The housing market is showing signs of rebounding after a rapid down-turn a few years ago. As a result, people across the country tightened their belts and their budgets. Because of this, housing values dropped dramatically – many people were forced into foreclosure and moved into a smaller home or apartment.

Now that the economy is back on the mend, buying a house may not be in your future but fixing up your home in an economic low can give you a great return on investment. Especially if you plan on living in your current home long-term.

One great way to improve your home is to finish or remodel your basement. You can turn a blah, damp, space into a comfortable and inviting area for your whole family to enjoy. One thing to beware of when finishing your basement is the use of organic (anything originally made of carbon compounds) materials which easily rot and mold in damp basement environments.

What’s the secret to finishing my basement?
Basements naturally hold a lot of humid air (water-laden air) because they are under the ground on five sides. The porous cement foundation serves kind of as a sponge, where water vapor and moisture constantly enter from the earth. We all know that warm air rises and this air is no different. The moisture comes from the earth, enters the basement, warms up and travels upstairs into the home as air. It eventually leaves through the home’s attic vents and cracks.

What do organic materials have to do with finishing my basement?
If you want to constantly remodel your basement you’ll want to use drywall and other organic materials which will eventually take on mold and mildew. That’s why they call it “re-finishing” – because you may have to finish it again and again. This isn’t healthy or cost-effective and doesn’t make much sense to do in a damp basement environment.

A better alternative is to finish your basement using materials that will not rot or hold water. Few basement finishing companies offer these alternatives but they are well worth it. Since the products are not organic, they resist water and do not allow mold and mildew to thrive like their counterparts. Using these materials means you will finish your basement once and be done with it – no more ripping out drywall… again.

Is it a good investment?
When you finish your basement the right way, you maximize your return on your investment. Think about it – you only have to finish it once. If you use drywall and other materials, they will eventually hold moisture and you’ll have mold in your walls. This means you’ll have to rip it all out and start over. Can you hear the dollar signs adding up in your head? That’s right, it’s expensive to finish your basement once, twice and maybe a third time. So make sure you do it right the first time with materials that won’t rot.

Other tips for a refinished basement
Another great thing to keep in mind is to keep a dehumidifier running all year long. A great one is the SaniDry XP. It works Brand Cialis really well because its cooling core is much larger than a dehumidifier you find at your local home improvement stores. This means it can dehumidify a lot more air at one time. This in turn means your basement will be much drier and more able to resist humidity and mold. Bonuses of the SaniDry are that it can be ducted into your finished basement so you don’t see it but it still does a great job dehumidifying the air. Plus you can hook it up so the water it wrings out of the air is discharged outside your home. That means no more emptying the dehumidifier bucket or remembering to do it, it does it for you.

Basement finishing take home message
The take home message here is to use waterproof materials to finish your basement and get an industrial-strength dehumidifier for your finished basement.

Author Bio: For a Long Island basement remodeling contractor visit Town & Country to schedule a basement finishing estimate. Marianne Snyder writes about home improvement projects like basement waterproofing, basement remodeling, home energy audits and crawl space repair.

Category: Home/Home Improvement
Keywords: basement remodeling, basement finishing contractor