In the next week I will be designing and installing a clothes closet (roughly 7′ x 7′) in the basement of a customer in Westchester County, New York. The customer would like to be able to access the clothes on a fairly regular basis. The house was built around the turn of the century and the basement can only be accessed from the first floor and with the exception of a couple of windows, is completely underground. The floor is a concrete slab and the walls are stone and mortar. The customer recently moved into the house and said that the basement is relatively dry, though they do run a dehumifier.
My question is what are the special considerations that must be addressed for this project. I have built/remodeled closets for customers before, but never in a basement. What materials work best? Should I fir out the wall and put insulation between the back of the closet and wall?
Any feedback you could provide would be greatly appreciated.
– Brian
Replies
Yes, insulation between the closet and the foundation is not a bad idea, since the earth will be an infinite heat-sink.
In addition, I'd use treated lumber for the bottom plates, and maybe for all the studs and the baseboard too. Although the basement seems relatively dry, that may be because the HO has not lived there long enough.
Also, seems to me that ventilation should be a serious concern. In a basement that requires a dehumidifier, any closet will also require a dehumidifier -- or at least some ventilation to get the dehumidified air into it.
The ventilation will also allow some of the house heat to get to the closet. If the heat doesn't get into the closet, then the heat-sink wall will have a mojor effect, and not just in the winter.