Building My Theater/Bar/Gameroom (digging a giant hole in my basement!) - Page 2

So sqft. wise the room in the picture will be finished at 22.5' x 15' (337.5 sqft.) and then behind the blue tarp (in the existing basement) there is another 12.5' x 13' space that I'll have (162.5 sqft.). Everything is completely open (no support poles or anything) and this does not count my utility room, laundry room and a potential equipment closet. The total 500 sqft. is a blank canvas for me to do whatever I want with.

The foundation ledges are to accept a staircase off of the back of the house. This is a 3 story addition (4 if you count the finished walk-up attic). The basement is going to be the home theater/gaming/bar area and we are getting a living room on the first floor and a master bedroom/master bathroom on the second floor.

Thanks - I'm sure once the walls go up and it starts looking more like a house I'll be running through a million different designs.

OK, so this is the near-final layout. The oil tank is being removed and we are relocating the washer/dryer/sink to where the oil tank currently sits but otherwise this is what I've got to work with. It's not a ton of space but I think I'll be able to make due. The thing I'm most excited about it that I can pretty much do what I want. Any suggestions as to layout, etc.?

The first floor is going in...



I stuck the camera between the joists to get this one.

I was able to get into my basement finally (where they dug a giant hole to bring the floor level with the addition). Check out this craziness!

Small update... things are progressing slowly but they are moving. The second floor walls go up today and the roof should be on by the end of next week. They have been working hard to try and get the house weatherproof because of the cold. It's been in the teens for a week now.

Are you talking about the white pipe in the ceiling of the new basement? That was my kitchen sink drain which has since been removed completely.

There was a 4 foot bump out along the back of the kitchen that had no basement underneath (which now has the new basement) that they completely removed last Monday. They took all of my kitchen cabinets, the dishwasher, the kitchen sink and the oven to the basement temporarily and demoed the bump out completely (that part of the kitchen floor is now outside). They moved the fridge and installed a temporary plywood wall in the kitchen to keep out the weather but it is freaking freezing in there right now!

I wish it was going faster but I keep telling myself slow and steady wins the race.

Oh, that was the sewer pipe that they had to reroute. When they dug the hole in the existing slab the old pipe cut across the basement on a diagonal so they rerouted it. I'm not sure they did such a good job because the toilet upstairs seems to clog a bit easier... of course this could be my imagination.

I'm not sure about the insulation - I don't know much about construction (but I am trying to pay attention and ask questions - I am learning a ton). Exterior walls are 2x4 so I don't think the rules on that are as strict as yours (I'm in northern New Jersey near NYC). We did have to jump through a ton of hoops to get the variance though so I'm sure it is just as convoluted in other areas.

Second floor joists and plywood floor are in - they even laid out the interior walls on the second floor which go up tomorrow... we should have a roof soon!

Yup - she's 8 months old already! I can't believe it. I was going to start a new thread once construction started but I thought it would be better to have everything in one place from start to finish.

Small update... we are getting closer to having the addition completed. Probably looking at about 2 more months of construction at this rate. There were a lot of unforeseen things to deal with since the house is so old but it "should be" smooth sailing from here on out. I'm also starting to get a good idea of the exact amount of space I'll have to work with in the basement for my media room which is exciting. The finished ceilings will be about 8'4" and there is only one space along the back wall where they have to drop a soffit for HVAC so the room will be completely open. I think I can make that work!

Thanks - it is not too late and after thinking about it forever I'm 100% sure I'm going to put the screen on that wall like you suggest.


Thanks! Things are moving slow but steady...

Alright... finally got the slab poured in the basement. It has come out nice so far and with 8'4" ceilings I think I'm going to have plenty of headroom (even with having to frame a soffit around an HVAC duct that divides the old space from the new space). You can see in the last picture how far down the new slab is from where the old floor used to be in the existing basement - of course there will eventually be a finished wall along there so you will never be able to tell. I'm excited to go down there with a tape measure to get accurate dimensions so I can really start laying everything out!

So I've noticed that in one corner of the basement the wall gets damp every time it rains. Is this fixable from the inside? My fear is that once I put up the drywall that water will get in behind it over time. The contractor is still working on the house and I'm going to mention it to him but what is the best way to keep the moisture out?

The footings were poured and I have blocks for the walls. The moisture is still there though. No water actually comes through the wall but it is definitely damp. My contractor is STILL not finished but he said once the gutters are installed it should take care of most of the moisture. He says it is actually coming up from underneath - he also says not to worry. He is getting the excavator back onsite to dig down around the problematic corner and they are going to install some sort of system to feed the water in that corner to the piping system that is in place around the perimeter. There is a 1/2" of rubber that was sprayed on the outside of the foundation. I trust the guy but it is still a little unsettling. I want it to be bone dry down there.

In other news... we are about 90% complete with construction. It is coming out great although moving at a snail's pace. In about another week or two I'm going to FINALLY start laying out the basement (on paper) for real. I'm pretty much set on an acoustically transparent screen being in front of the east wall about 18" to hide the speakers and the equipment closet/rack being hidden as well but that's about it. I'm hoping to fit in a kitchenette, comfy seating for 5 plus some extra seats for guests (bar chairs) and my arcade machines. It will be cozy but doable, I think.

So it POURED over the weekend and the problem remains - damp walls in the corners and along the base where they meet the floor (well, the walls change color due to wetness) but ZERO water actually getting inside. I have a fan blowing on the affected area and as of this morning it was 75% dry... so I don't think this is a huge deal and I also don't have gutters yet (they are being installed tomorrow), which I'm sure will alleviate a lot of the water. The excavator is coming back this week to dig outside and hopefully implement a solution. I am nervous though.