Planning a Basement
Some basements can be very complicated to design due to duct work, pipes, poles and other obstructions. You want to try and plan for a nice flowing open floor plan that fits your lifestyle, budget and ideas. The books listed below will help you to create many different designs that will fit your individual space.
Step 1 is to measure the available space. It is important to measure the space and decide what you want various areas used for. Measuring most basements is relatively easy. With a little practice you can easily work out the total square footage of the space you have to work with. Having the square footage available is also very helpful when estimating the materials you will need.
Rectangular rooms are relatively simple to measure. First sketch out the room, marking the position of any existing windows, doorways, stairs and utilities. Please be sure to also draw in any poles that may be used for support. Measure the length and width of the basement remembering to include the depth of any alcoves or other recesses. You may need to split your space up into more manageable squares in order to get a more precise square footage. After you have made your simple sketch, just multiply the width times the length to calculate floor space and repeat the same process with the walls to calculate wall area.
Now you are ready to take your sketch, make a few copies and start deciding different ways to divide up the space and get the most use out of it. Try to be as creative as possible with your plans. Consider home theater rooms, custom bars, exercise rooms, playrooms, mini kitchens, baths, workshops, and hobby rooms as well as extra bedrooms and storage areas. After you get a floor plan together you can go on to the next step which is
layout of your basement.
This page "Planning a Basement" is part of the Basements101.com website. More detailed information on how to finish a basement can be found at our
website.
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