill and weightlifting equipment. Feeling artistic? Instead of trying to hide some of your basement’s exposed joists and ductwork, you can paint these features to create an industrial, loft-like theme.

Don’t:

Aim to finish the entire basement. Apart from the added cost of finishing the entire basement, this approach will leave you without a utility area where tools, luggage, and seasonal items can be stored. Your money will be better spent creating a premium-quality space in a more limited area.

Overlook lighting. Since there’s not much natural light coming in from outside, a finished basement needs a well-designed lighting scheme. Fluorescent lights, integrated into a finished drop ceiling, provide excellent general-purpose lighting that’s also energy efficient. But you may also want a special light fixture, such as a decorative lamp over a pool table or a small spot light aimed at a dart board.

Skimp on the details. It’s the little things you do that will make your basement stand out and turn it into a room that everyone wants to be in. Add some decorative lighting around a seating area, put up some photos around your home office space, or hang a large mirror on the wall of your gym area. You can even give the room a theme. Installing a basement bar? Put in a retro jukebox and hang old record albums on the walls. Don’t neglect finishes that you’d use for the rest of your house, either. Bob Villa suggests adding things like crown molding to make the room look more complete.

Be afraid to express yourself. This new living space is yours, so go nuts! Make it whatever you want it to be. Take your basement down a funky route by adding bean bag chairs, beaded curtains and a lava lamp, or add sports memorabilia so you can host Superbowl and World Series parties for years to come. Whatever you decide to do, let us help! Total Basement Finishing is a great system to start your basement design project with. Search through our site for great basement finishing tips and to get a free quote today!

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.

Continue a color scheme throughout the entire basement for a cohesive feel. Better Homes and Gardens recommends taking mismatched items like vases or plates and painting them, or adding metallic accents to them using a paint pen. If you like to take photographs, frame a few and place them around your basement to make it more personal. Do you have a favorite hobby or interest? Express it in your basement by giving the room a theme. Your basement design ideas can have a sports theme, tropical theme, or even a retro theme. Onlinetips.org says that if your basement is especially gloomy, be sure to use bright colors in your accessories to liven it up.

Don’t Break the Bank
Basement remodeling designs don’t have to cost a fortune, especially if you do most of the work yourself. Better Homes and Gardens suggests burlap because at less than $2 a yard, it offers an affordable way to add texture to a window treatment. You could even paint designs or stencils onto it. Use old t-shirts or scrap fabric and make your own pillows to add a personal touch to basement seating areas.

The DIY Network offers a number of useful and affordable basement design ideas. Try sprucing up old furniture by painting it or using fabrics. Upholster an old sofa with new fabric. For a futon, take an old fitted bed sheet and cover the cushion with it. A throw casually tossed over furniture easily provides an inviting and relaxing feel to a room, and a pile of floor pillows offers cheap extra seating. Also, hang a fabric collage on a blank wall for instant, affordable art. DIY even suggests purchasing different-sized pieces of canvas stretched over a wooden frame and tightly stapling fabrics that match your room’s color scheme to them, attaching the longer sides first, then the shorter sides. For a fun, creative touch in a sports-themed basement, DIY proposes making a table by gluing hockey sticks together.

Plan Ahead
Make sure that all of your basement design ideas are planned out before you get started. Better Homes and Gardens recommends planning different activity zones throughout your basement and figuring out what each section of the room’s function is. Leave plenty of room for storage as well, whether you add wall cabinets or even add walls to a corner to make a closet. If you’ve decided to make your basement into a home office, make sure you plan the room accordingly by figuring out how much room you’ll need and having any electrical work taken care of by professionals.

Need a hand? Check out the rest of our site for tons of basement finishing ideas. Let us finish your basement for you with the Total Basement Finishing system. With our system and your basement design ideas, your basement will quickly become one of your favorite rooms in the house! Call or go online today for a free quote.

By Francine Maglione

Imagine a contractor working on your basement. You hired him and gave him the down payment that he requested. The work takes weeks and you feel like nothing is really getting done. He keeps asking for more money and you keep shelling it out hoping it will motivate him to finish. Months later he stops showing up and your basement is either not finished or was hastily completed with shoddy workmanship and cut corners, leaving you helpless and broke. You’ve been had. How could you have prevented this in the first place?

One of the most difficult parts of any building or remodeling job might be hiring a contractor. With such a harsh stigma attached to them, finding a trustworthy basement contractor can be a frightening task. Follow these tips and maybe your search will get a little easier.

Get it in Writing
Any expert in building, construction, law or any business will tell you that a safe way to handle any agreement is to get everything in writing. Ask the Builder columnist Tim Carter stresses the importance of this and even recommends using email as an easy way to get a written record. Try using email to communicate important points with your basement contractor, and then save the emails to your hard drive and to a disk and print them out.

Carter also suggests taking notes during a meeting with your basement contractor. Ask the contractor if he is able to complete the job in a certain amount of time. If he says no, ask what can be done to get the work finished sooner. Once you get the answer you want, pause and write down the notes. Carter says that the contractor will see you writing and make a mental note telling him that you will not forget what was said. A paper trail will also be helpful to you if you ever need to take legal action. Keep a collection of letters, photos, emails and other paperwork, and invest in a copy of the current building codes so you can spot any building code violations while the work is being done.

Pay Later
Tim Carter strongly suggests working out a fair, timely payment plan with your contractor. He also cautions against contractors that may be using your money to pay bills from jobs they finished months ago. Don’t end up a victim! Do your research and ask questions before hiring a contractor to ensure that he is knowledgeable and trustworthy. Don’t be afraid to give him an interview beforehand, as he is trying to get a job after all. Making sure that the company is licensed and insured and even members of trustworthy organizations, such as the Better Business Bureau, are ways to help ensure that you’re going to get what you pay for.

What They Can Do for You
A trustworthy, professional, financially stable basement contractor can be a huge help to you if you decide to remodel your basement. He will provide important and beneficial advice that can only come from an expert. Doityourself.com recommends using a basement contractor to get advice on amenities you would like to add to your basement such as a bathroom or kitchenette. Just keep in mind that the more features you decide to add to the room, the more expensive the project will become. Make sure you have enough money to cover everything you want to do. Many well-established contractors – the ones you want to do business with – offer financing plans to help with the payments.

A contractor can also help you with moisture control in your basement, or even if you have a wet basement to begin with. Before starting any basement remodeling project, it’s imperative that moisture is eliminated, and a contractor can ensure that your basement is properly insulated and vented. If you want the best for your basement, go with a Total Basement Finishing contractor. These contractors will provide you with a top-quality floor, ceiling and walls to make your basement dry, clean and safe. And with dealers all over the country, we’re bound to have just what you need right where you need it. Get your free quote today and let us help you make your basement beautiful!

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!