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!

Money Saving Tips: Make the Most of What’s in your Home

Posted by cynthia on Jul 26, 2011 in Basement Finishing, Basement Finishing Contractors, Basement Renovations, Green Basement Finishing, Home Improvement, Uncategorized |

By Francine Maglione

There are many money saving tips out there that can help your bank account in small ways. How you manage your spending and how you make use of what you already have in your home can make all the difference in this fickle economy. Give these tips a try and stop being afraid of your bank statement.

Begin at Home
Money saving tips can be utilized all over your home. The Simple Dollar has a number of great tips to help you stick to your budget. Want to save money on weekends? Invite friends over rather than going out all the time. For the amount of money it would cost to get food and drinks at a restaurant or bar, you could serve a group of friends at your home for much less!

Do you collect something? If your collection has become something that is more out of habit than something that brings you joy, a good money saving tip might be to ease up on it. Maybe put this hobby on hold temporarily until your financial situation has more wiggle room, or even just limit yourself to how much you collect. However, the Simple Dollar warns against cutting out things that you feel strongly about and have a lot of meaning to you, as you’ll have a greater chance of relapsing.

Change Shopping Habits
Oftentimes, a trip to the mall can be viewed as a form of entertainment. However, if every time you leave the mall you’re carrying several shopping bags, it may be time to find some other way to pass the time.

There are few greater temptations then walking through a shopping mall with plastic in your wallet. To keep yourself from spending more than you should, Simple Dollar recommends leaving the credit cards at home and only bringing enough cash as you’ll need. When you’re going shopping, make a list and stick to it. You’ll be less likely to splurge on other items that way. Also, if you’re questioning whether you should make a purchase, use the 30-day rule. Typically, the urge to buy something passes after 30 days.

Make your home work for you and save you money. Keep your house insulated, especially your basement, which is where a lot of heat can escape and cold air can enter. Our Total Basement Finishing System is just what you need, with insulated walls, windows and flooring to keep cold basement air from rising up through your house. Get your free quote today!

From Basement to Bedroom: Building a Guest Room in time for the Holidays!

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

Washington Home and Garden Magazine reminds us that it is time to get ready for the holidays and to host the people we love by providing them with comfortable, cozy guest rooms. The article has excellent tips on how to make sure your guests have the best time possible.

Creating a guest room or in-law suite is a great way to make use of your finished basement. It adds extra space as well as a place for family and friends to stay when they come and visit. It could even help if someone needed to stay in your home for a prolonged period of time. Fill the room with comfortable furnishings to make a guest feel at home.

However, not everyone has a room to spare and transform into a guest room.

If you have an unfinished basement, in a matter of days you can turn it into a room your guests will love. All you need is proper basement waterproofing to make sure it is dry and suitable for finishing, and the proper basement finishing system.

Our patented, award-winning drainage system can be installed in a matter of days, complete with the most reliable sump pump system available today, guaranteed to keep your basement dry all the time. You can then finish your basement with Total Basement Finishing wall, floor and ceiling systems that can be quickly installed with no mess.

You will have a dream guest room for about 50% less than the cost of building an addition, and have it all done in time for the holidays.

Contact us for a free estimate and let us show you the options you have to create a dry, safe and healthy environment in your basement, suitable for finishing.

Remodeling to Sell: Not every improvement pays off

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

The recent housing crisis flooded the real estate market with  properties. Sellers today are competing with builders desperate to get rid of newly built homes and banks willing to sell foreclosed properties at much less than they are worth as a way to cut their losses.

To make matters worse, a slow economy is causing people to postpone bigger expenses, and the credit crunch made it harder for potential home buyers to qualify for mortgage loans. As a result, there are tons of homes for sale and not nearly enough qualified buyers.

Sellers trying to move the property quicker, and not willing to lose money on the deal, know that they need to make their property appeal to a home buyer. That means investing some money in improvements in order to make the home easier to sell.

Remodeling Contractors: Check those references!

Posted by cynthia on Jul 26, 2011 in Basement Finishing, Basement Finishing Contractors, Basement Renovations, Green Basement Finishing, Home Improvement, TBF Dealers |

Among all the necessary steps to take when hiring a basement contractor, asking for and checking a contractor’s references is most commonly overlooked by the homeowners.

Some are not comfortable with the idea of bothering a complete stranger, or calling someone on the phone to ask about the work performance of another. Others just don’t know how to do it, or what to ask.

In our experience, when our customers are really happy with the service, not only will they not feel bothered for having their contact information used as reference but they will be delighted to provide the information requested.

Basement Home Theater

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

 By Tim Manson

While many of the ideas on this website are centered around brightening up your basement and keeping it from looking like an old cave, there is one option in which a cave might be the appropriate setting.  If you’re looking for somewhere to escape the summer heat and catch the latest blockbuster movie, look no further than your basement!

Basements by definition are cool, dark places, so in order to spice yours up and turn it into something the local cinema will be jealous of, you just need the right equipment.  Combine the natural advantages of your basement with the necessary advances in modern technology and you’ll have a theater all the neighborhood will be begging to sit in on.