How To Finish Concrete Basement Walls

If your unfinished basement still has those boring concrete walls and you are looking for a way to clean it all up so you can use the extra space, keep reading to learn how to finish concrete basement walls on your own, how long it may take and how much it will cost.

Tired of looking at those cold and bare, unfinished concrete basement walls? Think it’s too hard to tackle yourself? Think again! Read on for some options you have and special tips along the way.

Having a home with a basement can be a big time kicker in adding value to the overall price tag, that is if it’s a finished basement. Having a basement that’s finished raises the overall livable space of a home. It’s pretty simple really, a home with an unfinished basement has less square footage of livable space than a home that has a finished basement. One of the items to completing the look of a finished basement deals with those bare concrete walls. If you are looking to clean it all up, this should help you along the lines of how to finish concrete basement walls.

There’s really three options you have with this. The first one, probably doesn’t fit you as that’s why you are here in the first place, is that the basement is finished as part of building the house. These could be a new home or maybe an older home that you bought but the basement was already done when you got the home. The second option is to simply hire a contractor to finish it all out. And the third, which is probably why you are here, is to finish the basement walls yourself if you have the skills and time. You will still need to buy all the construction materials yourself, but you’ll save quite a bit by cutting out the time and labor charged from a general contractor. Here’s a couple of different options on how to finish concrete basement walls.

Furring Strips with Foam Insulation
We’ll start with the least desirable of the two eventhough it’s probably actually easier then the other option a little farther down line and that’s to use some simple furring strips and foam insulation to fake out your wall. Since you are really only going to be having the foam insulation between your drywall and concrete wall, there’s really no need to use 2×4’s as your furring strip. Suggest to use 2×2’s instead. You’ll want to secure these 2×2’s to the overhead floor joists and then also down the wall in a vertical pattern with some sturdy concrete screws. You don’t need many, probably 3 or 4 strategically placed screws per furring strip would suffice. Once you’ve got your furring strips in place, get that foam insulation out and start cutting pieces to fit in between your furring strips. The least amount of cuts you have to make the better so measure those furring strips appropriately! Once you’ve got the foam sheets fitting correctly between the furring strips, take it down and apply some adhesive to the back of it using a caulking gun generously around it until the bead runs from top to bottom. Just go from side to side as you work your way down the sheet leaving about an inch or so between the current bead and the upper bead until you reach the bottom. Pick it back up and press it in place. Be sure to apply even pressure over the board (pushing on the top, middle, and bottom) so that it secures properly. Give it about 30 seconds for the glue to take hold before you let go and move on to your next piece. One thing to note here, if you haven’t run your electricity to the outlets and stuff, plan to mix this in during the process as it gets rather tight as you are working with a lot less space. After you’ve got all the foam insulation up and in place, you can move on to the drywall. Install the drywall right over the top of it all using some standard one and a quarter inch drywall screws. Wa-la. You’ve just finished your concrete basement walls. In the long, run you’ll save some flooring space if your basement is small using this method, but if you are going to spend a lot of time down there, it’s probably not going to be worth the hassle you’ll run into trying to run all the wiring and outlets as there simply no room to “do it later” without really tearing something up.

Conventional Framed Wall
This method of framing a concrete basement wall is probably by far the most common and popular. Instead of the 2X2’s and foam insulation, this time on the trip to the hardware store your going to want to pick up some 2×4’s. I’m not going to tell you everything here on how to do this as there are simply a ton of resources online and elsewhere that cover building a conventional framed wall, but I will give you a couple of tips. Get enough to go from corner to corner in the entire basement. When you start building your wall, make sure that the 2×4 bottom plates are pressure treated (this will help them last a lot longer due to the conditions of a basement) to mount the 2×4’s to. The top of the frame should be mounted to the upper floor joists for support. To insulate them when you are done framing, you can use the standard fiberglass insulation, no need for the foam insulation here. The downfall with this type of framing on basement walls is that you lose some space, not much, but about 6 inches per wall. If your basement is really small this could be a problem. The upside though is that since you are finishing it out probably means you are going to be spending some time down there and this type of installation leaves you a lot of room to work that wiring to all those new outlets and switches to power up those big screen TV’s and sound systems (or blenders and bar accessories, or whatever else you may be doing).

How Much Does It Cost
This is probably one of the most important pieces that anyone wants to know is how much does it cost to finish basement walls? The answer? Well it’s really not a good one as quite honestly every situation and basement is practically different and depending on the way you go depends a lot on the overall bottom line of the whole deal. It’s one that you are just going to have to price out for your basement yourself. I know, that’s not the greatest answer or probably what anyone would want to hear but it’s true. Every job is different. Check around with some of the local contractors in your area and just get some estimates. If they are reasonable and it fits your budget, go for it. If not, take their estimates (and take notes when they are doing it) and price it out yourself if you were to do the work. What you are going to find is that overall, the contractors may get a better rate on the materials, but can you afford the time and labor portion of it or is it worth it to simply do it yourself, that should be your deciding factor. One other thing to consider if you do attempt this, it takes a bit of time. Plan on spending 2-5 days (dependant on the job) to do it yourself as it’s not something your likely going to finish in a single day.

Basement Ideas – Add A Basement Bar

Looking for a great project to take on? Just imagine yourself hanging out in your new basement bar. This is a great little basement idea or project to take on as you can really let yourself go and create a very unique room.

If you like to relax with friends with a cold one, what better way than to do it at home in your own basement bar? This makes for a great project in both unfinished and finished basements!

If you are the kind of person who likes to hang out with friends and relax and watch the game or maybe just have some great conversation, here’s a basement idea that you might think about for your current lower level. Why not put a small bar down below. This could turn into a great place to spend time with those close to you in your life. Of course, adding a basement bar can take you in a lot of directions like how big it should be or where it should go, but let’s take a look at a few things you should keep in mind while putting all the plans together.

As I said just above, probably the first thing you need to take a look at is to see if the basement is big enough for you to put a bar. You need to really think about the whole basement bar design. For example, you don’t want one that going to be so small that there will only be room for a bar stool on either side of it and you might not necessarily like one to take up an entire wall. You want to make sure that there is enough room for a small crowd of four or five people to sit or stand on one side and the other where the host can do all the mixing and serving. You’ve got to have adequate seating to make things nice and cozy.

Now off to the fun part, putting in the actual bar. You really have a couple of choices here. You could have one built to suit your specifications. This one will take a bit longer to do, not to mention a little elbow grease to get it done. The good thing about custom built bar is that you are getting exactly what you want, custom built especially for you just the way you want it. Plus you get the satisfaction of having unique bar or having done it yourself. It could even lead to some great themed basement bar ideas dependent on what you want to do. If you’ve ever been to a tropical destination, then you’ll likely think of reminiscing in your own Tiki bar. But what about a classic themed redesign downstairs than none other than one of the most famous downstairs bar, “Cheers”. Then when you’re good buddy comes rolling in, you could just yell out “Norm”! If perchance you don’t know what I’m talking about here, than I apologize.

The other way to go is to get a pre-built bar. These types of bars are for the ones that are ready to party, and ready to party now. Simply buy it and install it. There really are some nice models out there to choose ranging from a simple small square cherry finished bar to others inspired by antique pub type furniture. The one pictured to the left is such a model. It includes the bar front and back bar to hold all the necessities as well as an overhead canopy complete with two front poles. The dark mahogany distressed to a beautiful satin finish could really add some class down below if that’s what you are going for.

Think about what you are going to do with and around the bar. This is important as well as you are going to want to prepare for appropriate seating. Will the bar double as a poker table? Do you plan on having a pool table for a little recreational stick play? Maybe it’s going to be more like a sports bar complete with big screen. Whatever it is, you are going to want to make sure your guests are comfortable whether playing a game of cards or simply kicking back watching the game. You might even think about working in a sofa somewhere in the mix that’s close to the bar itself so they could be included as well not sitting directly at the counter.

One of the last important pieces you need to dream about is some kind of refrigeration. You need the drinks cold and the ice colder. Whether it’s built into the bar itself or more of a standard kitchen model. You’ve got to think about where it’s going to go. Closer is always better as you don’t want to walk halfway across the room to get a fresh cold one. You’ll want it as close to or as much a part of your basement bar as possible.

Basement Remodeling For Extra Living Space

Need a little extra living space? Just look under your house! Remodel the basement today and grab that little bit of extra room your family has been looking for.

No longer just an extra place to hide, remodeling your basement with a purpose for extra living space could benefit everyone in the house.

Whether your family is getting larger or your house is just getting smaller with the accumulation of life’s goods, if you have a basement that is being unused at this time, you are wasting some valuable living space in your home. It really doesn’t matter the overall size of the basement or the way it’s laid out, if you can use it you should. You don’t have to really go with a drastic change or anything and it really does make sense for your basement remodeling project to maintain the overall look and feel of the rest of the home. Not only will remodeling the basement help you gain that extra living space but it’s one of the more practical and sensible ways to do it.

One of the first things you have to do to make this successful is to purvey the current layout and come up with your basic basement design. There’s a few things that you need to keep at the forefront when taking it all in that I’ll discuss quickly here. First off, since you are creating a living space, the basement ceiling needs to be able to hide all that scenery located directly overhead. Things like pipes and electrical wires and air ducts. You want to keep those out of site in your newly remodeled space, but will need to account for accessibility in case any future repairs or modifications may be needed. You could use either a drop ceiling with panels or drywall, but with drywall. The only downfall with a drywall ceiling is you’ll have to repair that as well if you have to get into it. Second point to contend with is dealing with constructing basement walls. These need to be constructed cautiously in regards to any current concrete or stud walls already in place. Finally, although not so much dealing with design, but you are going to want to take appropriate measures to maintain a dry basement and now’s a perfect time to start thinking about it. Knowing what and where to waterproof is going to be critical and also opens up a realm of opportunities for different flooring materials.

Next, after you’ve got the basic design all together, you are going to want to visualize and maybe even put down on paper how you want the actual room to look. Keep in mind how you are planning to use the space. Basement rooms make for the perfect compliment for recreational rooms, guest bedrooms or entertainment areas. They can also be used as an additional storage or playroom for the kids. Maybe even a home office for all that work that you can’t get done when you are there. Maybe even a combination, split room that has an area to relax and watch the television and also room for an office space. Whatever you are visualizing, keep in mind all the components like shelving and other decor that you are going to want to combine to set the tone. This should include things like what type and kind of flooring you are going to use, any accessories that are going to need to be installed or pre-built, and of course how you are going to keep that lower level well-lit. You may even want to consult with a decorating professional before you ever drive a nail to get a good picture of what you are going after if you’re not the creative type.

A lot of homeowner’s these days take these projects on themselves. If you do decide to do that, there’s tons of information here all over this site to help you along the way. However, dependent on how extensive of a remodeling job you are planning you might not be able to accomplish it all on your own. You shouldn’t take that as a personal point of failure, sometimes these things are difficult. You shouldn’t feel bad about reaching out to a professional to get that basement remodeling project done and done right.