When growing families face home congestion, one of the greatest remedies is to extend their useable living area footprint by renovating or remodeling the basement. This is an especially great idea if your home lacks a more recreational or lounging room. Aside from the improved quality of life, a refurbished basement can even prove to have an ROI. Suppose you’re thinking of turning your basement into a fun room or other lounging area. In that case, we will tell you how to convert your basement into a rec room.

1. Pick One Theme and Stick to It

First and foremost, you must select a theme. Nothing is worse than having opposing themes in an area that should be relaxing. If you are not an interior decorator, you may be unaware of how much a lack of consistency in style can ruin the atmosphere and feel of your recreation area. That is why it is critical to choose a single style and stick to it. If you want an Art Deco-style rec room, for example, you must decorate the walls, arrange the furniture, and have appropriate lighting. The same can be said for any other style. Therefore, do your research ahead of time, or, if you have the funds, hire a professional interior decorator who can advise you on how to proceed.

On the other hand, you need to decide what kind of a rec room you want to have. You don’t want your rec room to be a place where you are going to play pool, and at the same time, make it your library. This is especially the case if your basement is not particularly large.

2. Safety Precautions

Stairs in older houses may be steeper and narrower than building rules allow nowadays. However, there are solutions to make these older steps safer. You might, for example, boost safety by:

• Providing railings for all family members, including children and adults
• Ensuring that carpets on steps have landings or hard grip material
• Enhanced lighting and strategically positioned switches
• Having a second exit allows youngsters to escape in the case of an emergency

We must emphasize this because moving items into a basement can be hazardous if you are not cautious. And the fact that most basement entrances are not secure exacerbates the danger. As a result, if you are converting your rec room into a library, for example, you should exercise caution when moving your books into the basement. You need to be careful and protect yourself just as you would protect your collection while you are moving your home library.

3. Moisture Management

Excessive dampness or moisture is one of the reasons many homeowners don’t use their basements as rec rooms. Basements often hold moisture, which homeowners may alleviate by utilizing dehumidifiers. Many property owners are reluctant to invest in a basement improvement since they must drain the water from these units on a regular basis throughout the hot and humid season. In fact, if they don’t do it, there is an increased risk of mold. However, there are workarounds for the moisture problem. For example, if you connect your basement to an existing HVAC system, you will alleviate most of the problems that are associated with basement living.

4. Chose The Right Flooring When You Turn Your Basement Into A Rec Room

The type of flooring you should choose for your basement is one exception when it comes to the theme. In general, it is a good idea to have soft carpeted flooring in the basement. It will help isolate your rec room from the cold concrete floor. However, out of all the rooms in your home, the risk of flooding is the highest in the basement. A flooded basement is one of the most prevalent forms of water damage to a house, which is why flooring materials are very important. You must balance the comfort of a soft carpeted floor in your basement with the chance that you may have to change the whole thing if there is a large leak or a flood.

There are several coatings available for floor sealing and cosmetic improvement. This method eliminates the need for homeowners to re-carpet the newly created rec room. Area rugs give underfoot comfort and are more readily changed if you require floor padding. However, sometimes the best choice is to avoid carpeted floors altogether. Laminate flooring is waterproof, looks good, and feels pleasant to the touch. However, it won’t keep your rec room warm.

5. Pick the Right Furniture

The process of putting furniture into your basement is difficult. Therefore, you should choose wisely what you want to bring down after you turn your basement into a rec room. The first thing you need to think about is the size of the furniture that you want in your basement. You don’t want a single couch to take up half of your rec room. Therefore, you should do all the measurements ahead of time, but not before your basement renovations are complete. When you convert your basement into a rec room, you will have less space than you did before the remodeling work. You need to consider the new flooring, the insulation, and all the other additions that were made to make your basement a livable space. So, to reiterate, in order to avoid picking furniture that is too big for your new rec room, do all of the measurements after the renovations are finished. 

6. Ventilation Is Crucial for This Renovation

A room that can hold many people must have good ventilation. This is one of the most important things we should mention when talking about how to convert your basement into a rec room. This is because basements, in general, are rarely designed as a living space; therefore, they lack sufficient ventilation. If your basement has windows, you should make use of them. However, If you lack windows, air conditioning is always an option. The sizes of various kinds of air conditioning systems vary. It is a question of selecting the one that best complements your environment and its intended function. With an effective ventilation system, you will be able to control mold and mildew. Additionally, heating and cooling the space will be simplified and more efficient.