E-gress windows for a finished basement.

Even if your house sits quite a bit lower in the ground with barely any basement wall exposed, you can still install a light-bringing window by re-grading the soil along the basement wall on the side of the house. If that is not possible to do on a large scale, then you can dig a window well. If you go with the window well, remember to remove accumulated leaves or garbage from the window well(s) periodically and make sure the grade at the bottom of each window well is at least 4 to 6 inches below the bottom of the window frame so that rain water can drain away rather than leak in through your new windowsill. The same is true of the grade of your yard around the basement wall -- allow sufficient space below the window frame for drainage.

It is usually best to wait until you have the actual window in hand before making the opening. If you are building your own custom bay window, it should be built in advance so you can make the frame and opening to match. Besides the light and air, a deep-set bay window can provide a wide shelf, seat or storage area. A stock window does not need to be double hung, but a casement window would be easier to open. Pre-assembled ready-to-install bay and bow windows are also available in standard sizes. You may want to consider these before making the rough opening, or before building your own.

If you want to custom design a bay window, here are some things to consider. A simple bay window for a basement can be made with 90 degree angles as simply an extended rectangular box window, with glass on the front and on the two sides. The more ornate classic bay window normally has 45 degree angles unless you have an extremely wide window. If you want the front flat window to be a specific size and the depth of the bay to be specific size, you may need to alter your angles away from 45 degrees also. For example, when looking at the footprint of the bay window, if your window is 6' wide and you want it to stick out of the wall by 2' then your middle window would need to be 2 feet wide and each side-angled window would need to be 2' 9-13/16". If working with angles and non-standard glass sizes seems daunting to you, there are companies that will custom make bay windows for you to your specifications that are ready to install. All you need to do is give them the dimensions you desire, including depth of the bay, and they will provide an assembled bay window that requires no more support than the framed wall opening. Before installing the custom window, read all the instructions and allow the window to adjust to the humidity, and do not remove any braces until the window is in place.

So, decide on what kind of window you want to install along with its dimensions (whether purchased or custom-built) so you will know how large to make the hole. After your window location has been scouted out and the yard graded and lowered, if necessary, you can begin creating the opening for your window. All windows fit within a rough opening in the wall framing so you will need to measure and mark where your opening will be. This rough opening is slightly larger than the overall dimensions of the window, measured at the outside edge of the jambs, and the extra space allows the window to be plumbed and leveled as needed. With a purchased standard window, there will be instructions for the size of the rough opening you will need to make. In this basement example, the measurement should be the dimensions of the window plus 2 additional inches. These extra 2 inches are for the wooden frame you will be building into the opening to attach the actual window to.

New Home Owners and your Basement

Probably one of the most asked questions by homeowners who have just purchased a new home with a basement is how to finish their basement. Most new homeowners become very overzealous to this fact that they want to take on a do-it-yourself job and the easiest way to go about that is to start in a place that is not as visible to everyone or a very high-traffic area. The basement becomes a natural choice and the homeowner will get very excited with the idea of a finished basement. Soon they will rush out and start gathering all the supplies needed to do the job and not take into account some very basic factors to ensure a properly finished basement with just the right look and feel.

Typically the first thing a new homeowner with a new basement would assume is that it is a new home and doesn't have any problems or leaks as it was just built. While that is probably true that there are no leaks at this time, what is not being factored into the equation here is that for the most part the house has not had the proper time to really settle and concrete is a very wet material. There is no substitute for time and it takes concrete quite a while to dry out from the mixture that laid the foundation. Yes the concrete is strong enough to build the house on but there is still a lot of moisture trapped within the concrete itself. There is nothing that you can do to speed up that process of concrete drying due to it's very porous nature and that it just holds water. Give the slab some time to acclimate and wait six months to a year before you attempt to finish the basement or install basement flooring. After that time has passed check it and see if the concrete is still holding moisture or not. There are plenty of simple and cheap tests that can be run to accomplish a moisture test. At Paramount we take all of the necessary steps to ensure your basement wil be dry and confortable for many years down the road.

Once time passes and you have checked that the concrete is no longer retaining moisture, you can start to think about finishing out that basement again. First thing that comes to mind is finishing the walls and wall framing. One thing to keep in mind is that when you go to the typical hardware stores to purchase framing material for your walls is to stay away from the steel studs. These tend to be very thin gauge material and not as sufficient as using something else to frame your wall. Because they are thin, this will leave you with a flimsy wall that shakes and rattles every time a door is shut or slammed. You will definitely want the walls of your basement to act like the rest of the walls in your home and not have this occur. Plus the added weight of attaching shelving to the walls will only add to and exaggerate the inability of the wall when this happens.

Be sure to also check with your local building codes as well as there may be some things that are inappropriate to use while finishing a basement. As an example, if you are going to install a door and are putting together a bottom sill, it may be inappropriate to utilize pressure treated lumber

instead of standard lumber to do the job as long as there is a sill gasket in place. The sill gasket will separate the wood from the concrete where moisture will typically accumulate. You might also be required to use certain gauge dry wall screws when applying the wall to the studs. You never know and every local code is different so it's best to check with them first to make sure all your ducks are in a row. Often times so much of this information is contradictory and in abundance, so to avoid the confusion check with your local building code first and then come back to research more on how to finish a basement.

A final note to new home owners, we have been called in to finish or to take ovewr a project that the home owner has started and we have found that 90% of them we had to remove all what was constructed because the home owner was not aware of the necessary steps to seal and construct the project. Our standard are equal to or greater than Ontario building code requirements. So please hire a qualtified professional like Paramount, you will have the project done in a timley and safe manner.

Desiging your Basement

Interior design calls for a highly specialized set of skills. Because of the qualities unique to a basement, such as the absence of natural ventilation or lighting, a professional specializing in basement interior design would have to consider a lot more than one who does ordinary rooms. Training for basement interior design may be achieved by enrolling in a design school with course specific to basement interior design principles, or by working with professionally trained individuals who have had years of experience in this field.

Things To Consider In Basement Interior Design

There are certain considerations a basement interior design professional must keep in mind when dealing with basement interior design, as these are situated at the bottom of buildings and houses and are therefore either built underground or just slightly aboveground. First, basements have to have artificial lighting to compensate for the absence of natural light. In this regard, window treatments may be done away with when undertaking basement interior design. An alternative would be to create a faux window for the basement just to counteract the effects of an enclosed space, but keep in mind that this may entail additional expenses you may not have taken into consideration during the initial planning stages of basement interior design. Second, basements do not have natural ventilation either, so you have to consider air conditioning or vents when preparing your basement interior design. This will eventually affect the placement or furniture within the area. A client may also have other basement interior design ideas about what to do with an existing basement. For instance, an artist may opt to convert it into an art studio, or a dance instructor may choose to use it as a dance studio. In the same vein, a musician may use it to double as a rehearsal studio for his band. In all these cases, the basement interior design would have to be adapted to suit the function it is intended for, and this entails more than the ordinary expenses of a simple refurbishing. You will then find your skills as the Project Manager of this particular basement interior design put to the test!

What Type of Construction Would Be Involved?

Again, depending on the extent of changes the client wants to implement, construction on your basement interior design project may range from very simple to extremely complicated and drawn-out. In most cases, paneling the walls and hiding pipes and wiring would be involved. For more info see http://www.1interiordesign.com/Interior_Design_Bathrooms/ on Interior Design Bathrooms If you're dealing with a large basement, you may even deal with additional walls and dividers plus new entrances. Of course, it's always practical to work using existing structures, but there are clients for whom money is no object, and this can give you the extra freedom your creativity needs. Otherwise, you would have to discuss all possibilities with the client before starting on the project. Always earmark funds for contingency expenses, and go back to the basement interior design drawing boards if necessary. A basement interior design project can be fun and exciting, especially if you get to compare the "before" and "after" looks. You'll be amazed at what paint, panels, and a play on light can do.