Upgrade Basement with young kids?

[Anonymous]

We have a finished section of our basement, but it's in need of a facelift (wood paneling, drop ceiling, lighting), and we'd like to add a bathroom. However, I'm skeptical that with an 18 month old that is already obsessed with throwing balls, and another one coming - that the next few years the basement could see a lot of wear and tear from playing. My wife wants the upgrade since we spend a lot of time down there. It's usable/livable, but it's not a really comfortable environment.

Should we hold off on upgrading and let the kids abuse it - or upgrade it to a more comfortable and inviting space, but assume there may be some damage we'll have to fix along the way (holes in drywall, things like that)?

We're probably talking about $20k in total - which is a lot for us, and could use the money elsewhere in the house.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

We bought a new house with a 2 year old and a newborn. Fast forward 3 years and the basement still looks fine. We will probably have to paint it 3-5 years but that's about it.

We also don't let kids write or stab the walls and teach them. Anyways the point is that drywall can be patched and painted and having a nice place for them to play away from the main living area was important for our own sanity especially with the winter and hot summers around here.

[Anonymous]

I would do the upgrade. Just pick out a tough floor like tile or vinyl planks that won't get ruined if your washer or something floods. Buy a couple of cheap rugs from IKEA. It's pretty cheap to patch a few dings in drywall and repaint in a several years, which is the most damage you can expect from kids.

[Anonymous]

We upgraded our basement to make it a playroom/TV room. It was a creepy dungeon before though, and now it has bamboo floors (I might put linoleum, now), new drywall, finished ceiling, etc.

I like that the most wear and tear in the house due to kids high velocity activity happens in the basement and not in our nicer livingroom.

3 years in and we have some walls that are a bit dirty, but otherwise looks fine. Or maybe I just cant tell because its coverred in toys.

[Anonymous]

We also upgraded our basement to a full bath, play room, and TV room. We spend A LOT of time down there and we have two rambunctious boys. We initially got carpet in the main area, and I will say that got trashed very quickly. Very dirty and worn in a short period time. We just replaced it last year with laminate flooring which looks great. We also got the rooms repainted last year. Never had any holes in the walls or anything like that. My younger son did draw in pencil on one wall once, but that's it.

[Anonymous]

I would do the upgrade. Just make a plan for the flooring. If water damage is possible, I'd consider putting in tile, then using an inexpensive area rug with a thick pad.

[Anonymous]

OP Here: Thanks everyone. Sounds like we might go for it.

We already have a fairly new carpet installed - not our favorite, but too good to rip out, and the workshop and laundry room are in a separate area from what we want to upgrade.

I guess my concerns about trashing the place were overblown.

[Anonymous]

You could paint the wood paneling for less $$ than putting in drywall. It is a big improvement and brightens it up.

[Anonymous]

My youngest is 8 and our 8-yo renovation still looks great.

[Anonymous]

You should upgrade if you spend a lot of time down there and it is not comfortable. Just teach your kids not to throw in the house. I have two boys- 8 and 13- and have never had them put holes in the drywall. If they did then it would be a huge accident. Kids just don't put holes in the wall.

[Anonymous]

If you are filthy with pets and wear shoes inside don't expect your carpet and flooring to last long.

[Anonymous]

Upgrade right away if you feel it needs it and you can afford it.

My young children did not damage the house we gutted and renovated, because I told them not to, and their friends did not either, for the same reason.

Planning on finishing our basement this summer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are filthy with pets and wear shoes inside don't expect your carpet and flooring to last long.

I agree. We bought a 2001 house w/ a finished basement and bathroom in 2007. Our DD is 2.5 yrs old and often plays down there w/ the nanny and has playdates when other nannies bring their charges around. We don't wear shoes in the house, otherwise the cream colored berber carpet would be absolutely filthy.

I wouldn't worry about the drywall though. We have furniture, shelves and other things along our walls. It's a nice room for our toddler and our future toddler (he's almost 5 weeks old) to play. We got a nice leather sectional and plan to turn it into an entertainment space for when the kids are older (i.e., sleepover, family movie nights).