Any FReeper Carpenters? (Professional / Amateur) VANITY ALERT

None ^ | 8/31/2003 | me

[Bobby777]

Knowing there's a vast array of talents among you guys (and gals) out there, I'l like your opinions ... a little change of pace for a couple moments ...

I'd like to (possibly) finish my basement as reasonably inexpensive as possible. About 1/2 already has sheetrock and the concrete is perfect with moisture barrier installed underneath. No leaks, zero. House is about 9 years old.

I know along the unfinished walls they usually use a 2x4 frame (or metal) and then hang the sheetrock on that. So here are the questions:

1) I HATE the idea of nailing into my perfect concrete. Is there an alternative system that doesn't require nailing into the concrete? I once had a guy drill and put in bolt anchors but I'm sure that's time-consuming and more costly.

2) Walls: Can you use an air-powered staple gun (like 9/16") to hang sheet rock or just go with the traditional nails for best results?

3) Ceiling: Has 1x2x12 floor joists from upper floor. Lights are installed, but my sheet rock guy hates doing ceilings. So I'm looking at alternatives for ceilings, again watching the cost and want a halfway-decent appearance.

4) Floor: I might be putting an (idle) pool table down there. The weight my be hard on carpet but what would you guys (and gals) recommend for a floor? carpet, vinyl tiles, one of those interlocking wood kits, what?

thanks in advance for your replies.

[ETERNAL WARMING]

NO! Don't do it! My husband tried that once and it was a disaster! We had an extended rainy period and the panels started warping and coming off the walls! LOL

[Petronski]

Oh, if you carpet, don't buy residential grade. You want commercial grade, high-traffic carpet. It's maybe 20-30% more, but it wears like iron.

[Bobby777]

I'm on dialup! LOL ... the only thing for the basement would be the pool table and perhaps a TV room, especially in summer when it's warm (it's about 6 feet into the ground, about 2 feet above).

I thought about using it as a spare bedroom. The sump is down there but I've seen a way to put a closet over the sump and I already have 1/2 bath there. HVAC / Water Heater are in that room and have a vented door (code for the city I'm in).

total room is about 18 x 24 feet. Usable space left after HVAC / bathroom is about 14 x 24 feet and a corner about 4 x 6 where the sump is (closet almost for sure).

[Vigilantcitizen]

"1) I HATE the idea of nailing into my perfect concrete. Is there an alternative system that doesn't require nailing into the concrete? I once had a guy drill and put in bolt anchors but I'm sure that's time-consuming and more costly."

If it were mine, I would use a concrete anchor fastener such as a "TAPCON". It's fairly simple; drill hole, screw fastner.

Another option would be to rent what is called a "ramset" or "hilti" gun. These use a small cartridge similar to a .22 caliber to drive a fastener into the concrete.

Regarding your concerns about putting holes in your concrete...having your walls properly tied down to the floor is much more important than concerns about holes in concrete that no one is ever going to see

"2) Walls: Can you use an air-powered staple gun (like 9/16") to hang sheet rock or just go with the traditional nails for best results?"

If it were mine, screws and glue.

Second option, nails.

I wouldn't use staples on sheetrock in a dimocrats house.

"3) Ceiling: Has 1x2x12 floor joists from upper floor. Lights are installed, but my sheet rock guy hates doing ceilings. So I'm looking at alternatives for ceilings, again watching the cost and want a halfway-decent appearance."

Accoustical or dropped ceiling. Relatively cheap, easy to install.

"4) Floor: I might be putting an (idle) pool table down there. The weight my be hard on carpet but what would you guys (and gals) recommend for a floor? carpet, vinyl tiles, one of those interlocking wood kits, what?"

If it were mine, I would lay a square of real hardwood flooring that was the same size as the pool table, and carpet the rest.

[Elvis van Foster]

If a lot of utilities are in your ceiling above, a hung ceiling makes its easy/cheap/quick to fix leaky pipes or re-route electrical wires, or install the utilities of the future. Seriously consider it, becuase all it takes is one average "event" to make up any difference in cost.

One more thing. Moisture and the strong possibility of accompanying mold is one of the biggest $$$ problems facing the building industry today outside of government meddling. Make sure that moisture inside the basement wall has a path to travel (in other words, don't have evaporation--proof barriers on both side of them. And always check to see that water runs away from the building. Just a little backwards slope or a little depression in the ground against the foundation creates a path for rainwater or irrigation water to seep slowly downward over time, and lets mold/mildew grow slowly inside the wall cavities, starting at the bottom usually.

Keep the perimeter of those walls as clutter-free as possible so a to promote ventilation and to make it easy to check regularly. I know. Even though I have a lot of experience in this area, I had a spot mildew problem in a confined closet wall because of a combination of the reasons mentioned above. Although rather small, it was an ugly mess to deal with,

[Bobby777]

my mother just had to put $14,000 into her basement ... ouch ... guess I hate to do anything to "virgin" concrete ... LOL ... we've gotten SO much rain the last 2 days I hate to rerout the sump to push water 6 feet further into the yard ... it was spitting about two gallons every 45 seconds ... not a lot, but a lot for me since I'm on high ground in a city that's already on high ground ... before I extended the pipe I think some of the water was recycling to the drain tile and taking repeated journeys out the sump ...

[Bobby777]

true ... I fixed a leaky shower base which was over the garage ... just built a door / frame for future access (didn't do that for another plumbing area ... hope I don't have to go in there again.

[South40]

1) Frame the walls and attach them to the floors and ceilings only.

2) If you don't want to use nails use screws. You can rent a screw gun at Home Depot.

3) Get a new sheetrock guy or do it yourself.

4) Why not use floor tile?

[Bobby777]

yeah tile is easier to clean ... I kinda hate the "cold" feeling but it's an alternative to carpet ... I'm leaning towards carpet. Saw one of the heavy-duty sculpted like a grey fleck. mebbe if I put a little wood under the pool table pads as one suggested it will mitigate the weight. It's only 3/4" slate I think anyway.

[The Brush]

Floor: I might be putting an (idle) pool table down there. The weight my be hard on carpet but what would you guys (and gals) recommend for a floor? carpet, vinyl tiles, one of those interlocking wood kits, what?

In 1983 I put inexpensive stick down tiles over the asbestos tile on my basement floor. Two years later we flooded and the tiles had 18" of water on them for nearly 8 hours. To this day not one of those tiles has ever come up. (By the way, I didn't use any other adhesive, I stuck them right down after first cleaning the old tiles, you might want to add some adhesive if you put them directly over concrete floor)
Good luck!

[Wolverine]

Your basement will be cold in the winter. Ten feet below grade is in most parts of the country about 55 degrees, too cold for routine use in the winter.

Glue (Liquid nails) lathe like strips to the outside walls. Then staple two sided aluminum foil (like bubble pack available from ACE Hardware) to the lathe strips. This will act as a radiant barrier, preventing the cold from invading the basement from the outside 55 degree ground temperature. This barrier will also conserve any heat that is already in the basement. Heat always goes to cold...physics.

Now you can staple or glue the sheet rock or paneling to the lathe strips. No additional heating should be required, you will be comfortable throughout the year.

[Bobby777]

thanks for that additional info!

[Petronski]

Ach! Don't use glue anywhere. It is very easy to heat a basement to comfortable levels year around. Invest in stud walls for the basement if they aren't already in place. Don't use glue.

Ignore all advice in #31.

Glue (Liquid nails) lathe like strips to the outside walls.

This will NOT last indefintely. The glue WILL fail.

[Petronski]

I mean, in your basement, there is no good use for glue. Too much moisture. Don't do it.

[Wolverine]

Glue (Liquid nails) lathe like strips to the outside walls. This will NOT last indefintely. The glue WILL fail.

It has worked for me ...35 years no problem. Liquid nails sets up fast and turns rock hard.

[Petronski]

You've never seen Liquid Nails fail. Great. I have...and when it fails it is catastrophic.

[Bobby777]

what about the foil suggested? ... I was wondering if you'd put insulation over that behind the sheet rock?

when you say "stud walls" does that mean 2x4 or metal frame? ... I like the metal frams already have holes for the electrical, LAN, etc wiring I might want to put in ...

[Wolverine]

The foil IS the insulation behind the sheet rock. No need for other batting...

[Bobby777]

I see ... I have seen some with the foil on it now that I think about it ... thanks ...

[Wolverine]

You can also use this foil to insulate a panel truck or van. It also is great as insulation you can wear outside, under a coat, in extreme temperatures. Just cut it with scissors, like a vest, under your coat. If you are in a snow region keeping your legs warm while shoveling snow is very difficult. Cut a simple pattern like chaps... fasten with velcro strips...wear under loose fitting pants...PERFECT.

Take a piece of household foil...hold it up to your face and feel the heat reflected back to you....Food wrappers, fire fighting suits and NASA technology all the way!

Radiant barriers of just plain foil were first used in 1922. I'm sure you have seen foil backed batting...foil side always toward the heated space.