Home Improvement Stack Exchange
Home Improvement Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [basement]

For questions generally relating to habitable spaces in a home below ground level, and to foundation types that include a space of this type.

1492 questions
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Should I use a subfloor for a finished basement's floor?

We are refinishing our basement and have not yet decided what to do for the floors. Part of the basement will be tile, and we are all set. However, the rec room side is going to be carpet. The basement is dry, and we have never had any water or…
mohlsen
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Should I use steel or wood studs for basement exterior walls?

Related: When should you use metal studs? I'm planning on finishing my basement. (assuming all water issues are resolved) I'll be putting up a water barrier (tar paper) on all exterior walls, Framing a stud wall, insulating, installing a vapour…
Chris Cudmore
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Is this cracking foundation under a jack post a problem that requires repair?

I am buying an already-built new home. I find this in the basement. The builder says it's okay, but I am really concerned. Is this really a big issue? What steps would be required to repair it? This house is close to the retention pond. Is that the…
John
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What humidity should I set my dehumidifier to?

I just bought a 50 pint dehumidifier for my basement. What humidity level should I aim for? This time of year the outside humidity is very high (over 80%) and we do not have central air. Right now it is set to 55% and seems to be running…
auujay
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I have a basement floor with lots of moisture, can I paint or seal it to make it waterproof?

My basement has a slight dampness issue, where if I leave things on the floor they will get wet. There are no leaks and no standing water, the moisture seems to be wicking up through the concrete. I conducted a simple test to make sure moisture in…
Tester101
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What was a receptacle installed near my breaker box?

We had an old fusebox replaced with circuit breakers in our (U.S.) house today. Its a 100-amp panel, everything very simple and standard. The electrician installed a regular receptacle just outside the breaker box (about six inches away), a GFCI…
nuggethead
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1 answer

Seemingly overbuilt basement wall - load bearing?

I'm doing some prep/exploratory work before I begin finishing my basement. Home was built in 1980 and has a cement block foundation. There is a seemingly random wall framed in the otherwise unfinished basement. I pulled one side of the sheetrock - I…
cxd213
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1 answer

Humidity Levels

What is a healthy and safe humidity level that I should try to keep my house at?
SamErde
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25
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2 answers

What's the 1 inch square knob sticking out of the wall?

I noticed there is a square knob sticking out of my basement wall. Does anyone know what this is?
H Woo
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25
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1 answer

What is this bolt in my basement floor?

In my concrete basement floor, there is a rather large bolt and washer. The washer is about 4 inches in diameter, and the bolt has a 1 inch head. What is it? All I can think of is that it's some device to keep this from happening:
Chris Cudmore
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3 answers

Diagonal brace left in the basement by builder. Can I remove it? Replace it?

I have a diagonal brace running across an interior wall in the basement, and it even goes partially into the floor concrete. Is this meant to be permanent, or was it supposed to be removed during construction? I want to finish the basement and put…
Egor
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Replacing 2-prong outlets in basement - existing wiring has two hot wires, one neutral?

I'm replacing the two-pronged outlets in my basement with 3-pronged grounded outlets in the United States (Illinois). All the wiring is in metal conduit with metal conduit boxes, which are grounded to the breaker box (I checked with a multimeter…
David
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21
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1 answer

Are cracks in a newly poured concrete basement floor a problem?

I'm having a new home built and found a large crack in the newly poured concrete basement floor and wanted to see if it's something I should be concerned about. The floor was poured sometime in the past two weeks; I need to check with the builder…
viatheether
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4 answers

What is the proper way to run wires along/across basement ceiling joists?

I want to add an electrical outlet in my unfinished basement. It makes sense to run the wire along the ceiling because that's where all the other wires are. What is the proper way to install NM cable either parallel to or perpendicular to the…
Vebjorn Ljosa
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What is the best way to incrementally finish an unfinished basement?

my wife and I are in the process of buying our first house. The house has a 750 square foot unfinished basement (cinderblock walls and concrete floor), and is brand new (rather, it will be brand new when it is finished in a week or two). We don't…
Brendon Dugan
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