Basement finishing questions

[Anonymous]

My husband and I are beginning to think about finishing our basement. It is very large and we're using it for storage now but it's more storage than we need. It has a door to the outside and newish windows already but no walls, cement floor, etc. While it is large in terms of square footage the ceiling isn't super high (it's an older home). Because of the ceiling height we don't want to put tons of money into it. We're thinking it will be used primarily as a play room/rec room for our kids as they get older. I'm wondering if it would be worth putting a bath (or half bath) down there. Also, curious about other dos and don'ts of basement finishing. Any thoughts would be welcome!

[Anonymous]

You said it isn't "super high". Can you tell us how high it is?

[Anonymous]

A bath will be $10-20,000. The cheapest roughing with the main plumbing in same location was $6000 (not including anything else) and highest was $16,000. Worth it, probably but costly.

[Anonymous]

OP, here. In most places I'd say seven feet, shorter where we have pipes/beams. Without digging out the foundation, which I know would be an astronomical expense, it's never going to be an "amazing" basement -- we're looking more for functional than amazing.

[Anonymous]

7 feet depending on where you are is fine. We just pulled a basement permit. Lowest for ducts is 6.4 feet.

[Anonymous]

Do you have the rough ins for plumbing? The sewer pipe is crazy expensive if it's not there already.

[Anonymous]

Are you planning to DIY or hire contractors?

[Anonymous]

A rough in for pipes should be fairly easy given everything is unfinished. It can be a DIY job if you are handy, but otherwise should be $2-3k max. I would definitely add the bath.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A rough in for pipes should be fairly easy given everything is unfinished. It can be a DIY job if you are handy, but otherwise should be $2-3k max. I would definitely add the bath.

Its not a easy DIY given all the codes for a rough in and removing concrete. If you know a plumber who can do it for that prices, please send them our way as we are getting close to $6K.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A rough in for pipes should be fairly easy given everything is unfinished. It can be a DIY job if you are handy, but otherwise should be $2-3k max. I would definitely add the bath.

OP should check some county issues as well. If you're in Arlington and you go over a total of 3 bathrooms (even if they are all half baths) you have to pay about $6000 just for the added water line fee so that adds considerably to the cost.

[Anonymous]

OP, we aren't handy enough for DIY. We have a contractor who gave us an estimate to finish the basement but at that point we weren't thinking about whether or not to do a bathroom. I'll probably have him come back and look at the possibility of adding a bathroom and get a new estimate. I'm not sure what the plumbing situation is -- we do have a bathroom directly above the basement so not sure if that is helpful.

[Anonymous]

Op having a bath above does not give you plumbing in the basement. They have to cut the concrete and put in new plumbing if you do not have it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, we aren't handy enough for DIY. We have a contractor who gave us an estimate to finish the basement but at that point we weren't thinking about whether or not to do a bathroom. I'll probably have him come back and look at the possibility of adding a bathroom and get a new estimate. I'm not sure what the plumbing situation is -- we do have a bathroom directly above the basement so not sure if that is helpful.

Tue cost is in busting through the concrete and accessing the sewer stack.

Is that near the plumbing and proposed bathroom location?

You might save a little time amd mess if it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:7 feet depending on where you are is fine. We just pulled a basement permit. Lowest for ducts is 6.4 feet.

Basement ceiling height shall not be less than 7 feet above the finished floor. Structural members spaced 4 feet or more apart may project up to 6 inches below the required ceiling height.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:7 feet depending on where you are is fine. We just pulled a basement permit. Lowest for ducts is 6.4 feet.

Basement ceiling height shall not be less than 7 feet above the finished floor. Structural members spaced 4 feet or more apart may project up to 6 inches below the required ceiling height.

6.4 is not enough