Chicagoland Basement Remodeling & Finishing

Creating a space to workout is one of the simplest transformations in basement areas. A major issue with home gyms in the basement is poor ventilation and waterproofing. Having moisture in your basement with poor ventilation will breed mold and mildew. This can be a major health hazard because when exercising you will be breathing heavily. Adding a padded flooring or workout mat is also very important because concrete has been known to induce foot and ankle injuries. Mounting mirrors on the walls and using brightly colored paints can help make the room brighter and make your workout area seem larger.

Many homeowners spend a lot of time and money selecting a great tv and sound system for their basements but take little time to consider the design and furniture to accommodate the electronic equipment. Make sure to select or build furniture that will hold the wires necessary for the electronic equipment. Dangling wires are not only unattractive, they can also be a fire hazard. Ventilation systems are also very important for home theaters in the basement. Electronic equipment can overheat and will be permanently damaged without proper ventilation.

New home theater systems are proof that times have changed. It wasn’t long ago when the idea of a home theater system was laughable, with small TV panel sizes and poor display resolution. Nowadays, however, creating one is within reach thanks to advancements in technology like large screen TVs and high-quality sound equipment.

123 Remodeling specialists will help you find the best equipment for home theater and install it for stunning visual quality and audio effects.

Basements are usually wide-open areas that have a lot of square footage, making them perfect for game rooms and children’s playrooms. It’s a great way for children to run and play around in a main area of the home without adding clutter to the living room. A carpeted or padded flooring will provide safety from falling. Recessed lighting is a great addition to a children’s play area, making the room brighter and reducing the risk of breakage because the lights are not hanging from the ceiling, they are protected because they are housed inside the ceiling. Another great idea is adding covers to electrical outlets, especially with younger children.

Any basement can be transformed into a bar with anything from a simple bar area with a refrigerator to something more elaborate with running water, a wine fridge, dishwasher, and microwave. Lighting is one of the most important parts of a home bar. The mood and overall atmosphere will be affected by the lighting you choose to install.

A climate-controlled wine cellar can also be installed in confined spaces, making a great addition to any bar, without taking up valuable space.

One of the most commonly cited problems in basement spaces is the lack of natural light. But with some careful planning and creative lighting design, even this seemingly fatal flaw can be corrected. As you plan for basement lighting, remember you will likely need more light than in other places of the home because the basement is located below grade, natural light does not provide the baseline ambient light that is found in the aboveground floors. That doesn’t mean, however, that the quantity should rule over quality in basement lighting design. Tricking the eye to see natural light is one way to make a basement space feel more inviting. To supplement the light that would typically come from a window, consider washing the walls with light, using recessed can lights close to the walls, or even energy-efficient fluorescent linear fixtures hidden in a cove.

When choosing your lighting, think about the room vertically, considering the effect each level will have on the room’s feel. The light is best created in layers: ambient or general lighting, task or specific lighting, and accent or decorative lighting. Soffit lighting and bookcase lighting are great enhancers for accent lighting, and torchiere’s work especially well in corners since they bounce light up the corner and across the ceiling. Finally, when choosing your fixtures, think not only about the light they give out but also their look in relation to your space. Shorter lamps or lamps that have stout/squat bases with wide shades will look more natural and more fitting in conversation areas. Choosing both bulbs and fixtures carefully will accentuate your space. Consider using warmer fixture colors, which will of course make the whole space feel warmer and more inviting. If fluorescent lamps are used, find the lamp with the highest CRI (Color Rendering Index). This will give the room the most natural feel.

Insulation separates the cool foundation walls from the mild interior, creating a much more comfortable living area at a low cost, making heating and cooling the basement easier and cheaper. According to DOE, typical annual energy savings after properly insulating a 1,500 SQFT basement ranges from $450/year in Chicago, IL. The best type of basement insulation is generally some type of rigid polystyrene glued directly against the foundation wall. Insulation joints should be sealed with mastic and mesh tape so warm, moist basement air will not come into contact with the cool basement foundation wall, which can create mold problems.

Rigid insulation glued to the outside foundation usually works best for new homes. A 6-inch gap needs to be left between the top of the outside insulation and any wood construction or termites can use the insulation as a pathway to the home.

People sometimes ask us to paint the walls white, paint the ceiling white and put in lots of fluorescent lighting. Our designers want to mention that doing so makes it really bright, but it also makes it really unpleasant. The key with a basement is really warming up the space to make it an inviting environment. No matter what function the room will serve, going with colors on the warm end of the spectrum is a good choice. No matter if it’s a home theater or a children’s play area, starting with a warm color will really make the space much more livable, noting that colors like a light caramel or a warm ivory can soften the glare from all the lighting without making the room feel enclosed while yellows might tend to look dingy.

Because basements are often huge, undefined spaces, using paint to delineate areas of the room can make the room more livable by making different sections serve clear purposes. We try to use paint to visually section off different areas of play. Creating activity spaces for the kids can make it more fun for them, and it can also help keep the room more organized. We don’t forget the details when we are finishing your new basement space. Because of the sub-level nature of the room, people often neglect finishes they would put in other areas of the house. 123 Remodeling will incorporate architectural details just like we would in the rest of the house, crown molding, substantial baseboards, wainscoting and beadboard ceilings all go a long way toward eliminating the basement feeling of living in a substandard space. And finally, don’t be afraid to express your decorating personality. Because basements do present unique challenges, homeowners are often afraid to do anything too daring with the room. That’s the wrong idea if you want to make people think about the room rather than its location. The designers at 123 Remodeling can help you draw up all of your ideas and our expert craftsmen will execute your design with attention to detail.

There are many flooring options, but any option adding a subfloor above concrete will help to make it more comfortable and it will keep the finished floor away from direct contact with the cool concrete. This will soften and warm the finished floor, as well as keep it dry and if it gets wet from a spill will allow it to dry out. You can apply almost any type of finished floor on top of the subfloor: bamboo, wood, carpet, linoleum or tile. Before installing your flooring, caulk all of the cracks in the floor to minimize moisture problems. You should Avoid installing carpet directly on basement concrete, since wet carpet is a perfect home for mold. If you are on a tight budget and the floor doesn’t have inherent dampness problems, use carpet without an attached underpadding. A separate rubber based underpadding resists humidity more effectively and will dry more easily if flooding occurs.

Leaving the floor unfinished is a great option for rooms where the hard, cool feel of concrete isn’t an issue, such as workshops, exercise rooms, and laundry rooms. Moisture and flooding aren’t as big a problem with concrete and clean-up and maintenance are much easier than carpeting and even hardwood. You can warm up concrete flooring by installing radiant floor heating in the slab. Radiant floor heating uses hot water coils or heat-generating electrical wires installed beneath the concrete. This method of heating is very comfortable because it doesn’t blow hot air and will prevent some dust from floating in the air.

Basements are prone to flood and water damage that leads to fungal and bacterial contamination and may damage structural components in your home. Too much exposure may cause or increase symptoms of asthma, hay fever, and allergen-based conditions. Depending on the amount of exposure and personal vulnerability, more serious health effects can occur. With severe storm weather flooding it’s obvious when your home may be at risk. Other times it’s harder to find evidence of water damage and a thorough inspection is necessary. Our expert flood prevention team can thoroughly inspect any basement foundation to make sure that it is properly sealed before starting any renovation projects. We can also install sump pumps, catch basin and drain tiles throughout your basement, depending on your needs. These additional precautionary can be completed by our team before any sort of basement remodeling is started.