To begin with it is necessary to differentiate concepts of a cellar, a cellar and a ground floor. The first room is part of the foundation, it is completely below the ground level and is often adapted to accommodate communications. The ground floor is also called a "semi-basement". This is a special room, which rests on the foundation and is only partially penetrated into the soil. It is often equiped for garages and pantries. The cellar (sub-floor) can serve as a separately constructed building, and directly the basement itself. It usually stores household equipment, blanks and vegetables for the winter. The cellars do not have windows, they do not get natural light, and due to the thermal insulation properties of the soil, the same temperature is maintained at any time of the year. After the construction of their finish is rarely done, leave in draft form, as excess work involves additional costs. In many private houses, cellars occupy an impressive area, the transformation of which sooner or later the owners think about. As you know, nothing is impossible, so we'll find out in detail what works need to be done to "domesticate" this room.

If in the construction and finishing of the error is not allowed, then the room will not be anything different from the usual living room in the house.

       

We plan at the design stage

Before those who are under construction there are many questions: from the storeys of the house and to the necessity of equipping the basement with it. The latter will significantly increase the cost of work, but the additional room will never be superfluous either at the cottage or in the cottage. In addition, the basements strengthen the foundation, which is especially important in those regions where outbreaks of increased seismic activity are observed. Any construction must begin with a study of the soil. The value will have its composition on the site and the depth of groundwater. Depending on these two indicators, the type of foundation is chosen, and accordingly, the basement features:

• Monolithic (tile);
• Tape.

The second view is suitable for deep-lying water and soil, ensuring the stability of the building. Monolithic is a continuous slab. It is used for more monumental structures in places where the groundwater level rises above the critical level of 2 m, and the soil is loose and consists mainly of sand. From the basement, construction has traditionally begun. The first dig a foundation pit, lay the foundation, arrange a blind. There are two main technologies for building a basement:

• With the preparation of the excavation;
• With pre-pouring of ribbon walls (reinforced concrete).

Accessibility of basements

Entrance to the basement must also be present on the building project. There are only three variants of its location:

• From the street;
• From home;
• Combined option.

In the first case, the basement will be considered as an absolutely independent premise. Often, such an entrance is equipped with pantry, because the inventory for working in the garden is inconvenient to constantly wear through living rooms, tarnishing the floors of the earth. The entrance from the house is arranged for permanent access to food stocks or to a dwelling. Doors can be wooden and metal. If the output leads to the street, then it is better to choose a stronger and stronger material. Metal will cope with this task better than wood. The second is chosen for interior doors, which are installed when entering the house. By type of performance, they are classified into:

• The deaf;
• Shielded;
• Filençatıe;
• Stained glass.

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The latter must be purchased from heavy-duty glass. If the basement is not repaired for living, then to avoid dampness or chill from the "dungeon," choose double doors or combined with the skin. In some basements, there are two ways out: one to the residential part of the house, and the second to the street. In the first case, use the interior door, and in the second - the entrance door.

How to make a decoration

Before you start decorating, you have to go through a difficult stage of rough work. It is not so pleasant, but without proper finishing, ventilation, communication and heating will not appear in the room. The basis of the future floor covering or screed, as it is called by builders, is created first. In a monolithic foundation, concrete is impregnated with special solutions that, when in contact with moisture, crystallize and tightly "seal" the floor. If a tape-type base was laid, then a real "layered pie" of materials is laid on it:

• Sand cushion;
• The layer of ruberoid;
• Reinforcing mesh.

And only on top is laid the screed. After the rough stage of work with the floor is over, it can be safely covered with a laminate, linoleum, parquet or ceramic tiles. The choice of material depends on the design of the room. If the basement is to be used for living, there is a heating system between the floor covering and the screed, which will ensure regular heating.

Walls before the final finishing several times primed. Two or three layers of antiseptic composition not only improve the "adhesion" between the surface and the material, but also reduce the risks of the formation of fungi and mold. In the future cellar or pantry walls simply plastered or lined with wood panels, moisture-resistant plasterboard. The latter, if necessary, can be painted in the desired color. It is better to use mineral-cement plaster, as it is more resistant to moisture than a calcareous and gypsum analogue. Wood will have to be treated with special solutions, which will stop the processes of decay and spread of the fungus. In residential premises, they are insulated with mineral wool, and plastered walls with PVC panels, wallpaper, wood, plasterboard or simply paint over plaster.

The ceiling in the basement plays an important role, especially if the room is restored, but used to remove numerous communications. Suspended version will help to intelligently hide all this magnificence from pipes and wires, but at the same time leave them to constant access if necessary. Unfortunately, this method is not suitable for basements with low ceilings, because its frame will "eat" too many precious centimeters. In this case, it is better to resort to moisture-resistant gypsum plasterboard. In the high basement rooms of this material, you can make a multi-level ceiling, which will be the highlight of the interior. In simpler versions, the surface is ground and plastered.

Waterproofing mortar, which impregnate the substrate to create a screed necessarily blotted corners and all joints of surfaces in the basement. This way you can protect the room from dampness and mold.

Lighting

The wiring in the basement should be well insulated, as high humidity can play a cruel joke with the owners. If it is a pantry or a cellar, then even ordinary bulbs will not fit here. It is necessary to choose special ones with a high level of moisture protection. This applies to the sockets: in their design, special caps are provided that prevent the liquid from getting inside. In residential basements, the absence of windows will have to be compensated for by numerous lighting devices that are located at different levels. If your ceiling has several "steps", the built-in point lights will become an interior element of the room, emphasizing its style. At the top must necessarily hang a chandelier or a few equidistant from each other, if there are two (or more) of a combined type in the room. The walls are fastened with sconces, lamps are put on tables, and polishers are placed on the floor.

A special flavor in the basement room will bring a fireplace. Its installation will be expensive, because due to the peculiarities of the premises it will be necessary to attract a professional. With his hands with the task of an average man can not cope. The fireplace is difficult to consider as a source of light, but it is uniquely a "source" of warmth and comfort in the atmosphere of the room.

Ventilation

Regardless of what the basement will be used for, the air exchange needs to be adjusted even during construction. Even if the decoration of the room was done correctly, with impregnation of walls with special solutions, if the circulation of air is disturbed, moisture will stagnate. Unfortunately, this is fraught with the appearance of fungus and mold. Disputes of the latter can, together with inhaled air, enter the lungs, multiply there and provoke a number of chronic diseases, some of which terminate lethal. Ventilation systems in the basement are classified into two types:

• Artificial;
• Natural.

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The latter are suitable only for "cold" cellars, which no one plans to equip for living quarters. Natural ventilation is a simple system of pipes, which provides the communication of the room with the street. The air in them freely circulates. Artificial or forced ventilation systems inject fresh air into the room from the street, and the stagnant air is drawn from it. Modern split systems are able to regulate the level of humidity and temperature within the regime set on the control panel. Such "smart" ventilation will save many problems and become a universal "climate control" in the basement of a private house.

How to keep warm

To get a quality insulated basement, operate in two ways:

• Carrying out the heating system;
• Warming of the "box" of the room: walls, ceiling and floor.

Heating systems will artificially raise the temperature and pump heat. The task of insulating materials is to keep it as long as possible. The quality of the finishes and the heating system directly affects the microclimate in the basement.

Basement options

The basement is adapted to the most varied needs, depending on the needs of the owners. In most houses this premise has impressive dimensions, which makes it possible to translate into reality the dreams of spacious playgrounds, entertainment or work. Most often from the basement create:

• Gym;

• Wine cellar with a tasting area;

• Miniature bar for gatherings with friends;

• Swimming pool or sauna;

• A workshop for work;

• Laundry for washing and ironing things. Actually, if the family is large;

• Billiard room combined with a platform for darts, table tennis;

• Room for games;

• Greenhouse for growing vegetables or mushrooms. Such a small household that does not care about winters;

• Music studio in the presence of good sound insulation;

• Extra guest room;

• Home theater;

• Library and miniature reading room.

Place for rest

Place for rest в просторном подвале обычно включает в себя несколько функциональных зон:

• Corner for reading;
• Bar counter for those who want to miss a glass or two of wine;
• A platform for active games, and if dimensions allow, then even a miniature dance floor;
• Area for watching movies.

In small rooms will have to confine one or two of the most important sites. The decoration of the basement room can be supplemented by a cozy fireplace and a douche. Especially colorful they look in the rooms, decorated in the popular nowadays chalet style. The furnishings of the room has references to a rest house, which is lost in the Alps away from the bustling world. Chalet loves the abundance of wood, animal skins (their imitation), brown-honey color scheme. Of course, the Alpine style is difficult to implement without the presence of panoramic windows overlooking the mountains, but they compensate for false panels and an abundance of lamps of simple shapes. The fireplace is an integral part of the chalet. It is decorated with masonry or brick, and the furnace doors are decorated with intricate pattern or ornament, which is reflected in the decoration of walls and textiles. Note that the patterns should not be too much, the uniformity in the chalet prevails.

       

Home Theater

In cottage houses, the basement is often equipped with a full-fledged mini-cinema. Movies are viewed both on a modern widescreen "plasma" of impressive dimensions, and on a white wall using a projector. The latter option organically fits into the retro style. Seats are organized in several ways:

• Single chairs in the rows;
• Full-armchairs with common armrests, like in real cinemas;
• Several sofas, set one after another.

The latter option allows you to use the room for other holidays if necessary, so it is considered universal. A stylish, but refined loft is suitable for a stylish cinema.

       

Library

A small cellar can be converted into an individual room "for books". Shelving set solid: from the ceiling to the floor. In the corner, a cozy place to read or work. There is enough soft sofa with a pair of pillows, a table and a pair of pouffes for guests. If you decide to put all your book treasures in the basement, then struggle with humidity pay special attention. Paper can eventually "bloom" in the bad sense of the word, and you run the risk of losing the entire library.

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Playroom for children

Residential basement - a gift for the owners of the home "kindergarten." If it is arranged with taste, then the kids will be difficult to pull out from there. One zone is allocated for creativity: there are tables with chairs and a rack with sets for drawing, modeling, carving, modeling or crafting. Another area is designed for active games: table hockey, tennis, twister, trampoline, pool with balls, rock climbing, children's darts. The third zone is equipped for a resting place for children and an observation post for parents. Another site usually embodies a fairy tale for girls: with miniature locks, artificial trees and other attributes of the "kingdom of dreams." Boys are given the opportunity to entertain themselves with designers and car races within the framework of special trails.

       

Gym

Spacious house basements are ideal for organizing a personal sports hall. For residents of close apartments this dream is still unrealizable, but owners of country houses are given a unique opportunity to translate it into their homes. The room is poorly decorated, not saving at the same time on the mirrors. As in the real gym, there must be a lot of them, so that a person can see not only the result of work on the body, but also problem zones, which still have to be worked on. When installing simulators, observe the recommended distance between them to avoid traumatic accidents.

       

Cellar

Cellar может быть приспособлен под хранение солений или вин домашнего изготовления. Для последнего подходит стиль кантри. Направление, которое родилось в американской глубинке, любит грубые фактуры и гамму «древесных» оттенков. Стены отделывают декоративным кирпичом, люстры подвешивают к потолку на декоративных цепях, а пустую стеклянную тару хранят в бочках. Здесь же размещают плетеный столик для дегустации и пару стульев в тон. Если вы планируете хранить в погребе соленья и продукты, то на отделке можно сэкономить. Отопление в этом помещении устанавливать не обязательно, достаточно естественной вентиляции. Для хранения банок с соленьями откажитесь от деревянных стеллажей в пользу их металлических аналогов. Для увеличения срока эксплуатации последних материал покрывают защитным слоем от коррозии.

       

Engineering systems

Изначально подвалы предназначались для проведения здесь всех коммуникационных узлов. В этом помещении устанавливают насосную станцию, если владельцы подключены к автономному источнику воды. Газовый или электрический котел, который отвечает за отопление всего дома, тоже размещают здесь, как и электрощит с пробками. Engineering systems редко занимают всю площадь подвала. Если его обустраивают под жилое помещение их отгораживают от комнаты перегородкой или декоративной стенкой, чтобы не портить общий вид.

       

It's not a good idea to dig a basement yourself

Digging a basement under an already constructed building is dangerous. Not every professional will undertake such a job. To begin with, it is worth remembering that the basement is part of the foundation. It is developed at the design stage. Self-activity fraught with distortion or destruction of the house itself. Wooden buildings can survive, and brick buildings can crack. The walls of the cellars usually represent a continuation of the ribbon foundation, which is buried, that is, the premise and base of the house are a single whole. It is much easier and more economical to pay by the estimate in the construction, than to pay a round sum to professionals for the restoration of a house damaged by independent excavations.

Conclusion

The basement design is chosen from the same variety of styles as for ordinary rooms. In comparison with them, the room on the contrary, only wins, since it usually has impressive dimensions, which can be freely disposed of.

Naturally, the design in any case will be costly, but it is much cheaper to remodel an existing room than to attach a new one to the house. The basement opens wide opportunities for owners: it is universal and supports any ideas for accommodation.