How To Plan a Basement Renovation

In today's live show I'm sharing my process for planning a basement renovation - everything you need to consider from floor plan to materials to return on investment. Cheers!

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[rigshigs]

You have given us the confidence & knowledge to finish our basement……rigid is on the walls, durospan and osb next weekend! Thank you!

[IT-TechExpert]

Hello Jeff,
1974 house, ranch, single home with about 1200sq living area, unfinished basement.
Radon air system in-place, sup pump, in ground water drainage as well for water level riser... just in case! Have not seen anything this past 4 years but is there...!

Absolutely beautiful Q&A session. Loved it, Jeff kudos to you man, love the show, been following for a while now. Well, mostly you just described my basement there. Im building a french drain as a method to get rid of the problem, to remove water from it towards the slope ( back yard).
Front of the house has been split into 2 sides, to the left when there was a clogged pipe for roof drainage that takes care of the garage and drains to the side slopped away (fixed, ) dug about 2feet down, ran a havy duty landscaping cloth and a perforated pipe that connects with the existing pipe which drains away from the house. On the right side, dug about 2.5 feet deep ( manual labor, not a good idea, loool)still the on the front towards the further corner on the right side, used a non-fibered foundation coating on the exposed outside concrete (both sides as well), installed a heavy duty landscaping cloth and a perforated pipe along to get the water away from the foundation toward the side of the house to follow the slope toward the back yard. I have learned that I need to do the side of the house as well to remove all water from sitting next to the foundation, this will be done with tools from our friends at home depot :). A mini escavator, to dig and transport the gravel, ....it will certainly improve the inside of the basement humidity quality, currently humidity is under 50%, trying make an office and just a simple hang out room, closed closet, enclosed mechanical room, etc... trying to keep it simple!

any thoughts or ideas, tricks, tips, would be very much appreciated!

Thanks
Gino

[chuantomi]

Thank you for teaching us millennials. Hope you all the success in the world.

[ErPipoEJela]

the knowledge on this guy, impeccable. you should create a video series of each section of the house. dos and donts. :D big fan BTW

[SandiRose]

As always, another very informative video. Right at 3M!!! Congrats! Sorry about Michelle's injury! It was good to see all of you. Take care and thank you, Jeff!

[SewingMamaJulie]

I have sooo many projects that have to be done in my home, but with no support by family, I feel really defeated, bathroom floor leveling is a still a big issue

[tay]

1890's house in NE Ohio.
This is exactly why my basement is a workshop, and not actual living space.
Waterproofing / mitigation would cost more than the house is worth.
(very bad housing market here. 2000 sq ft, 3 bed, 2 bath is only worth $50, 000)
I have 9' headroom, a ton of space, and only a little water in spring / fall / really heavy rains.
Keep everything off the floor. Build everything with treated lumber on the bottom, or put it all on casters. Perfect workshop, and storage for holiday stuff.

[jessehepburn]

I’m a little smarter after watching this video. Thanks bud

[demijebus]

So happy to know that my stair insulting project i did off the top of my head is Jeff approved.

[wanndanneisenbahn]

Below Slab vapor barrier. I was talking to some of the flatwork guys from the 80's and 90's. After inspection, they would poke holes in the vapor barrier to let the concrete cure faster. You may have vapor barrier, but it probably has holes in it.

[marketahuzel]

Hi Jeff, 1975 4 level split basement in Saskatchewan, finishing bottom 2 levels, I've put dricore down in living spaces but what can I put in the utility room/ laundry on the concrete floor to keep it clean? There is a sum pump and open drain. Paint the concrete floor or stick vinyl sheets on the floor? Floor is pretty wavy so tiling would be harder. Also, want a cost effective option that also looks good 😊. Cheers, appreciate your wisdom!

[Reckless]

"Thank you for guiding my Husband on how to do the renovations that I want and making sure that his spare time is always occupied."
-My Wife

[mattpedersen]

Hey Jeff! Love your videos! Helped me build the confidence to do some DIY stuff and now I'm loving it! I have a basement question for you.

Northern Ohio, built late 60s with an addition in 99. Its a 3 section basement separated by block walls. Im working on the first section which is part of the original home. Just demo'd everything and no insulation. So my plan is (from outside in) Rigid Foam (foil faced), 2x4 framing, batt insulation, drywall.

My question is in regards to if i need a vapor barrier between batt and drywall? And do i need mold resistant drywall or can i use fire resistant?

Had i known about Reality Renovision i would've contacted you sooner! Could've done a multi part series with all the work I'm planning

[thecoasttocountrylife]

Going to be finishing a 2800 sq ft basement next year. This will be on a brand new home build in Kentucky. Watched damn near all of your interior work vids over the years since I became a Sub.

I'm assuming I'll be waterproofed based on new build standards. This will be a walkout basement with 9ft ceilings. Doing a bedroom/bath, craft room, massive bar, media room, lounge area, and man cave. I'll be doing strapping for ceiling. I'll join the channel well before so I'm not just joining to ask direct questions then bounce.

Questions,
Still treated lumber for base on walls?
Best way to utilize 2x4x8 or buy 2x4x10 and have a massive pile of scrap lumber. Don't recall see you covering that gap since most work you've are not 9ft ceilings.
LVP best option for flooring?
10 ft drywall or 8ft and configure it in with drywall mud
Guessing 1/4 in is fine for ceilings using 4x12 sheets?

Thanks, if you're up for it when the time comes. You're more than welcome to shoot some vids while I build this out ;)

[bigsphinx]

Hi, Jeff. When you show how to insulate area nearby basement stairs and say "put rigid insulation and drywall on the wall", is this method is not code complied? Because its also reduces stairs width. Thank you for answer in advance!

[pepaw]

Missed the show..cause I’m traveling in Florida for work too.

BLUF: water comes into my basement over the foundation wall right where the iron beam is. Can I dig down some and seal that up with some kind of barrier and if so should I put the dirt back or put rock or even fill it with concrete?

Story
Have a house in Kansas City, 1980, basement surrounded by dirt on 3sides, the 4th side (with stairs and wall) is garage. Garage side of home is on a steep slope. Foundation is crack right at the stairs. Can see daylight, quarter inch gap. It’s even, no back and forth movement. I used the orange schluter to make sure water didn’t come in there. have done outside water mitigation. I get almost no water in the basement EXCEPT if it rains heavy for a few days. I BELIEVE it’s coming OVER the top of the foundation wall where home and foundation meet. It comes all in a rush like it’s backed up somewhere. Where water comes into the house is right where the iron beam and AC cables are. Only work I have done is your black dimpled subfloor method and a closetless room.

My question to anyone who has read this: can I dig like a foot down below the top of the foundation wall on that side of the house and use some kind of house wrap tape or something similar a little above and a little below that seam? Would that stop the water from combining in there? Would I then put the dirt back at a slope or should I put like dirty rocks that would eventually get as hard as concrete..I could do a french drain too

[bluelantern]

My 75-year-old cabin is 24 ft by 32 feet. I plan to raise the cabin, demo, and build an all-new basement. For below the slab, your thoughts on 10 inches of ¾ inch crushed rock, then two 1-inch layers of rigid foam insulation, then a layer of 10 mil plastic moisture barrier, then pour the slab. Your thoughts?

[mattR]

Hey Jeff. Love your videos! They've already helped me through a bathroom remodel and now I'm onto finishing the basement. I've got a 1926 home in Minnesota. I want to finish part of my basement for an office and additional bathroom. There is no current moisture mitigation, but my basement has stayed dry over the last 5 years that I've owned it (good gutter setup). I run a dehumidifier in the summer to keep the RH at 55-60%. Can I skip the french drain and sump system and just start finishing my basement with DriCore subfloor and foam board offset from the wall like you describe to allow the moisture to equalize?

[chriscolameco]

All of my properties are over 100 years old. I’m thinking about finishing the basements in my rentals since it increases the ARV by about $7500 and with 16x32 row homes this only costs about $1300 in materials to do

[princeandroyaltys]

Can you make a video on basement home theater room, thx