ᐅ Is a Basement Practical for a Single-Family Home or Usually Too Expensive?
Created on: 30 Jun 2018 21:56
A
Abzug86
Hello everyone,
I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce myself briefly: my name is Michael, I’m 32 years old, married, (currently) no children, employed at an insurance agency in northern Bavaria, and my wife and I are planning to build a new single-family house in 2019. I will share more details in a separate thread once the concept is worked out in detail.
At the moment, we are getting inspiration from the catalogs of several general contractors and are considering which "type" of house is right for us. This raised the question: do we need a basement? And if so, for what purpose? I’ll explain this further with an example (both plots are level):
Single-family house 1: basement, ground floor, usable attic, footprint 100 m² (1,076 sq ft), living area (according to the Wohnflächenverordnung) 140 m² (1,507 sq ft).
Single-family house 2: ground floor, usable attic, footprint 130 m² (1,399 sq ft), living area (according to the Wohnflächenverordnung) 185 m² (1,992 sq ft).
Both options would cost roughly the same (~375,000 EUR turnkey). Single-family house 1 has a basement; single-family house 2 does not but offers significantly more living space. Both are heated by a heat pump.
In my understanding, there are three main reasons for having a basement: 1. as storage space, 2. for the heating system, and 3. for the utility/laundry room. Step by step:
1.) I can’t really think of much that I would need to store down there—at least not on a total area of about 50+ m² (540+ sq ft)...
2.) Since heating is provided by a heat pump, the "heater" itself would be located outside anyway. The basement would only house the controls (and the hot water tank?). I assume these could also be installed on the ground floor, right?
3.) If the utility room is in the basement and the bedroom is on the upper floor, my wife would have to go up and down two levels. Also, ventilation would be difficult when air-drying laundry. For these reasons, it might even make more sense to move this area to the ground floor.
I’m curious to hear your thoughts on basements—perhaps I am missing important points or have a wrong understanding regarding the "heating room." Thanks in advance for your help!
I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce myself briefly: my name is Michael, I’m 32 years old, married, (currently) no children, employed at an insurance agency in northern Bavaria, and my wife and I are planning to build a new single-family house in 2019. I will share more details in a separate thread once the concept is worked out in detail.
At the moment, we are getting inspiration from the catalogs of several general contractors and are considering which "type" of house is right for us. This raised the question: do we need a basement? And if so, for what purpose? I’ll explain this further with an example (both plots are level):
Single-family house 1: basement, ground floor, usable attic, footprint 100 m² (1,076 sq ft), living area (according to the Wohnflächenverordnung) 140 m² (1,507 sq ft).
Single-family house 2: ground floor, usable attic, footprint 130 m² (1,399 sq ft), living area (according to the Wohnflächenverordnung) 185 m² (1,992 sq ft).
Both options would cost roughly the same (~375,000 EUR turnkey). Single-family house 1 has a basement; single-family house 2 does not but offers significantly more living space. Both are heated by a heat pump.
In my understanding, there are three main reasons for having a basement: 1. as storage space, 2. for the heating system, and 3. for the utility/laundry room. Step by step:
1.) I can’t really think of much that I would need to store down there—at least not on a total area of about 50+ m² (540+ sq ft)...
2.) Since heating is provided by a heat pump, the "heater" itself would be located outside anyway. The basement would only house the controls (and the hot water tank?). I assume these could also be installed on the ground floor, right?
3.) If the utility room is in the basement and the bedroom is on the upper floor, my wife would have to go up and down two levels. Also, ventilation would be difficult when air-drying laundry. For these reasons, it might even make more sense to move this area to the ground floor.
I’m curious to hear your thoughts on basements—perhaps I am missing important points or have a wrong understanding regarding the "heating room." Thanks in advance for your help!
The great thing is that a basement is no longer a necessity, as it used to be in the days of oil heating systems and the like. Nowadays, each homeowner can plan according to their own experience.
So far, I have never made practical use of my basement rooms and will therefore build without a basement. The costs are not reasonably justified by the benefits for my purposes.
So far, I have never made practical use of my basement rooms and will therefore build without a basement. The costs are not reasonably justified by the benefits for my purposes.
Hello
I only know a house with a basement! That’s how I grew up.
My basement (about 100m² (1,076 sq ft)) is divided into: laundry room, drying room, electrical room (about 3m² (32 sq ft)), sauna room, hallway (leading to the garage with a safe door, fire resistance rating B), a room with a window, a workshop, and a safe room (VDS1 certified with ventilation) about 16m² (172 sq ft), which is also intended as a panic room.
This might sound unusual to some. But both safe doors cost me around 4,000 euros. I installed them myself.
Of course, my entire house is built to withstand impact resistance class WK2, including the roof.
Steven
I only know a house with a basement! That’s how I grew up.
My basement (about 100m² (1,076 sq ft)) is divided into: laundry room, drying room, electrical room (about 3m² (32 sq ft)), sauna room, hallway (leading to the garage with a safe door, fire resistance rating B), a room with a window, a workshop, and a safe room (VDS1 certified with ventilation) about 16m² (172 sq ft), which is also intended as a panic room.
This might sound unusual to some. But both safe doors cost me around 4,000 euros. I installed them myself.
Of course, my entire house is built to withstand impact resistance class WK2, including the roof.
Steven
Hello
for the passage from the basement to the garage, something typically German: At the building inspection, “only” the vault door was installed. It weighs 275 kg (606 lbs), with an electronic combination lock on both sides. It was noted that a fireproof door was missing. So I had to install a fire-rated door directly in front of the vault door. So: vault door, about 30 cm (12 inches) of space, and then the fire-rated door. Well, to comply with the law.
Steven
for the passage from the basement to the garage, something typically German: At the building inspection, “only” the vault door was installed. It weighs 275 kg (606 lbs), with an electronic combination lock on both sides. It was noted that a fireproof door was missing. So I had to install a fire-rated door directly in front of the vault door. So: vault door, about 30 cm (12 inches) of space, and then the fire-rated door. Well, to comply with the law.
Steven
Bookstar schrieb:
I like it, especially with Merkel’s policies it’s definitely good to secure the house like that. Unfortunately, I didn’t do that back then.
Where do people without a basement dry their laundry in winter? Where do you keep extra supplies?In the dryer, on the drying rack next to the washing machine, and spotted clothes also dry in the sun during winter.
What supplies? Just a few cases of drinks and some food supplies? They go where they are needed, usually in the kitchen or in the storage room between the garage and living areas.
D
daniels872 Jul 2018 16:09Bonnie_Ham schrieb:
Don’t tell me you’ve never seen spiders in a basement.........?Of course I have! Even 10,000m (33,000 ft) above Pakistan, on the way to Singapore. They’re simply everywhere!
Thanks to the ventilation system, we no longer keep any windows open. Occasionally, one might slip in through an open door. But they seem to prefer our utility room on the ground floor. When a house is airtight, it’s also spider-tight.
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