So, you’re remodeling your basement. It’s a very exciting and busy time in your home! You’re deciding on furnishings and paint colors, trying to clear the basement out, and planning for all the family game nights and other fun events you can hold in your basement once the remodel is finally finished. In all the hustle and bustle, however, there are some crucial things that you can forget, and these things are essential to making sure your remodel is completed smoothly and safely. Here are the three steps for a home basement remodel that are important to keep in mind!
Getting a Permit
Remodeling a basement almost always involves structural and electrical changes, which means you’ll need a permit. If the changes were simple repairs or just cosmetic updates, you’d be ok without one, but something as big as a basement remodel will need the okay of the building department.
You might be able to get away with skipping the permit right now, but you’ll be creating a much bigger headache for yourself when you try to sell the house sometime down the line and you can’t document the work that was done. It can be a pain, but it’s worth the effort to get the permit sorted out!
Prioritizing Health and Safety
Renovating a basement is different from renovating any other part of your house, because a lot of potential issues live in your basement. For one thing, they’re hotspots for water leaks, high humidity, and moisture in general. This can lead to problems once the basement is finished, damaging your ceilings and walls, and it can also cause underlying problems in your basement right now like rot, mold, mildew, or other hazards that you might start noticing once the renovation is underway. There could also be risks of things like asbestos in the flooring that you might not know about.
A basement remodeling project can get complicated if you’re not careful. At best, you might just end up with some water damage because you skipped the due diligence of testing for moisture and installing a sump pump, dehumidifier, or waterproofing the basement. At worst, you might expose yourself and your family to substances that are bad for your health. These are definitely not risks to mess around with, but you can avoid them with one main decision.
Picking the Right Contractor
With the right contractor on your side for your basement remodeling project, every problem you might face becomes a lot easier to deal with. Not only will they provide quality, long-lasting work that lets you enjoy a beautiful finished basement for years to come, but they can help you avoid common issues when it comes to renovations.
A good contractor, for instance, will be familiar with the process of applying for a permit and can offer guidance on the process. A good contractor will know how to test for moisture and look for the warning signs of things like mold or asbestos and deal with them accordingly. They can recommend the right materials for your home, provide suggestions to suit your wants and needs for your basement, and overall make the process go by safely and smoothly for you.
If you’re planning a basement remodeling project, set yourself up for success by choosing Eagle Design and Construction to help you! We’re proud to serve the Berks County area with excellent home remodeling services. You can take a look at some of our previous work here, or contact us to speak with one of our team members about your upcoming project.