Finished Basement Gives Williamston, MI, Family Extra Space

Monday, November 6th, 2023 by Cathy Burke

Challenge

This couple loved their roomy old house but were tired of the ongoing maintenance. They also wanted their daughter to attend a different high school, so they moved to a smaller home in a better school district. The only drawback to their new residence was the lack of usable space. They found it by finishing the basement.

Solution

The wide-open basement in Greg and Ginger’s new home offered a perfect blank canvas for expanding the family’s living area. To begin with, they wanted an egress window to provide a safe and code-compliant emergency exit.

One of Ayers’ knowledgeable system design specialists met with the couple to learn more about their plans. Next, he did a thorough inside and outside inspection of the home looking for signs of water seepage, foundation problems, and other issues. He took measurements, snapped photos, and created a drawing of the home’s footprint.

The next step was to sit down with the homeowners and share his recommendations to transform the basement into the space they envisioned. He showed them the best place to install an egress window and explained the available options. Since underground spaces are prone to water leaks – and there’s nothing worse than a flooded finished basement – he also suggested installing our WaterGuard and SuperSump pump systems. These patented waterproofing solutions work together to collect water and discharge it outside away from the home.

Next, our specialist told the family about our basement-friendly finishing products, all designed to be used in humid below-ground environments. A few weeks later, after we obtained the necessary building permits, the Ayers crew came out to begin the installation.

The first step was to excavate a hole alongside the foundation for the egress window. Once it was ready, and after preparing the wall on the inside, the team used a concrete saw to carefully cut the opening. They installed the large, new window and put in a heavy-duty well with easy-to-climb steps. They added a WellDuct drain to the bottom of the well to take care of any water that collects there and then connected it to the home’s new full-perimeter waterproofing system, which was the next stage of the project.

To install our WaterGuard system, the crew first jackhammered a narrow trench in the basement floor along the outside walls. WaterGuard sits on top of the home’s footing (not alongside it) to prevent the system from clogging with mud and keep the basement dry for good. It even includes a lifetime transferable warranty! The WaterGuard piping was laid into the trench and connected to our SuperSump pump system, then concealed under the floor with fresh concrete. The final step to keep the family’s basement dry and humidity-free was to install our SaniDry dehumidifier and air cleaner.

Now it was time to ready the space for finishing. We replaced a rusty, old window with our energy-efficient EverLast basement window. Then we installed our exclusive Basement-to-Beautiful panels, which go directly against the foundation to tackle wall framing and insulating in a single step. Made of entirely inorganic materials, Basement-to-Beautiful panels can’t rot, attract mold, or be damaged by moisture and humidity. Finally, the Ayers team put down our ThermalDry basement subfloor matting, a 100% waterproof product that’s perfect for homeowners who want to install wall-to-wall carpeting in their finished basement.

Greg and Ginger are glad they trusted the experts at Ayers to help transform their basement into a dry, usable space they can confidently move forward with finishing. They’re especially thrilled they won’t ever need to worry about cleaning up a flood and can spend their time relaxing instead.

A large, easy-to-open egress window provides a quick escape from the basement in case of fire or another emergency. The attractive, stone-look well outside is made of rigid plastic that won't rust or cave in from soil or water pressure. It comes in several colors and includes built-in steps so even children can easily get out. Stone in the bottom of the well conceals a WellDuct drain to funnel any water into the WaterGuard system in the basement.

The family's new egress window has a strong, yet lightweight, acrylic cover over the well to keep out leaves and debris and to prevent anyone from accidentally falling in. It also allows plenty of light to enter the basement, making the space brighter and more pleasant.

Our WaterGuard interior drainage system was carefully installed alongside the existing baseboard heaters. Special ports allow access to the system so it can be cleaned and flushed, which is an important part of annual maintenance. The trench was finished with new concrete to conceal it.

The WaterGuard channel drains water into a two-foot-deep sump liner (crock) that houses a powerful Zoeller one-third horsepower cast-iron sump pump, capable of pumping 2,220 gallons of water per hour at an eight-foot head out of your basement.

The finished SuperSump includes an airtight sump lid to quiet the system and keep things from falling in and clogging the pump. It also features the patented battery-powered WaterWatch alarm to alert you if the water in the crock ever gets too high and the pump, which is a mechanical device that requires regular maintenance, doesn't function properly. A discharge pipe takes water up, connects to a line buried outside, and releases it far away from the house.

SaniDry is an incredibly effective dehumidifier and air cleaner capable of removing 100 pints of water per day. It uses the same energy as a typical 40-pint model and filters out unhealthy particles less than two microns in size (smaller than any mold spore or dust mite dropping). No more worrying about damp basement air affecting the family's allergies or asthma!

The ugly old windows in this basement were replaced with our energy-efficient EverLast windows. They're all vinyl, so they never rust or need painting. Plus, they have double-pane glass to keep out the wind and cold.

We installed Basement-to-Beautiful panels along the exterior walls of the space. They're made without wood or other organic materials, so they can't be damaged by water or moisture. In addition, they offer a continuous blanket of R-13 insulation to make the area warmer, include integrated steel studs and wiring channels to simplify final finishing, and have a narrow two-and-a-half-inch profile to maximize the basement floor area. We capped off the project with our ThermalDry subflooring. Installing this specially designed matting underneath carpeting will protect it from moisture seeping through the concrete below. It also creates a thermal break to increase the temperature of the floor by eight to 10 degrees.

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Finished Basement Gives Williamston, MI, Family Extra Space

Challenge

Solution

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