Finishing your Basement Can be Very Rewarding

Written by Mark Donovan


Transforming your home's basement into a finished space can prove to be very rewarding. Frequentlyrepparttar additional living space is used for a variety of entertainment functions including: Recreation Rooms, Bars, Gyms, Billiard Rooms, Home Theatres and Family Rooms. In addition, Bedrooms and Bathrooms are also incorporated intorepparttar 100011 floor space. Typicallyrepparttar 100012 square foot cost of finishing a basement is significantly lower than other floors withinrepparttar 100013 home.

Planning is critical before starting a Finished Basement project. From a financial standpoint, first determine how big your budget is and how you will financerepparttar 100014 project. Will a mortgage be required or can you refinance or obtain a home equity loan?

Fromrepparttar 100015 project standpoint, carefully consider what you want to userepparttar 100016 space for. As part of this consideration, consider ceiling heights, existing pipes, Oil Tanks, and Heating and Water systems. Also consider lighting. To make a Finished Basement cozy, warm and comfortable,repparttar 100017 number and kinds of lights to install is key. In addition, consider natural lighting. Can additional windows be installed and will they be appropriate forrepparttar 100018 finished space?

Installing Ceramic Tile

Written by Mark Donovan


Ceramic Tile brings a texture, richness and color to a room that Linoleum has yet to truly mimic. Tile floors can be installed in any room, however they are most frequently seen in Bathrooms and Kitchens. I particularly like them in entryways, where they serve as a transition point fromrepparttar outside to large carpeted or hardwood floored rooms. They make for easy clean up and are impervious to water damage.

Tile Types

Ceramic tiles come in two basic types. Glazed and Porcelain. Glazed holds uprepparttar 100010 best for heavy traffic areas and porcelain works well in bathrooms. Porcelain is typically more expensive, so consider your budget andrepparttar 100011 size ofrepparttar 100012 area you want to tile. Tiles also come in many shapes and sizes. For flooring, however, I would suggest using larger tiles up to 12” x 12”.

Underlayment

For proper installationrepparttar 100013 base foundation orrepparttar 100014 underlayment is critical. Typically it consists of Ύ” to 1 Ό” of plywood. Tiling over Linoleum or existing tile is also feasible, as long as it is solid. I also recommend when Tiling over Linoleum that you first apply ring nails or screws 6” on center overrepparttar 100015 entire area. Tiles can also be installed directly over Concrete. Make sure in all cases thatrepparttar 100016 floor is level and free of dust and debris prior to installation. There are leveling compounds that you can apply before applying tile if necessary.

Preparingrepparttar 100017 Site

Before actually installingrepparttar 100018 tile, it is best to lay it out inrepparttar 100019 room to see how it will look. Pay close attention to how it runs out towardrepparttar 100020 walls, inrepparttar 100021 corners and next to cabinets, tubs and toilets. The trick is to layrepparttar 100022 tile out such that stubby tiles do not show up in highly visible spots. Once you have completed this, make two marks with a pencil outliningrepparttar 100023 most centered tile. These lines should be perpendicular to each other. Also take note ofrepparttar 100024 wall that is most visible from allrepparttar 100025 others. Now removerepparttar 100026 tiles. Next draw or snap a line perpendicular to this wall that is in line with one ofrepparttar 100027 marks you made onrepparttar 100028 floor. Then, draw a perpendicular line to this first line. This second line should be centered withrepparttar 100029 first line and fairly in line withrepparttar 100030 second mark you made onrepparttar 100031 floor. Once you have completed this task, re-layout some ofrepparttar 100032 tiles alongrepparttar 100033 perpendicular lines and observe if they run out in a way that will limit cutting and stubbed tiles. Once this is completed, removerepparttar 100034 tiles and prepare forrepparttar 100035 actual installation.

Installingrepparttar 100036 Tile

Again, make surerepparttar 100037 area is free of dirt and dust. Next applyrepparttar 100038 ceramic adhesive or mastic torepparttar 100039 flooring, starting inrepparttar 100040 center, whererepparttar 100041 two perpendicular reference lines intersect. Apply enough material to cover 6-10 square feet, if no cuts are required. If cuts are required limitrepparttar 100042 amount of mastic application to about 2-4 square feet. When applyingrepparttar 100043 mastic, first spread it withrepparttar 100044 flat end ofrepparttar 100045 trowel. Lay it on relatively thick, approximately 1/8” to 3/16”thick. Then turnrepparttar 100046 trowel around and runrepparttar 100047 notched edge over it. This creates ridges inrepparttar 100048 mastic that helps to holdrepparttar 100049 tile down more securely. The largerrepparttar 100050 tile,repparttar 100051 largerrepparttar 100052 notches should be. For example, I use a Ό” notched trowel for 12” x 12” tiles.

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