VeeshanVault

Since I cannot afford to do this for quite some time (hopefully not too long), I thought I would ask the community if y'all have done any sort of basement finishing/remodeling. I have approximately 900 square feet of unfinished basement in a 1920 home. Uneven floor, some moisture (but not horrible), shitty steep stairs and a good amount of needed work done! So, this should be interesting. Luckily, I now have a preliminary plan, thanks to my step Dad, who is pretty awesome at design, and who will actually be building the custom bar, once we get to that point.

Attached is the preliminary floorplan. We decided to make the main entrance the existing outside entrance, since I will be covering the patio soon, and quite honestly, the interior entrance is too steep and would require an assload of work to make usable in a realistic sense. It is coming along though! I posted some pics of the basement as it is now in the General forum when I bought my home.

Anyway, I'd like to hear ideas and experiences!

I built an entire addition on my house in Arkansas. Well, the wall were there built over concrete, but I had to build all the studs, run electrical, put in windows, ect. I had a friend help be with the electrical and crown molding (that shit is fucking hard to do right!). I did all the framing, drywalling, and put the window in myself at age 22 using only a couple of books from the library as a guide. Once you frame a wall, the rest is easy as hell. Take your time learning with a single frame and you can knock out the rest in an afternoon. Drywalling was easier than I expected, but if I ever have to do it again, I will bring in professionals to do the finish work (taping/mudding/sanding) just because it's a pain in the ass. Also, the difference between watching a pro do it is night and day compared to the time and energy I put into it. I would also bring in a pro for my electrical. I have a basic knowledge, but that's one of those things I would want 100% correct. I would feel better doing my own plumbing over electrical!

It'll be a bit before I am able to start on this project in earnest. A few things I can do...

1. Humidity

Currently, the basement is between 63-69% humidity, but there isn't a whole lot of insulation and the exterior door, windows are original, so offer not much. So, it changes with the weather. I can, however, monitor the level to see if I need to buy a dehumidifier prior to the buildout. Rotted drywall and some moisture felt in the slab tells me it would be a good idea.

I just had a heat pump installed, so that naturally will get rid of some humidity, but the dehumidifier will be important. That means I'll need to fix a rotted-out drain so the water can go somewhere--there will be a lot!

2. Demo

Former owner went DIY on a partial framing/drywall job. Fucking sucked at it! Had the rock hanging all the way to the slab (need to leave ~ 1/2") so at some point, water wicked up and rotted out what was hung. No biggie, just messy, and I was going to start from scratch anyway.

Problem--black mold on other side of drywall. Want to get that all demoed ASAP to prevent health issues. Need good mask for that!

Co worker got this one for a demo job recently

Dual filter

Nice! I think I'll get one.

Check out the Optimus Prime face filter on the right!

Excellent news! My stepdad has offered to go 50/50 on expenses as a housewarming gift. Holy shit! attached new floor plan. Next up is to get bids on plumbing and slab grading. Yes!

Started the demo over the weekend. REALLY looking forward to hauling all that shit upstairs, and then to street. =/

I have a contractor coming out today and we will get the process started.

Been lagging on finishing basement demo. Almost done though!

Organized garage (pegboard, hooks, shelves) in meantime. Got place for heavy bag as soon as floor mats arrive in mail!

Patio covering construction begins next week. yay!!! I'l post progress photos!

My dad sells LED lighting. My patio has LED strip lights that I can turn into about 20 colors, I can also have them pulse with the beat of the music I play on the wireless speakers. I will try and load a short clip. It works great and the kids love it.