Finishing a basement yourself
is undoubtedly the easiest way to increase the living area of your
home. This can be developed into an office, a bedroom, a play area for
your children or even a small place that you would have for rent.
Whatever the nature of your project, you should first identify your
needs and consider the condition of the place before starting your run
of finishing the basement. Indeed, you must have to be sure that the
basement of your house is high enough and is sufficiently clean, dry and
healthy to be considered a livable place. However, any proposal to
finish the basement includes a thorough inspection of the place before
the work will be started.
Before you finally decide on the type and extent of finishing the
basement to make, it is best to check with the authorities if the
proposed works comply with building codes being enforced in your
locality. Several aspects must be taken into account because you may
need to consider doing a complete upgrade of your electrical, fuel
system, water pipes and sanitary plumbing which may be affected when finishing a basement yourself.
Regardless of the extent and nature of your project, you may also need
to hire an expert who can provide you with valuable assistance from
start to completion of the project.
Major problems in finishing a basement yourself
If the basement of your house has water problems such as humidity,
water accumulation on the floor, and condensation on the walls, this is
what we recommend that you should have to check before you are going to
start finishing a basement yourself:
· Install a waterproofing system. A problem of water in a
basement does not disappear by itself. It is preferable to have it fixed
before commencing work as a waterproofing system can be installed more
easily in an unfinished basement.
· Install an insulating film on the interior walls before
mounting the finished walls. The walls of your basements have
possibilities that water can let inside your house. Water vapor can also
be deposited and thus increase the moisture content of the basement.
Good insulation provides solution to this kind of problem.
· Insulate the walls from the outside if your foundations to prevent moisture infiltration.
· Check for some plumbing leaks. These can be defects from
your appliances such as washer or water heater. Regular inspection of
these devices will greatly help prevent undesirable situations.
· Inspect the windows in your basement. The best time to
replace your basement windows is in the early finishing. This ensures a
tight seal and allows for a more professional finish both inside and
outside.
· Provide a system to dehumidify the air.
· Install a subfloor before laying a coating on concrete.
Finishing a basement yourself can be quite complicated but is also great if it is properly planned and carried out.