So, I'm getting ahead of myself here a little bit, but this is something I know I want to do at some point, it just might not be for a while.
My basement is currently "unfinished", so I would like to make it a bit nicer. My office will likely go down here eventually, as well as maybe a playroom/tv area, and a canning/pantry area. It doesn't need to be super nice, but I'd like it to be a little more cozy and cleanable than it is now.
The kicker is, sometimes during a prolonged storm with lots of rain, we do get some water in the basement. I know that proper waterproofing happens on the outside, digging around the house and coating the outside, but realistically that's not happening anytime soon. The water that gets in is not excessive that we have standing water or anything. There are 2-3 spots that just get a little moist, and one spot that can get a decent trickle, that at least somewhat heads towards the sump pump.
So my question is, what are some finishing options that are water resistant, and won't cause mold, etc?
Floors:
Floors are currently concrete, not in bad shape. I could see a few options here:
- Concrete Paint. (If this would not cause more issues with the water intrusion. I'm not 100% sure where the trickle comes in from, it almost seems like there is a tiny hole in the floor or wall that it comes in at. If that gets plugged, could that cause more issues?)
- Concrete Epoxy. (Again, if this would not cause more issues with water intrusion.)
- Swisstrax or similar. Breathable, but is that breathable enough that with a dehumidifier running, it would dry itself and not need pulled up?
- Office and Play/TV area would likely get some cheap-ish area rugs that could be cleaned as needed.
Walls:
The outer walls I believe are block, covered with something and the paint is peeling in places. The center wall is brick, coated in something that is falling off and making a terrible mess. The brick wall is not actually load bearing, I don't know why it is in place like that.
For the outer walls I am considering framing in a basic wall with drywall to have a better finish and run electric, and not disturb what's there. If I do that I am considering framing the walls on top of feet like these, so that air can still flow at least somewhat in case of moisture. Do we think this would be enough?
For the brick wall, I may chip away what is there and try and seal it somehow? It almost seems like the coating is making the brick disintegrate, which is not great. Any better way to mitigate this?
Ceiling:
I don't want to fully close in the ceiling in case I need to access wiring or plumbing, etc. Plus there is a mix of wiring running through the joists, and wiring running underneath the joists. I am considering some sort of low profile custom drop ceiling, potentially running some sort of strips across the ceiling, with 1/4 turn pieces on them to hold up panels in between. Also thought about just corrugated panels tacked up gently. Open to suggestions.
Here are some more pictures of the current status:
Like I said, it'll be a while before I actually start on all this, but I'd like to get a plan together so it can stop nagging at the back of my head.