Any house and many apartments have a room that is often ignored or very underestimated by the owner. It is called a basement. The function of this space has been to store unnecessary or mostly unused items and forgotten family treasures. Some men prefer to use is as a wine or other alcohol storage, but as a whole, this room is a fully functional one just as a bedroom or a kitchen!

Basement as a guest room

There are many additional uses for a basement – an office, a playing room for the children, a guest room as well even! Limited possibilities are there for people whose apartments have a basement in a shared underground floor as they cannot use actually use it for children or guests, but any other possibility is still there. Except for this, the only thing that can set a border for the use of a basement is the owner’s own imagination.

The first and most important thing that any owner of a basement that will be remodeled needs to do is to decide exactly what for the new space will be used for. Will there be a person inside all the time and where would they stand? Is there enough clean air coming and how will the person be able to move around? There are many questions that need to be answered and not many basements can actually be used as all other rooms of a house.

The second thing to do when you’re rebuilding or changing the use of the basement room is to solve all possible water problems. Basements are not usually finished as a bedroom is or a kitchen. This means that dampness is allowed and so are minor leaks that are not visible to the human eyes. This said, a ready-bought basement is good with these, but if it’s going to be used for a different purpose a fix is necessary.  A good choice would be to find a professional estimator of basement and waterproofing.

Another thing that needs to be settles before putting the new room to use is the insulation. It is more than necessary to have the best possible protection from dampness, humidity and the climate outside. A good insulation prevents the air from becoming too humid and does not allow condensation. This is because it keeps the walls with a moderate temperature and when the cold air enters it does not clash brutally with the warm walls.

Natural light

Fourthly, the light inside of a basement is almost definitely going to be artificial. This is not definitely a bad thing, but if you have a way to put natural light inside of your new room – you better make use of this possibility. If there are already windows on the walls – it might be a great idea to broaden them. If there are none, however, but there are parts of the room that are built above ground – create some anew. If the depth of the basement is still there and you have no direct reach to natural light, you might also think of creating the so-called window wells. They are very useful, but can set up an issue with the insulation and the humidity inside especially when the ground outside is drenched.

Artificial light

Artificial lights are also a good thing. Lately, there have been invented many styles and shades of light that can bring almost a natural effect to the newly remodeled basement. Another great use of this type of light is to create more space within the usually stuffy basement. As the ceilings are usually very low, it is a good idea to splash large amounts of light right at the ceiling itself. This way it would seem higher. You can enhance this effect with mirrors and mirror-like surfaces.

A key element in turning a basement into a useful and adequate space is that there should not be an excessive use of drapes and heavy curtains as well as plush, shaggy and other moisture-absorbing items. Yes, this is not because they will make the space even less. This should also use as a warning: no cloths or books should be put into the basement.

It is very possible to set the number of rooms of your house to one more without having to build it anew.  The basement and the attic are the best ways to do this. The only thing that can make it hard for you is a lack of understanding of the natural qualities of the semi-room before it’s turned into a fully fledged one.