finishing the basement!!!

So I got a wild hair and figured I'd finish my basement. I started on it last Wednesday day and this is what I have done so far. Not to bad for doing it myself but it does help out alot when you do have the proper tools like a nail gun which makes framing so much faster lol. I'll have more pics up soon to show the progress of it.
Has anyone else done any renovations to their house lately?

 

I went Solar

 

Dude, that's sweet!!!

 

Looks good

FYI , there is a " Home Improvement " thread in the garage section

EDIT :

here http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/garage-workshop/12120-home-improvement-today.html

 

how long does it take for the payback?

 

Even though it is winter we have already had a lower electricity bill

 

Just curious maybe 10 years?

 

We shall we have it for 20 years. Locked in at .11 a KWH

 

Please for the love of god don't be like the previous owners of my house and drywall the basement ceiling!! A simple job, or inspection of anything in the ceiling results in exploratory surgery with the sawzall and patching drywall.

Cool solar setup, i want to add one someday.

 

It's not really a " finished " basement if you don't drywall the ceiling

 

Gosh, I need to finish mine too.

Curious, what your plans are for insulation... have you considered spray foam?

 

2lb foam is by far the most effective solution for against concrete in a basement

 

Drop ceiling. Only a fool would drywall the ceiling as simple projects like accessing ducts, fixing pipes, running wires amongst others turn into more involved projects.

Yea it looks nice at first, but once you have to cut it all apart to get access to the ceiling/lower level floor, it will look like crap.

At the very least make a diagram of where the wires, pipes, and vents are so that if you ever have to access something, you know exactly where they are.

 

Drop ceilings look like crap , but I get your point .

The whole " only a fool " thing is overstated IMO

In most new homes , you aren't constantly renovating them like old homes , therefore basement living space can be finished

 

Hey OZ, I would assume you use pro's for your spray foam applications but do you have any experience with these DIY kits?

I agree, most drop ceilings do look bad after time... especially the 2x4 panels. I think the 2x2 panels look better but still not as good as sheetrock. However, if/when I finish my basement I'm probably going with a 2x2 drop ceiling. Like "slander" I like having easy access just in case.

 

I just did my basement as well I will post some pics

 

Yes , I get mine done by an insulation contractor , the DIY kits are OK for small areas but I'm not sure they are 2lb foam , I believe they are 1lb foam which is not classified as a vapour barrier , at least not here

 

You can get the foam in any density you want, high expand, low etc. I don't usually deal with foam for my investment houses though, just the regular fiberglass. I'm picking up yet another house to play with next week assuming the title company gets their ducks in a row. Bank owned houses can be such a pain sometimes. I should have it remodeled and ready to roll in 3-6 months. It's a fun hobby to have. I'm in mid demo of one of my rental properties, I have another couple hours of schlepping plaster into the dumpster today and I'm done with it until after the new one is on the market. It can sit vacant, after busting out a bunch of lathe and plaster I'm tired of looking at it

The odds you you having a drop ceiling that looks bad and cuts a lot of $$$ off your value and never having to move a tile is leaps and bounds higher than having to open up the drywall to fix a problem. If you do your prelim work correctly there's never a reason to worry about running wires or moving ducts. Drop ceilings and fluorescent tube have no business being in a house. Maybe a halfway house

The bigger problem is it looks like you have #2 pine sitting on the concrete.