Black & Decker The Complete Guide to Finishing Basements: Step-by-step Projects for Adding Living Space without Adding On (Black & Decker Complete Guide) [Paperback]

Editors of Creative Publishing (Author)

Book Description

Series: Black & Decker Complete Guide | Publication Date: April 1, 2009

 Creating extra living space affordably has never been easier. This book shows dozens of different uses for basement spaces, then shows readers exactly how to accomplish each task. Painstakingly clear photos leave nothing to the imagination, as they teach consumers exactly how to handle modern materials and tools to add an extra bathroom, a family room, bedroom, home office, or game room to their homes.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Midwest Book Review

“A basement can be as fine a living space as any other area of the house. The Complete Guide to Finishing Basements is a home improvement guide for those who want to turn their utility room basement into a room to be enjoyed by the entire family, or just one person. Basements present their own challenges, such as moisture, lack of heat and light, among other issues, but many ideas are presented to remedy these. With extra advice on morphing one's basement into many types of more useful rooms, The Complete Guide to Finishing Basements is a fine choice for anyone who wants to make their bottom level something special.”

About.com (5 star rating)

“This is a fat, 250+ page guide that takes you from inspiration to completion. I am not exaggerating when I say "complete," either. For instance, the guide not only presents you with at least six different basement flooring options, but goes into intricate detail about how to install each type of flooring.

 

“How do these Creative Publishing guides excel? The images. The images are what make these Black and Decker guides. As with previous guides, we still have the same elaborately constructed sets populated by a diverse set of people--everything well-lit and professionally photographed.

“Younger readers may be startled by the professionalism of these images. To these readers, the images may not seem ‘real’ enough. If you want ‘real,’ spend a day or two searching for user-generated content online and see what kind of basement you'll be able to finish from that advice. After squinting at grainy, darkly-lit photos (accompanied by little or no text narrative) taken by irritable DIY homeowners, you'll be praying for a crisp and clean view of the project at hand.”

About the Author

Creative Publishing international is a worldwide publisher of how-to books. The company's current retail offering includes over 300 titles on topics covering home improvement, home decorating, sewing, crafting, hunting & fishing, and photography. Over the past 15 years, CPi has developed high-quality photography step-by-step books with nationally recognized brand partners like Black & Decker and Singer.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Creative Publishing international (April 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1589234545
• ISBN-13: 978-1589234543
• Product Dimensions: 10.6 x 8.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #19,701 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Remodeling & Renovation > Basements & Attics
  • #23 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Do-It-Yourself

More About the Author

Veteran author Philip Schmidt (Golden, CO) has written bestselling DIY volumes on a wide range of home subjects, from green remodeling to storage to building treehouses.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good book, December 2, 2009

By 

Picturesque Music (In the sky) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black & Decker The Complete Guide to Finishing Basements: Step-by-step Projects for Adding Living Space without Adding On (Black & Decker Complete Guide) (Paperback)

I should warn that if you have no experience finishing basements it's not likely you'll be able to do a good job based on the readings of only one book, at least if you're obsessive like I am. However, of the books I've looked at this is one of the better ones.

What truly differentiates this from the other books I've looked at (Stanley's basement book and the 2007 version of this book--which unfortunately is still being sold at Home Depot instead of the current 2009, and a half dozen others), is its advise about insulation. FINALLY a book about basement finishing stops with the rubbish about batt insulation and vapor barriers, a technique advised against by pretty much all authorities on basement insulation (e.g. buildingscience.com) and talks about extruded foam boards. And not just foam boards, but a continual layer of foam, not the poor approach of furring wood strips against concrete and board between them. Also this book emphasizes and properly qualifies what it means to have a dry basement that can be properly insulated from the inside. Strange to me, though, is why it says not to seal the bottom of the foam where it touches the floor. I have recently done my basement with the foam and there is a good bit of air movement under the gap, plus the other resources I've found do indeed say it should be sealed off.

Be sure you aggressively insulate joist bays, too, with foam and caulking and/or great stuff spray foam.

Although finished basements have been around for decades, the contemporary approaches to them get around certain issues we're familiar with like moldy walls and that's why a book needs to stay abreast of current best practices and insulation is a key one of those.

My main criticism here is I am pretty sure the book still says that if roughing in an under-slab bathroom that a masonry blade can be used on a circular saw. Please do not ever try this. You'll need a dozen of them. Go with a diamond blade or even rent a wet saw and/or jackhammer. If you do not properly score the lines you'll end up with a huge section of concrete that has to be moved as cracks span out. I know this because it's what I went through recently. Masonry blades on a circular saw cannot possibly move efficiently the amount of material away to score the lines for a full basement rough-in.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very comprehensive book, January 12, 2011

By 

Brandon Schuh - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Black & Decker The Complete Guide to Finishing Basements: Step-by-step Projects for Adding Living Space without Adding On (Black & Decker Complete Guide) (Paperback)

Very impressed. Lessons and skills taught in this book extend to a wide variety of projects - useful in multiple areas of the house. I would highly reccommend.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice Book, January 24, 2010

By 

E. Marklew - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Black & Decker The Complete Guide to Finishing Basements: Step-by-step Projects for Adding Living Space without Adding On (Black & Decker Complete Guide) (Paperback)

A great book, with up-to-date information. better than most with more hands-on rather than "design" ideas.