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Posted by Goedjn on October 3, 2006, 12:07 pm
>I would like to make a den in my currently unfinished basement and I
>have two issues I need to resolve in order to accomplish this:
>
>1) The clearance on the ceiling in the basement now is fine unfinished,
>but putting in a regular drop ceiling requires 4 inches as I recall, and
>I'd like to not take up that much of the overhead space. Is there any
>other drop ceiling technology out there that requires less space? If
>not, is a drywall ceiling feasible in a basement? I am reluctant to put
>one in because having access to the piping and wiring above is
>important. Any thoughts?
Drywall is fine, as long as you're comfortable patching holes in it.
Put plastic access hatches wherever there are fittings you
want to be able to get at.
>
>2) The current steps to the basement are somewhat steep and face the
>back wall of the basement. I would prefer the stair itself to turn 180
>degrees so that when entering the new basement den, you enter right into
>the room instead of having to do a turnaround at the bottom of the
>stair. I have lived in old homes before which had a "fan" type of stair
>(each step is about an inch wide on one side, and each step "fans out"
>to be full width on the other edge next to the outer wall). Would that
>be something I could easily get built by a contractor/carpenter
>nowadays, or not? (I'm just not sure if such stairs are commonly built
>today....
You can get winders built, but the reason they're increasingly rare is
that they're a shitty solution to the problem. They're awkward at
best, and dangereous at worst. Will the design of the upper
story(ies) allow you to flip the stairwell end-for end? Is there
enough headroom for a complete landing and a 90-degree turn?
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