Who Has a Basement?

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WriterWriter

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Just out of curiosity, up here in Canada it's kind of par for course to have basements. I thought the U.S. was the same as I'd always seen people on TV with basements. But considering some recent comments form American friends and people on this board, it seems they're not as common as I thought. Which is a pity considering our hobby! Is it an earthquake thing?

I'm particularly interested in hearing from people 'round Portland (OR) as I could be moving that way soon.

And if you DO have a basement, is there any reason you don't have a bar? :)

-WW
 
it's a matter of two things really, the height of the water table in the area and the soil composition. here in michigan youll most likely have a basement of some sort, even if it's a root cellar.
 
I live in Vermont. I have a basement. I used to live in Michigan, had a basement in every house I lived in there. Lived around Los Angeles for a couple of years, no basement. Lived in Phoenix, AZ for a couple of years one summer, no basement.
 
I live in the south east, and basements are not uncommon, but my house is built on a concrete slab foundation. Common as they are less expensive to construct, I believe. I do NOT prefer them, as a DIYer, they commonly are layed over the plumbing. My current house had a good remodel and we pulled everything but the supply above the slab.

With regard to brewing, I have a shop that I am working on now that the house is nearing completion. I plan on moving brewing operations out there.
 
I live in Florida now and if you dig 1-2 feet down you hit water. I grew up in Las Vegas, NV and much of the ground beneath the surface is made of Caliche (sp?), this is basically really hard clay. It is really difficult to dig out and makes basement not fiscally feasible.
 
I have a basement and love it. They are pretty common in my area. I will have a bar once I get the money to do it.
 
Where I live, everybody has a basement. I think it's because of environment, though. You have to dig your supports below the frost line. The frost line is just over 6 feet deep, so even a crawl space has to have the footings over six feet deep. Since that's the case, might as well have a basement for approximately the same cost.

Where I grew up in Ohio, basements were not as common. I'd guess that maybe 1/2 to 3/4 of the people I knew had them.
 
I live about 90 minutes south of Portland, OR, and the house we're renting does not have a basement. We're in a brand new house in a newer part of the neighborhood, and I don't think many of the newer homes around here have basements.

The cynic in me thinks the company who threw the houses together wanted to get it done as fast as possible, and as cheaply as possible, so they didn't bother with basements.

The not-so-cynic in me thinks it probably has something to do with the water table and how much it freaking rains over here in the winter. Basements in the older houses may flood or have a mold problem from all the moisture, but I'm not positive.
 
YooperBrew said:
Where I live, everybody has a basement. I think it's because of environment, though. You have to dig your supports below the frost line. The frost line is just over 6 feet deep, so even a crawl space has to have the footings over six feet deep. Since that's the case, might as well have a basement for approximately the same cost.

Where I grew up in Ohio, basements were not as common. I'd guess that maybe 1/2 to 3/4 of the people I knew had them.
Click to expand...

It's all about the frost line. I don't think it has anything do with the water table. You can install a sump pump if the water table is too high. But if you build a host and the basement doesn't go below the frost line, then your house will shift every winter when the ground freezes and again when it thaws in spring.

I've lived in Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota and have always had a basement.
 
When I lived in New Orleans, no basement, seeing as NOLA is below sea level. Here in Ohio, I have a basement. I also have a screened -in back porch so that's where I brew, or will when it gets a little warmer.
 
I have a pseudo basement here in Georgia...

It is a ranch w/ a partial basement... I have a three car garage and two rooms + a bathroom that are essentially below ground level... I love it since Florida doesn't have a lot of basements...
 
I have a basement.

Why don't I have a bar? Well, my house was built before ammenties like plumbing & electricity, so long story short:

The guy who built the place was just over 5' tall. He dug the basement with the help of a mule & a shovel. He put the floor joists a few inches above his head. Fast forward to plumbing & wires & a simple duct system, and I bash my head in everytime I go down there.

I'd love to dig 2 more feet down & have a real 4th floor to the house, but it ain't in the cards right now. But it does might fine for bottle conditiong.
 
zac said:
I have a basement.

Why don't I have a bar? Well, my house was built before ammenties like plumbing & electricity, so long story short:

The guy who built the place was just over 5' tall. He dug the basement with the help of a mule & a shovel. He put the floor joists a few inches above his head. Fast forward to plumbing & wires & a simple duct system, and I bash my head in everytime I go down there.

I'd love to dig 2 more feet down & have a real 4th floor to the house, but it ain't in the cards right now. But it does might fine for bottle conditiong.
Click to expand...

I love houses with history like that, Zac! How about a pic or two?
 
drunkatuw said:
It's all about the frost line. I don't think it has anything do with the water table. You can install a sump pump if the water table is too high. But if you build a host and the basement doesn't go below the frost line, then your house will shift every winter when the ground freezes and again when it thaws in spring.

I've lived in Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota and have always had a basement.
Click to expand...

I live in southern texas, 1 mile from the gulf of mexico, what is this frost you speak of? We don't have basements because putting a shovel into the ground causes water to come out. For us, it's all about the water table.
 
drunkatuw said:
I don't think it has anything do with the water table. You can install a sump pump if the water table is too high.
Click to expand...

Actually, around here it's all about the water table. Not many people have basements. Water tables are variable in each location. There are locations around here where one day it might be 15 ft and a few weeks later it could be 3 ft, depending on precipitation and soil geology.

Most builders here won't build them due to the liability. Sump pumps are too risky and can't handle the load in a lot of places. You have to waterproof the crap out of the foundation walls and even then they might leak because of the high water table. Plus a 1500 sf (footprint) house will add about $10-$12K just on builder cost over a 4 ft crawlspace. So, unless it's a custom home on soil with a low water table, basements just aren't done around here.
 
Depends where you are and what type of housing around here. In the suburbs most people have a basement. I live in rented out houses near campus, some have basements, some don't. Our house has a cellar you have to walk down stairs to on the outside of the house. When I get my own house it is going to have the most badass bar area you have ever seen. I love building stuff and making things awesome, and beer.
 
Growing up in Nashville lots of people had basements, but down here in southern Louisiana basements are impossible to build.
 
Here in Quebec basements are a pretty common thing, i have one and so do most people i know unless they live in an apartment.

I don't have a Bar down there, but this is where i store my fermenting brew and bottled ones as well, then there is my computer repair room, my weight lifting room with TV Stereo, DVD and such, 2 bedrooms and a bathroom.

Weird thing is, i always loved to spend some time in the basement, feels good down there for some reasons. :)
 
Middle of the Mitten, MI

Basement: Every house I've lived in has had a basement. Depending on where in the basement I can ferment between 60 and 67*F.

Bar: Check. I've wanted one if every house I've lived in. Now I've got one.

2693193768_bd2f20a087.jpg
 
I grew up in Louisiana, and had never even seen a basement my entire life until I moved up to Oregon. And even then, they weren't everywhere. I now live in Maryland, and I have a basement. There is one finished room down here (my office), and the rest is unfinished with now easy utility connections. So, without some serious remodeling, I won't be having a bar down here anytime soon.

Also, there a million things we need to save up for, and a bar isn't exactly in the top ten.
 
When my parents and I lived in our last house, it was seven feet to wet soil. No basement, but an evil little crawl space.
Their house now is in an area with the water table at around 30 feet, so they do have a basement.
My house has a basement as well, although the water table is only three feet below my basement floor.
My bar is in my parlor.
 
The house we made an offer on (and they counter offered but only wanted 5k more!) has a huge unfinished basement. Its like a blank canvas and I am the artist. But, that is years down the road as there is a bunch of stuff that needs to be taken care of first.
 
Everybody in Missouri has a basement.

I finished ours three years ago. Two movie rooms. A great room. A bedroom and a huge bathroom with walk-in marble tiled shower. The basement makes up about 1,100 square feet.

Of course...the only part of the basement that isn't finished is where I spend most (almost all) of my time:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eB2r29rekE&feature=channel_page]YouTube - Brew Shop Tour[/ame]
 
BierMuncher said:
Everybody in Missouri has a basement.

I finished ours three years ago. Two movie rooms. A great room. A bedroom and a huge bathroom with walk-in marble tiled shower. The basement makes up about 1,100 square feet.
Click to expand...

As usual, BM lays us all to waste. :rockin: Buzzkill. :D
 
BM, i couldnt watch the entire video because my internet sucks at work, but are you brewing with propane in your basement? What kind of ventilation do you have set up?
 
WriterWriter said:
Just out of curiosity, up here in Canada it's kind of par for course to have basements. I thought the U.S. was the same as I'd always seen people on TV with basements. But considering some recent comments form American friends and people on this board, it seems they're not as common as I thought. Which is a pity considering our hobby! Is it an earthquake thing?

I'm particularly interested in hearing from people 'round Portland (OR) as I could be moving that way soon.

And if you DO have a basement, is there any reason you don't have a bar? :)

-WW
Click to expand...

Having lived in several areas of the US, I can tell you that basements are common in the midwest & northeast, and almost nonexistant in the southeast & southwest, but there are always exceptions. A lot of homes in tornado prone areas will at least have some sort of storm shelter if not a proper basement. The northwest is a bit of a mix as some have them & some don't. Technically, I don't have a basement, but my place is partially underground to begin with. For me outside ground level is about waist high inside, but I don't think that would count. Regards, GF.
 
menschmaschine said:
Actually, around here it's all about the water table. Not many people have basements. Water tables are variable in each location. There are locations around here where one day it might be 15 ft and a few weeks later it could be 3 ft, depending on precipitation and soil geology.

Most builders here won't build them due to the liability. Sump pumps are too risky and can't handle the load in a lot of places. You have to waterproof the crap out of the foundation walls and even then they might leak because of the high water table. Plus a 1500 sf (footprint) house will add about $10-$12K just on builder cost over a 4 ft crawlspace. So, unless it's a custom home on soil with a low water table, basements just aren't done around here.
Click to expand...

The houses (new construction) we've been looking at in the Townsend/Middletown area are being built with basements. Which is odd, I thought, considering the obvious groundwater issues...But, houses around here in Richmond (new construction) are mostly going up without basements. I get all kinds of excuses as to why, but mostly it has to do with builders cost and experience level (so I'm told).

I grew up with a basement in Michigan and I swear my next house wil have one--even if its in Delaware.
 
Frost line and water table both affect a basement. A deep frost line makes a basement a fairly minor cost increase over the required footings. So most buildings in the north have a basement. However a high water table make basements problematic so the are rare where the water table is high.

Once you get to areas like the south west there is no need for anything more than a slab for a foundation. Because this is much cheaper than digging and pouring a basement few houses will have a cellar.
Here in NE Ohio nearly everyone has a basement. But by the time you get to southern Ohio its not unusual to see crawl spaces.

Craig
 
Thanks guys for the info. I had never heard of a frost line or water table. I guess down in Portland it's just a matter of looking around.

Another thing about basements that made me ask is the possibility of renting them out to students, or whomever. In Vancouver (5.5 hour drive from Portland) you've got half the city refurnishing their basements to supplement the mortgage. But back at Christmas I ran into a guy from Portland who had never heard of this practice.
 
My basement is dark and damp, with stone walls and a very rough concrete floor. I can only stand up between the rafters. I'd have a bar if I could, but it's still a great place to ferment and keep 40 cases of beer.
 
I have a walk-out style, not a dungeun-style basement.

My back doors lead out of my brewing kitchen and a slider at the other end of the house, a bathroom, TV room fireplace and a couple of tables. We also have an East German Eckbank (corner bench unit).
 
I've heard those short, not a basement, not a crawl space foundation areas called "Michigan Basements" when we were looking at older homes (80+). Most had some sort of water cistern as well.
 

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