A Basement Game Room: Making the Most of Your Space TAGS: basement | basement remodel ideas | Egress windows | finishing a basement | Refinishing your basement | Sunlight into a basement

A basement game room is a popular use of your additional lower-level space. Here are some pointers: For President Truman’s birthday in 1947, a bowling alley was installed in the basement of the White House, under the North Portico. That started the American tradition of basement game rooms – which continues to this day. In many ways, a game room is one of the best uses of finished basement space. Because basements tend to have large areas of open space, it allows for easy installation of a pool table (or even a bowling alley) that wouldn’t fit upstairs. You can …Continue reading →

Flatscreen or Projector? The Basement Home Theater Dilemma TAGS: basement remodel ideas | Egress windows | finishing a basement | Refinishing your basement

One of the advantages of a basement home theater is the ability to completely control the lighting; for a true cinema-like experience. But that creates another problem; do you stick with flatscreen technology, or really take advantage and invest in a projector? Projectors used to be exclusively found in boardrooms, classrooms and movie theaters – but now they’re making a big impact at home. Projecting a tiny image onto a blank wall, blowing it up in the process, they offer home cinema enthusiasts a true “big screen” experience. But many people still prefer to stick with more traditional technology, like …Continue reading →

Basement Room Ideas: Making the Most of Your Space TAGS: basement egress windows | basement remodel ideas | Egress windows | finishing a basement | Refinishing your basement

Over the course of the next few blog posts, we’ll be examining some of the best ways to expand your home and make use of your available basement space. In our first post: Finishing your basement to be a fully-featured media room, home theater or family room. Whether grabbing popcorn for the big movie, or hot dogs for the big game, one popular venue is a basement media room. It’s an increasingly popular use for finished basement space. In many ways, a basement is the perfect space for installing a big-screen TV – one of the few places in the …Continue reading →

Color and Crunch for your Basement Window Well TAGS: Adding egress windows | basement remodel ideas | Egress windows | Installing an Egress Window

A means of egress is a necessary part of national building code – but just because something’s necessary, doesn’t mean it can’t look cool. If you’re installing a basement window well, think about shaking things up. One option is by choosing an unusual backfill product. Window wells don’t need to be boring. We’ve already covered how they can be used as basement gardens, for growing window boxes filled with flowers or fresh vegetables, but another option for getting a cool look for your well is to mix up the material you use for backfilling. Backfilling is a vital part of …Continue reading →

Cavemen Were Smart. Live Like One in a Finished Basement TAGS: Adding egress windows | basement egress windows | basement remodel ideas | Egress windows | finishing a basement

A finished basement gives all the benefits cavemen used to rave about. Take advantage. Back in prehistoric times, our early ancestors used to live in caves. This wasn’t just a matter of sheltering from the elements – at also made a lot more sense than building huts or lean-tos; which required a lot of work and materials to construct, and didn’t provide nearly as much shelter as mother nature did. Caves – built as they were from meters of impenetrable rock – were incredibly well insulted. As a result, they were a place cavemen could shelter from the heat in …Continue reading →

Smart Moves to Keep Your Basement Dry TAGS: Adding egress windows | basement remodel ideas | Basement Windows | bringing fresh air in a basement | damp basement | Egress windows | finishing a basement | prevent mold in basements | Refinishing your basement | Sunlight into a basement

Basements get damp. It’s one of the natural laws of the universe – like how when you drop a piece of toast, it always lands butter-side down. But there are things you can do to keep your finished basement dry, fresh and welcoming. For many homeowners, adding egress windows helped eliminate their damp problem – as it gave a free-flowing source of fresh air that helped expel lingering moisture. But if you’re deciding to finish your basement, there are some other tips and techniques you can use to minimize or eliminate the risk of dampness. The first is to consider …Continue reading →

Tips for Installing Tile Flooring in Your Basement TAGS: basement remodel ideas | damp basement | finishing a basement | prevent mold in basements | Refinishing your basement

Finishing your basement is a big step towards adding extra living space – and resale value – to your home. But some smart choices now can really pay off in the long run – like installing tile flooring. Many homeowners take years to work up the courage to finish their basement. There are a lot of concerns for them – not least of which is the purely mental block which makes them think it’s impossible that their cold, dank, unwelcoming basement could ever become a warm and welcoming part of their family home. But when they finally do make that …Continue reading →

Don’t Move – Expand! TAGS: Adding egress windows | basement remodel ideas | Egress windows | finishing a basement | means of egress

Finishing a basement can be a great alternative to buying a bigger house. Just don’t forget the egress windows! According to economists, the recession is over – but it doesn’t feel that way to millions of American homeowners. In fact, in some parts of the country house prices are the lowest they’ve been for a half century – in Detroit, for example, the average house price has dropped to just $44,000! And with the housing market still deeply depressed, many homeowners with growing families are struggling. “We had our third kid last June,” explained Long Island homeowner Janine, “and we’re …Continue reading →

DIY Basement Finishing: Make Sure You Know the Codes TAGS: basement | basement remodel ideas | building codes | Egress windows | finishing a basement

Richard thought he was smart to finish his basement himself – until it came time to sell his house. “I guess the moral to the story is: Don’t cut corners.” Richard’s talking about the finished basement of his Reading, Pa. home. “My buddies and I did it about five years ago,” he explains. “My wife and I had been talking about finishing the basement for a while, so we bought what we needed from the hardware store and got cracking.” And for a project fueled by six packs of beer and how-to articles found on Google, Richard and his friends …Continue reading →

Basement Remodeling: Why More Homeowners are Going For It TAGS: basement remodel ideas | building codes | Egress windows | finishing a basement | Refinishing your basement

If you’re a homeowner, you don’t need me to tell you that house prices stink right now. Even worse, analysts report things are likely to get worse before they get better. That’s why many homeowners are deciding not to put their houses on the market at the moment; and are instead reinvesting their money and renovating their current properties. One such couple is Dennis and Grace, from Great Neck, NY. “We bought our house at the height of the market,” Dennis says, “and since then, realtors have told us we’ve lost a hundred grand off what we can ask for …Continue reading →