How to Refinish Your Basement

If you are planning to refinish your basement there are several factors you need to take into account. They all fit under one title. "The Scope of Work" This means any and all work needed to make your basement exactly how you want it while conforming to your local building codes.

The first thing you should do is go down to your local regional building department and get a set of blueprints for your home. Most of the time builders will already have an approved design on the prints that you can use as the starting point for your desired finished product. In most cases you will be able to make design changes right there and have the different trade engineers help you make it up to code. Move a wall here, add an electrical outlet here, or change plumbing locations as you see fit.

Once you have your plans approved it is time to decide who will perform the work, and pull the construction permit accordingly. Here in Colorado Springs, Colorado where I live If you may pull the permit yourself as long as you do all of the non licensed work yourself. But I cannot stress this enough, if you are getting a contractor they have to pull the permit. Here in Colorado licensed trades include plumbing, mechanical and electrical. Everything else, i.e. framing drywall, flooring, and painting can be done by the home owner.

If you have decided to get a contractor you will need to get at least three bids to get an accurate priceline. It is a pretty good rule of thumb to take the middle bid. Make sure to check references and licenses that your contractor should be willing to provide you with. Remember the Better Business Bureau is always a good source for info on local contractors and the history of their work in your area. Once work has begun, whether you are doing it yourself or have hired out the job make sure you stay ontop of the many inspections that are necessary to be compliant with your local department. You should always need a structural to make sure you can even do the project. Followed by your rough framing, rough plumbing and HVAC, and rough electrical. Then when the work is complete you will need final inspections of those same trades. Your local building department will let you know what stages to have these done and in what time frame you have to do them.

Having a finished basement can add extra space as well as value to your home. If you follow these simple steps it should be an easy upgrade to your investment. Good Luck with your project.

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