Basements advice
Why basements take on water around here, how to find where yours gets in, and what decides a finish before anyone frames a wall.
Basements · Cost guide
What drives basement finishing cost beyond square footage?
Why two basements of the same size can need different budgets, and how to compare scope before choosing finishes.
Basements · Seasonal
Can foundation cracks be fixed in an Illinois winter
Most crack repair does not wait for spring. What has to wait is digging, and why temperature, not the calendar, decides the rest.
Basements · How-to
How much ceiling height a finished basement needs, and how to measure yours
Code asks for 7 feet in a room you’ll live in. How to measure your basement before anyone prices a finish, and what the options are if it comes up short.
Basements · Code and permits
Illinois egress window code for a basement bedroom, plain English
What the 2018 building code requires for a basement bedroom’s escape window: size, sill height and the window well outside it.
Basements · Comparison
Interior drain tile vs exterior excavation: which fixes a wet basement
Interior drain tile and exterior excavation solve a wet basement in different places, at very different costs. What each one actually does.
Basements · Diagnosis
Signs your basement isn’t ready to finish yet
Water and moisture get found and fixed before anything is framed over, and ceiling height gets measured before anything gets priced.
Basements · Diagnosis
Why basements leak around Algonquin, and how to find where yours gets in
The ground here drains slowly, and water has only a few ways into a basement. How to tell which one you have before you pay for a fix.
Water down there, or ready to finish it?
Tell us what’s going on. We’ll come out, find the cause, measure and give you a written estimate.
Someone from our team calls or texts to set up a visit.