how to make a basement in the northeast?

Question

I bought a house in New Hampshire. The basement is cement and have a sumpump. I want to finish it, make it a stand up shower, bed rooms and a family room, etc. How do I start?

Answer 1

go to home depot or lowes

get one of the 'how-to' books on finishing out your basement

flip thru the pages and make sure it doesnt overwhelm you with what you read in there

if you survive that part then it is time to make sure your lower level windows will be acceptable for city or county building codes department

then you will have to draw up what you are trying to do and submit your plans to the codes office and hope they allow you to continue

if they say yes you can do it as planned

the next step is figure out where you want your shower sink and commode

start cutting up the concrete to make way for your new plumbing system

you will have to determine if your drains are in the floor or wall

if in the floor just hook into them

if in the wall you will have to install a sewage pump to raise the waste water to drain level

once you finish the plumbing and redoing the cement work to make it are enclosed and level

the rest is a simple matter of building in the walls hanging doors ..trimming everything out and adding your ventilation duct work

Answer 2

If that basement has a sump pump,
- you probably don't.
The presence of the pump means the basement
is prone to flooding. (Common in the North East.)
Sealing it so that it would be livable year round is
likely to be quite a big job.
Putting in a bathroom means drains below floor level.
This may mean a sewage ejector pump system.
If definitely means either raising the floor or cutting
concrete. (Remember your flooding problem?)
Whats your ceiling clearance?