What I learned from building a basement

Big projects take time

This might sound too obvious, but it is important to remember, and plan accordingly.

Plan, but be ready to change your mind

Planning the basement was the fun part for me as a designer. My wife and I had a good idea for how we wanted to use the space. A guest room, an office, a family room and a bathroom. Nothing fancy. I made countless sketches of how we can lay things out.

We left the family room wide open, but planned two spaces with two independent lighting zones.

It was a little bit more complicated with lights. One thing I learned is that it is really hard to figure out the lighting until you install it. We ended up putting in additional lights, and did not regret it.

Process matters

Framing has to be there before the electrical. Insulation cannot be installed after drywall is in place. You cannot paint before you prime.

Layers of imperfection

Great is the enemy of good.

I’ve never done this before. I was scared to use the mitre saw. When I got it done, some friends of mine who were in the construction business gave me compliments for my work. Sure it was not perfect, but it was good enough, and from their words better than some professionals would do.

Don’t make excuses. Embrace constraints.

I started framing when my youngest girl was only 6 months old. She slept a lot, and my wife did not allow me to make any noise while she napped. I had very little time in the evenings to get anything done, and those naps did not help. But I found a secret. I found something I could do without making noise. With framing a lot (if not most) of the work goes into picking straight studs, and then measuring and marking them. And that is what I did. While my little one was napping, I would spend an hour or so sorting the studs, measuring and marking them. When she was awake, I could cut them and put the wall together in no time at all.

The power of just starting

Might as well be the power of just showing up… I noticed this happening closer to the end, when enthusiasm waned, and tiredness accumulated. I really didn’t want to see or do much of the work anymore. The only way to get myself down there to get some work done (aside from having my wife force me) is just going down there and starting on something simple, sometimes just sweeping the floor.