Carpet
March 30, 2006
Looking back over the first few articles I wrote for this website, I realized that it's been two and a half years since I started this basement project. While there are still a few odds and ends to complete, getting the carpeting installed pretty much marks the completion.
Ceiling
March 28, 2006
Installing the suspended ceiling was probably one of the most fun parts of finishing the basement. It was a really nice change of pace from the tedious time it took to do the woodwork.
Woodwork
March 28, 2006
Adding the finished woodwork was one of the most tedious, yet rewarding parts of the basement project. Sanding and staining the doors alone took me a month, and the trim took another 2 weeks, but once it's done it looks fantastic.
Painting
December 14, 2005
The nice thing about an unfinished basement is that when you paint, you don't have to worry about taping any woodwork, the floor, or the ceiling. It's a lot easier but it still took some time.
The Drywall
September 1, 2005
Two years ago I drywalled my garage. I figured it would be good practice before tackling the basement. The most important thing I learned? I don't want to drywall my basement! So I decided to hire a professional.
The Insulation
August 15, 2005
Since it's taken me so long to finish my basement, over the months I've started receiving email from strangers who came across this website in search of home improvement tips. The biggest question I always get is, "Did you insulate?" I can finally answer those emails with a big - YES!
Low Voltage
June 14, 2005
Preparing to insulate was like a dry-run for hanging the sheet rock. You have to make sure that everything within the wall is completely done. With this in mind, I had to figure out exactly how to finish up my low voltage wiring.
The Rough Inspection
May 30, 2005
In getting ready for my rough inspection from the city, I had several odds and ends to take care of. There was some rough carpentry, so final electrical wire to pull, and something called draft protection. Draft protection is insulation stuffed between the studs and the cement wall in an effort to slow the spread of a fire, should one ever start behind the wall.
Let There Be Light!
March 13, 2005
After a whole year without any real progress in the basement, I finally got back on track. Using Kaylee as bait, I got my parents to visit for the weekend so my dad could help me with the electrical wiring.
Computer Room
June 27, 2004
I spent about a month completely renovating our computer room, so that it could fit Karla's sewing desk. This would allow us to free up an upstairs bedroom. In the process, I decided to add a drywall section, repaint the entire room, and completely restore all the of the wood work.
What's Taking So Long?
March 1, 2004
It seems that the framing is becoming more and more time consuming. It took me two weeks to finish my first soffit. What's taking so long? Let's break down what goes into framing in some duct work.
Finishing the Perimeter
February 3, 2004
Today I reached a milestone of the basement project. I finished framing the perimeter of the basement. This was probably the most complex span that I had to do, however, I've done enough framing by now that it didn't take too long to do. It figures, that by the time that I was getting fairly good at framing, I'll probably won't need to do any more.
The Longest Span
January 18, 2004
This weekend I finished the longest perimeter wall of the basement. The wall exented the entire length of the house (52 feet), and required almost 60 studs to complete. In addition I had to frame around a window, add a doorway rough-in, and frame around the infamous Drain Pipe.
Leviton Structured Media Center
January 5, 2004
With the holidays over, it was time to get back to my basement. In order to continue on with the framing, I had to do something about the low voltage wiring in the basement. That is to say, I needed to clean up the TV cable, the phone lines, and the computer wiring. Nearly all of the wiring ran directly along the edge of very next wall that needed framing.
200 Amp Upgrade
December 2, 2003
Another project that Karla and I wanted to get done before finishing the basement was to upgrade the circuit breaker panel to 200 Amps. A few people thought I was nuts. Why not just add a sub-panel and avoid the extra expense?
The Second Long Span
November 30, 2003
When you're staring at a blank wall, and a big pile of 2x4's, it's sometimes hard to visualize how it should be built. That was the case with the second wall span. The first section to be built was going to be the most complex in the entire basement. It required framing around a window, and a small duct - leaving very few places to secure the framing to the ceiling joists.
The Drain Pipe
November 24, 2003
Throughout the initial layout of the basement, one nagging problem seemed to keep wrecking our plans. In the area designated as the excercise room, a drain pipe from the kitchen cut out about a foot away from the wall. There was only one thing to do - move it!
The First Long Span
November 11, 2003
As luck would have it, on the Saturday morning that I'd planned on starting the first long span of framing in the basement, I got a call from my friend Brad. He happened to be at the local Home Depot. I asked him if I could meet him there so he could help med pick up a pile of 2x4's. He agreed to wait for me.
Previously Completed
November 9, 2003
In this entry, I will described what we've done so far. It's been about a year and a half since Karla and I moved in, and in that time we did some preparatory things, knowing that we'd like to finish the entire basement eventually.
Introduction
November 24, 2003
Here is a picture of the floor plan for how we would like our basement partitioned. The area's marked in red were already finished off when we moved in. That was nice, especially since the bathroom was already done, as well as one large room that became my computer room (or Man Room). As I progress I will post more articles with pictures.
