Q. My girlfriend and I have a partially finished basement. She wants me to divide part of the basement off for an office. What is the best wall/divider/partition I can use so she will have privacy from the rest of the basement? Is Drywall the only answer? What can I use for a nice ceiling as well with lighting? Thanks for your help, it really means a lot to us.

A. There are many ideas for dividing rooms. A wall is the best, but if you do not want that, you can use purchased office dividers (can be expensive), or bookshelves, or changing screen, or even a ceiling to floor curtain on a cable system. I like drywalled ceilings, but you can use a drop ceiling, or tiles. As for lighting..most basements have little natural light, so great lighting is necessary. Recessed lighting, track lighting both work well. If you do not like these then traditional lighting is suffice when portable lighting is added...table lamps, floor lights..even rope lighting in niches or shelving all add to the ambiance if that is the look you are going for. Brighter lighting is a must in the office section.

Q. I recently bought a house built in the mid 1800s, in the basement it is all limestone: the walls, ceiling and stairs. I really want to keep the old look in the basement but I also live in Kansas and we have a lot of tornados so it needs to be safe. I just need to know how to seal it up and make it as strong as possible. Also the floors are dirt I was wondering if anyone had any ideas for the floors to go with the old look.

A. If the limestone is smooth and doesn't need any refinishing (or if you like it the way it is) you can just apply stone sealer (they have various tints, so you can choose). Old, sun-bleached barn wood always looks great on basement walls, if you want to cover the limestone. If the ceiling is high enough, you could add some character to that by putting in rafters (with the necessary support frame placed in the corners. As for the flooring, anything you put down would have to have some type of sub-flooring underneath to keep out moisture and dampness. Although it would be quite a job to accomplish, concrete would be best. Once you have that done, you could use concrete stain (there are beautiful choices for refinishing concrete these days) and then just use area rugs to accent the floor. http://www.concretenetwork.com/stained-concrete/ http://www.finishabasement.org/how-to-finish-a-basement-on-a-budget.html#more-56

Q. I was wondering what to use to kill the bleach and what kind of materials are good for basement remodels. If it would be better to get mold resistant or moisture resistant. Also what kind of ventilation is required in a basement. And maybe some cons on wood paneling because that was what they were planning on putting down there and I think it's a terrible idea.

A. Before you spend all that money remodeling your basement make sure he is not going to flood again Have a waterproofing company install an internal perimeter drainage system to collect all the water around and under your foundation and divert it to a sump pump. The sump pump will then get the water out and discharge it away from the foundation. Only then you can safely remodel your basement. As for materials I recommend you avoid drywall, wood studs and fiberglass insulation. All these materials are know to absorb water and grow mold. Fiberglass also loses all its R-Value when humid. I suggest you look into finishing systems developed specifically for basements, considering that even basements that do not flood or leak, always have some level of moisture - usually ground moisture seeping in through the concrete basement walls. Since not all theses systems are created equal, make sure you pick one that is 100% waterproof, non-absorbent and inorganic. Cement core, rigid foam board insulated panels and plastic basement flooring tiles for example are made to withstand all sorts of basement conditions and will never get ruined even if your basement floods again. They also offer thermal and moisture protection and can be removed to access plumbing and wiring as needed - a very desirable feature in a basement.

Q. I am doing remodeling on my basement. I put Marble on it, but still isn't dry after 1 week?? is it normal?

A. No this is not normal, I'm not sure what kind of flooring you have there need more info. but it sounds like something went wrong and you will probably have a messy clean up.

Q. I have an idea of putting a toilet and sink in my basement. in my laundry room I have this big corner where I could put a toilet/sink, but there is not a drain, so how much do you think to install drain in floor, running water pipes and etc.? everything is all in the basement pipes, drain, etc, just not where i wanna put it.

A. Its about $767.94 per hour.

Q. My sister owns a new 2100 sq ft townhome in UT and she was asking me how much it would cost to finish her 700 sq ft basement. I said I had no idea since I live in CA. I told her to contact her local contractors, but she says she doesn't trust any of them since they probably over charge anyways. She's contacted about 3 and they all have their prices around $20k - 22K. She believes she can get it for less. Anyone can help out with this, I am not a handy man, and her husband is on his 5th deployment overseas? Thanks,

A. I just checked with the data that ServiceMagic keeps on the projects they help homeowners with. This data is not specific to Provo, but only the Salt Lake/Ogden area. For this project, it looks like the average basement remodel in that area costs $18,500. Their nationwide average shows this to be $20,680. A little caveat is that this data doesn't show how big the basements were or the scope of the remodel. But I think these figures should help get your sister in the ballpark, which it looks like the contractors she's talked to are in that range. Her basement seems smaller than average, and as along as she isn't looking for top of the line on all of the materials and such, I think it could likely be done for cheaper, maybe in the $13-15k range. I also found some articles that might be useful. This first one helps you understand what exactly will happen during the actual basement remodeling process so that you can prepare your home and family properly. The other two articles just provide some cool ideas for basement remodels: http://www.servicemagic.com/article.show.What-to-Expect-with-Your-Basement-Remodel.13305.html http://www.servicemagic.com/article.show.8-Basement-Remodeling-Essentials.10576.html http://www.servicemagic.com/article.show.5-Genius-Basement-Remodels.12073.html Hope this helps. Thanks to your brother-in-law for serving our country.

Q. I have a 1500 sq foot basement which I do not plan to use as living space. We just occasionally use it for recreation and when we have a lot of people over. The wall are poured concrete and look pretty disgusting . I was wondering how much finishing can be done without legally needing a permit. Does it vary from state to state ?? I live in NJ . Thanks

A. You can paint, , do any thing as long as it doesn't,t require building or removing

Q. I used 3 1/2" fiberglass paper backed insulation. Would water proof drywall be better? The basement walls have no leaks appears dry.

A. You've done everything right so far. Go ahead and hang green board while you are at this stage. It doesn't cost that much more and might save you down the road. Here are some links t5hat might help you...