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I live in Ontario, Canada. Basements are a very big deal here and are very common. Personally, I hate them. I think they are creepy, dark, dreary, and it seems like you can't turn around without hearing that someone has water issues with their basement. I am sure not all basements are like this, but in my experience, if you want your basement to be decent, you have to dump a pile of money into it and say a heck of a lot of prayers!
That being said, I am originally from California. I never had a basement, nor have I ever known of anyone who had a basement before I came here.
Can someone explain to me why anyone would build a basement, particularly when the probability of it leaking seems so high? In fact, from what I have seen, the likelihood of the basement leaking is so high, that a sump hole is automatically built into a basement in order to house a sump pump to pump out the water.
I can't understand why one wouldn't simply build a two story above ground house instead of one story underground (and potentially full of water!) with only the second story above ground.
I don't think basements are likely to leak if they are properly built and if environmental conditions are favorable. Sometimes basements leak simply because people don't think about the placement of downspouts (of course there are other reasons for leaky basements). Just extending downspouts a few feet sometimes makes all the difference. We don't have a sump hole/pump and our basement has never leaked as far as I know. Why do I want a basment??
-Storage
-Place for my mechanicals (furnace, hot water heater, etc) are far enough away that I can't hear them in the main living areas.
-Makes a heck of a space for my workshop.
-I have a walk out basement - as my family grows I can easily finish into a livable space with plently of daylight that would add 900 square feet to the size of my home.
I would personally never consider a house without one actually - just doesn't fit our lifestyle to not have one.
Last edited by Srib; 04-08-2008 at 08:11 AM..
Reason: spell
I'm with Srib ... I would not consider a home that did not have a basement.
BUT -- there are states where they can't have basement; FLA,TX for starters, and if for some unforeseen reason i had to move there - we would have to make some major changes.
DH and a HUGE metal shop in the basement.... without one, the shop would be in the garage. another thing i would not accept.
laundry room, spare freezer, mass amount of storage, mechanicals [like Srib mentioned] Pool table, foosball table, pingpong table, weight bench, kids 'stuff'. [DDR, video games w/large TV] ... the list goes on....
Ours is currently unfinished, as we dont need the extra living space.
OH and regarding flooding.... we had an old house that flooded. yes it was a pain, but we dealt with it... it too was unfinished .... but again, shop, freezer, laundry room, play room for the kids, LOTS of storage.
If you are near rivers/streams/ or anything else that could over flow their banks... yes, you have a higher risk of flooding. You just need to keep the water away from the foundation.
Its an area of the country thing. California - for some reason they don't bother with them much. Same with New Mexico. Of course - they can put furnaces on the outside of buildings there (WEIRD!!).
Michigan - land of basments. Cincinnati - mostly basements. I turned down several previously existing homes that seemed perfect - because of no basement. That automatically means the finished living areas will be more crowded because they'll be no extra storage (Christmas Decorations, Halloween Decorations, tools, extra paint, etc..).
We ended up building - and now have a gigantic basement that we'll be able to fill with storage, and eventually finish if we want to use as a rec area.
Oh - and yes - new builders put sumps in a lot of basements. Our area is solid clay, so any water that does make it down doesn't drain away - so a sump is a good idea for us. However we don't expect there to be any long term issues with the ability to finish the basements and about 50% are finished in our area and have had no issues.
Basements are a must-have in my opinion (even the creepy old root cellar type would be preferable to no basement at all)
In northern climates much excavation is required to install footings. It makes economical sense to just put in the basement - it's cheap added space.
New basements, if constructed properly, should not have water issues. And a sump pump is part of a properly constructed basement - it draws the water table down to below the floor slab.
IMHO a basement in a cold climate is a necessity if only to protect plumbing. A basement can easily be kept warm enough to prevent your pipes from freezing. Whereas with a crawlspace it might be more expensive and repair of plumbing would be more difficult.
I guess I just don't understand why everything that is in the basement can't just be on the first floor instead. Then there is no issue with water. As far as pipes not freezing because they can be kept warm in the basement...wouldn't they be kept warm on the first floor too?
Storage...if you have a 1500 square foot basement with a 1500 square foot floor above ground, or a 1500 square foot first floor with a 1500 square foot second floor, isn't the storage situation exactly the same?
Anyway, thanks very much for responding! One thing I have gotten out of this is that it seems to be mostly a preference issue. Many apparently prefer to have them...including my husband, who is also from Canada. I just happen to be on the other side of the fence.
Basements are built from necessity. Either because of climate conditions (as pepe1 mentioned) or topography. In Northern climates, the frost line can be 3' or more into the ground. And a footing needs to be below the frost line to prevent failure. So, after digging the hole for footings- it's a waste of money to put all the dirt back in- thus, the basement.
Damp basements are pretty much a thing of the past now days. Most basement foundations are treated with a waterproofing membrane (as opposed to damp-proofing which was the given 15-20yrs ago) along with a wicking material that draws the moisture down to the perimeter drain. If this water can't flow out by gravity, then a sump pump is used. Sometimes sump pumps are required because of a high water table. Of course there are other issue that come into play for a dry basement- but I stick to the point of the basement itself.
Topography is the other main issue- hilly and mountainous terrain make it almost impossible to create a building "pad" (a flat, level area).
Other parts of the country have rather flat a stable terrain that are ideal for building on.
And still other areas have soil conditions that require piers to be drilled, or piled down to bedrock; these types of conditions can sometimes negate a basement.
They are where you go when a tornado goes through! A neccesity in the Midwest.
Also,great for storage as someone mentioned,good for a workshop,and can be nicely finished when you have a walk out or large windows.I'm not much of a basement person myself,but the tornado thing is a biggie!
I guess I just don't understand why everything that is in the basement can't just be on the first floor instead. Then there is no issue with water. As far as pipes not freezing because they can be kept warm in the basement...wouldn't they be kept warm on the first floor too?
Storage...if you have a 1500 square foot basement with a 1500 square foot floor above ground, or a 1500 square foot first floor with a 1500 square foot second floor, isn't the storage situation exactly the same?
Anyway, thanks very much for responding! One thing I have gotten out of this is that it seems to be mostly a preference issue. Many apparently prefer to have them...including my husband, who is also from Canada. I just happen to be on the other side of the fence.
Thanks again for your input! Have a great day!
Or if I have a 1500 square foot first floor and a 1500 square foot second floor, I could have another 1500 square feet in the basement...if i wanted to finish that space. Why would I want to store my christmas stuff, infrequently used items in a living area when I can just throw them into the basement? It could be a preference issue, but I would agree with other posters that depending on what area of the country its in, having one is very practical to neccessary...
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