Submitted by Traditional-Camera-4 t3_11vt11z in DIY
Here's a completed floor plan design for a basement finish project I am working on. I would love to know, specifically, if I may have missed anything when putting it together. I spent a good chunk of time measuring and building the 3D view to best visualize the space. I think it looks good, but if I made any dumb choices I'd like to know now before starting the work. Thank you!
….and it’s illegal because it’s dangerous - no escape from a fire that can be out of control before a person wakes up.
Edit: look up building codes for windows. Typical basement windows don’t count. There are rules about size and height off the floor. You’d have to dig a window well and cut the concrete to put in a legal window.
This is what I saw, too.
eta: there are two doors by the bar. Configure the floorplan to put the bedroom in the corner so it has a legal egress. (And just in case you have windows, but didn't show them, the tiny little basement windows aren't enough.) If you want to keep the bedroom in the same place, you can install a window well with a legal window.
This is what I saw, too.
Yes, thank you for mentioning! It's not in the render but there is an egress window in that room behind/above where the bed will be.
We were fortunate that was put in originally. Flooding from a previous owner (bank repossessed/no power) destroyed most of the basement so we are getting everything fixed back up.
And this is why I don’t like sleeping in my sister’s basement bedroom. It also feels claustrophobic
The bathroom door hits the sink.
It's not perfectly to scale...🤷♂️
Might want to finish the bathroom work before finalizing the decision on which way it hangs and swings.
The bathroom is a bit tight even if the door won’t hit the sink. Is there a reason it’s recessed? It looks odd being not flush with the kitchen/bar area. Make sure you can get a toilet that fits properly with your walls. A friend bought a house where her toilet had to be on an angle to fit in the room but then it would not seat to the outlet.
The bathroom is already framed and plumbed from when the basement was finished in the past. The bar extends out far enough so that you're not having to sit on carpet. It's a little weird and I'm not 100% sure the best approach to take here.
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Is there any way to get a bathtub or shower down there? That would be a great addition for anyone in the bedroom down there
This is something I originally wanted but backed off on. We don't have overnight guests very often. A shower makes the most sense in the back corner, but the toilet is already plumbed to go there so we would have to dig up the concrete and move a bunch of stuff. I was content letting this one slide given that we have three other full bathrooms in the house.
There is value in having a full bath on the same floor if you plan on having a bedroom on that floor. It isn’t necessarily about having guests often, it is about resale value. I have seen a lot of home remodels, and there is nothing more annoying than someone having to climb stairs to use a shower. If you have the ability to do it now, it worth doing it.
Also keep in mind that if you chose to not put in a tub/shower, then how close is the is it to the bedroom. I have seen houses where the basement had a bedroom, with the closest actual full bath being on the second floor. The first floor only had a powder room. In that case a guest had to walk up two flights of stairs to use the shower. I would absolutely pass on a house without a close full bathroom to a bedroom, even if it is only for guests.
On another note, personally I would avoid carpet in the basement. If you are set on carpet, just make sure you have an adequate moisture barrier installed.
Yeah, I hear you on all points. If I had unlimited money I would 100% put the shower in. I can count on one hand the number of times in the past 10 years a basement shower would have been used, so I'm cool without it and the house has enough other selling points if it came to that.
I'll give it another honest look, though. If I can get a reasonable quote for the work I'll reconsider.
Thanks for the carpet tip. We want it to feel cozy and feel like hard floors will really take away from that. I think we were looking at some berber style but I hadn't looked into moisture barriers.
Appreciate your comment!
Do the shower, you instantly move into a new category of buyers who search for 4 beds 2 baths instead of 4 beds 1 bath. (Or 4/3 instead of 4/2) but you know what I mean.
On that note, put a closet in the office of there’s an egress window, and now it’s 5/3.
2 points for you:
>I can count on one hand the number of times in the past 10 years a basement shower would have been used
You are completely changing your basement, basically turning it into an apartment. I would be thinking about this design from the perspective of a future "In-law" suite. To be used in the future by an older family member, a Teen child gaining independence, or simply for the resale to the next owner.
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For the flooring, Luxury Vinyl Plank all the way. Get some with a good base padding and its really nice to walk on and looks amazing too. Super easy to install.
You can plumb for the shower and install it later. The difference in resale would probably be at least 2x your costs
Seems odd the builder would rough in a toilet and not a shower. Even without a shower I'd make the bathroom bigger, at least 5x6 with a minimum 30" vanity. No need to do a cramped half-bath in such a big basement.
There's a lot of dead space.
I would do something like this: https://imgur.com/a/HaAK2Ca
Came to the same conclusion for the bedroom and office space, but I think the toilet is a little big in your plan and the space would be better utilized in the main living area.
The idea was to add a shower there, value add for the home and guests wouldn't have to travel upstairs to shower.
I'm trying real hard to like this but here's what I see:
I see what you were going for. There's less dead space...but I don't think dead space is the worst thing. It's room for kids to play and helps the space feel open instead of enclosed.
I think we could for sure look at extending the bar and bathroom a little bit, but the rest I'm not sold on.
Are all the walls and plumbing stacks fixed in place? I hear you on “growing into” a space but the fact that your doors and stairs open into it means while large it’s not going to be as flexible for future space ideas because you truly only have one wall left over.
If I could do anything - I’d have the kitchen/ bar what greets you when you walk down. On the right hand side id keep music but a bit larger; plus that bonus storage under stairs for it would be great. Bathroom id tuck in corner; sharing plumbing wall back to back with kitchen. I like the adjacency between kitchen and living space which is why I’d move that over and have in top LH corner. I like the bedroom back in the area by your furnace room. If you ever wanted to add a second bedroom it’s much easier AND for now what a great little nook to set up as a library/ a dedicated toys/ arts and crafts area that feels connected but tucks mess a little further away.
Yes on the bedroom, make sure your window complies for size / egress. There is a bunch of unused space outside the bathroom, why not expand the bathroom and put in a shower. It looks pretty tight right now with the sink and door, if you expand it, you could add another coat closet or make the bathroom entry a little more private from the main room.
Shower is a no-brainer in terms of "good idea" but it's already plumbed. The most sensible spot for a shower is in the back corner, but to do that I would have to dig up the entire floor to move the toilet, then move the sink plumbing, then install the shower drain.
An alternative would be putting a shower in on the other side of the vanity and expanding the bathroom in that direction. That would be cheaper but then would probably need to move the bathroom door opposite the toilet which I think is kind of awkward. Thoughts?
Neither of those units are as loud as you think they are. Insulate the shared wall (or all of the walls) with fire resistant insulation and you wont hear a thing
Music room door should be of the "hidden room" book shelf or other disguised portal variety. Don't forget a good sneaky storage book under the stairs as well. Come on over to r/hiddenrooms for more inspiration.
I'm not sure my wife would go for either of those hah. Might pop over for some ideas for under the stairs. I could possibly make that one work.
Having the rock band practice right next to the bedroom might not be the best idea. Also egress window, but other people already mentioned that.
Hah, agree, but the bedroom won't be used too often, and I plan to have some level of soundproofing (double layer 5/8" drywall + green glue) which should help.
I struggled to find a better location...and even now looking at it again nothing really sticks out as a better choice.
Consider mineral wool insulation too. I can rock my dual SVS PB2000 pros in my basement theater while my kids sleep upstairs.
I used thermafiber ultrabatt and it's amazing!
Thank you for the suggestion! I haven't researched the insulation yet so I'll take a look at that. What other soundproofing do you have? This is new to me so all I can do is look up STC ratings online and cross my fingers that what I'm doing is correct.
I did the Thermafiber but also wrapped my hvac above that area with butyl tape to reduce vibration transfer (think dynamat). The main run that goes above the theater area and up to the bedroom empties out next to the wife's side of the bed and she slept thru Black Hawk Down Saturday night.
Personally I would put the bedroom next to the bathroom. Use one of those doors (Which I assume lead outside?) as a private entrance for when you do have guests there, and give it private access to the bathroom too.
I'm not sure how I could frame that to make it work...any thoughts?
Those are actually two large windows by the bar. Sorry the floor plan thing added the little door swinging icon for some reason.
Do you have a version of the basement drawing that is just the current state?
That except walls are just frames and doors are just doorways.
Oh damn, So you have some demo to do too. Here is a set up idea, Puts some space between your bedroom and the storage/office space; and it gives some natural light access
If you need soundproofing and can give up a little dead space, double wall leaving a few inches in between them. Air space between soundproofed walls, helps a lot
Thanks! I learned about that and all kinds of other soundproofing techniques when I was doing research. That would be tough to justify to my wife unfortunately. She was cool with the drywall+glue which only adds $1,500 to the material cost.
I also looked up acoustic drywall which is a little pricier but may simplify some things since you don't necessarily have to add thickness.
How bout a shower.
Needs more cowbell
I would love to see the facade of this house. How and why are there so many nooks and crannies?? My house is almost perfectly rectangular
It's pretty square! https://imgur.com/a/RmmcQsr
Looks like a lot but all the bits make sense.
It’s drawn on drill paper? 😎
SweetHome3D.
Do you have enough room around your furnace for servicing it? It looks pretty tight.
Yes. That part of the drawing is just "good enough" to get the idea. The furnace etc all have plenty of clearance and are up to code. Thanks for mentioning it!
I would consider adding another door that moor directly accesses the furnace area. Then you don’t have to go through ALL the storage space to check/repair/replace it someday.
My thought is that the area is accessed at most once a month for air filters / softener salt / maintenance. Adding a door adds cost and increases the sound transmission out of that space.
I'm not opposed...I actually had a door there in a previous design but removed it. If the only downside is that I have to walk through the storage space for access then I don't think I care that much...am I overlooking anything?
This looks great. If it were me, I'd swap the bar and theater area. Better view of the TV from the bar stools and more room for a crowd to watch the game or movie.
That is just personal preference though. Have fun with the build. I really enjoyed doing my basement back in the day!
Thanks for the suggestion! There's two big windows right where the bar is, so a TV probably wouldn't work great there. :/
I agree though the TV area is a bit isolated...for better or worse I guess. I'll give that some more thought. Maybe we could put the TV on the left wall instead of the top wall so it's viewable from a larger area.
Maybe a double door going into your storage/HVAC room. It would make moving in larger objects easier.
I don't think I would want a full double door, but at least 36" for sure! Also thought of doing a barn door there but didn't want excess noise from the sump pump or furnace.
Where is the fridge supposed to go in the kitchen? If that's going to be a bedroom and hangout room, you'll want way access to cold drinks down there.
Is your storage closet room wide enough to have big Costco storage tubs on each side and move freely down the center line? I first thought skinny and narrow was silly, but it's easy access to everything down there.
I'm 5th-ing it needs a shower down there.
Mini-fridge under the countertops in place of one of the cabinets.
I had the same thought as you on the storage area. I don't want to have a bunch of stuff stacked back into inaccessible corners. I can't put massive bins in there, but there's plenty of space to line tubs or boxes up against the interior wall and still have space to walk through and pull things in and out.
I wouldn't plan on a mini fridge on purpose. They have a lot of downsides (lack of space, not cold enough, takes a long time to chill something, lots of energy without much to gain from it, etc.).
If you've ever had the joy of a second full-size fridge/freezer, you never want to go back. And if you ever sell, you'll still want a spot for a full size to make sense.
What’s flexible in this plan in terms of walls? I understand the foundation/exterior walls would not be flexible, but what about all the interior ones?
I’m curious what you think about the flooring, especially around the kitchen area. The kitchen might look a bit awkward transitioning from such an open space
Also, is this an 8’ basement?
Yes, 8' ceilings. I would say the bedroom and storage / utility areas are fixed as there's really nowhere else those can go. The bathroom has to go in that corner but could be resized, and the music room wall isn't there yet.
Edit: I agree I'm a little worried about the flooring transition by the bar. We want carpet in the basement, but not at the bar area. Here's a couple photos I found of similar concepts: https://imgur.com/a/gyW0qBD
Those look great, especially that large island!
Are there any other egress windows available besides the one you pointed out in another thread that's in the bedroom you currently have drawn?
Yeah there are two large egress windows on either side of the bar. They look like doors on the drawing but they are windows.
Exterior doors by fireplace open inwards so hinges are inside house
I am getting started with kickstarting our basement finishing project as well. Can you please let me know how did you develop this floor plan. Which software and any quick tips on how to learn to model. Thanks!
U probably plan but are not showing - fire rated Sheetrock and door for the utility room. And I suggest thicker (2x6) exterior walls with proper insulation. I updated our basement last year with hot water radiant flooring - it is fantastic. But mine took 4” insulation below the ~2” radiant flooring… here in Boston
Thanks! I didn't think about a different type of sheetrock for the utility room. The utility room is one big "L" in that corner. You can access the room from the one door that's already there...I've debated adding another one, but it's still accessible, still has adequate clearance, and still has enough room to get equipment in and out should any of that equipment need to be replaced. I guess I could go either way but it seemed like an extra cost for very minor added convenience, and then dealing with furnace noise by the TV. I'll give it more thought.
The walls I'm stuck with unfortunately. The original framing is still up which is 2x4 right up against the wall. It's not ideal, but I can still insulate with rigid foam and can save a decent amount of money and time not having to redo all that work.
If you wanted, you could probably add some furring strips to the framing in order to push the wall out and have more room to insulate.
Thanks! I didn't think about that. I was planning on insulating with 2" rigid foam between the studs then sealing with spray foam. It's not perfect but the city approved doing it that way and it saves a lot of money. Ideally I would have done 1" rigid foam against the wall > studs + fiberglass but here we are.
allangee t1_jcuokso wrote
If the bedroom doesn't have an egress window, it's completely illegal.