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What are the Benefits of a Basement?

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More Space, Same Footprint

It has been estimated that in the UK we need 4 million new homes in the next 20 years, so naturally one important option when it comes to using our available building land better is to go down. By adding a basement to a two storey house you can get as much as 50 per cent more floor area without having to increase the size of the footprint or having to sacrifice any more garden.

Growing Families

Basements have a big appeal for growing families who do not want to move house.If a basement is an option it means you can stay in a home you love, in an area where you have already put down roots.

Better Site Utilisation

If you are having to dig deep foundations for any reason, it might make economic sense to add a basement. Deeper foundations cost more, so turning this expense into useable space makes sense.

Use a Sloping Site

Basements can also make good use of a sloping site. Rather than level it why not create a semi-basement, if necessary by doing a cut and fill, digging out from the slope and then levelling to form a firm base upon which to build?

Gaining Extra Space

Basements can be a good way of gaining extra space in sensitive sites where there are height restrictions. A full basement can mean the house can benefit from an additional storey, without having to raise the ridge height of the roof.

Energy Efficiency

A house with a basement has fewer directly exposed external walls.

Wall and floor insulation are improved and the means of construction incorporates additional mass. The effect of this is that the building does not overheat or cool down too fast. It therefore helps to retain heat and to control fluctuations in temperature. This is why the Basement Development Group says that a house with a basement can be up to 10 per cent more thermally efficient than one built entirely above ground and will also bring about savings in the quantity of insulation material needed.

Multi-purpose use

One of the joys of a standard basement is that it can be used for a variety of purposes and graduate from being a children’s playroom to a television and games room for them when they grow older. Unusual specialist uses include basements specifically designed to provide swimming pools or wine cellars.