Basement theaters

[browndk26]

Originally Posted by sentinel41

Is there a subfloor beneath?

No subfloor just carpet pad.

[kareface]

This guy (link below) used dricore, and he did mention a notable (6 degree) temperature difference if I remember correctly. You can also use a normal subfloor, but you tend to lose more headroom. However, if you do the work yourself a traditional subfloor is cheaper.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1022589

[kurtis21]

As I was building my home theater I cut vents into the duct work. This has worked perfectly....any way you can remove some sheetrock and do this?

[gates70]

Although I have ducts in my basement HT, it still gets cool but that's a good thing if you have a lot of equipment because that alone heats up a room !

[Canada]

I use a blanket, I know its not ideal but it works and it's cheap.

[Hammie]

We have a gas fireplace.

[ZedsDead]

My basement is kinda chilly right now (live in Upstate NY), the wife is always cold anyways, I will grab a blanket depending upon what I am wearing. In the summer it's great though.

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by ZedsDead

My basement is kinda chilly right now (live in Upstate NY), the wife is always cold anyways, I will grab a blanket depending upon what I am wearing. In the summer it's great though.

+1...we have a ceramic tile floor and use only some area rugs, so it is cool. We have 2 air ducts in the ceiling blowing hot air, but it still gets chilly. I like it, as I am always hot, but the wife always needs a blanket.

[ryan4blu]

my basement HT room is heated. it was professionally finished right before they had to sell it. we lucked out big time. our house is only 980 sq ft upstairs, but with the downstairs about 3/4 finished it adds another 600-650 sq ft to our home. anyways thye put another zone in downstairs and 2 of the rooms have baseboard heat. check out my pics to see

[Fors*]

In my basement HT, we used the existing baseboard heating ducts for the baseboard heating above and just created vents in the ceiling in the basement that uses those same ducts to heat the HT room just as the rest of the house is heated.

[Dsella]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

haha..... funny you should say that...... we have 2 forced air furnaces, and we keep them set at 60 degrees...... Our entire house is C O L D !!!! (another reason the insulation guys are working here even as I type this!)

It may sound crazy to put up with a 60 degree house, but last winter we turned it up to about 68-70 degrees for a month in January/February, shortly after we moved in, and we received a gas-bill for almost $800 for one month..... Cleveland is cold in the winter when you have an old house! It's actually pretty common for our neighbors to have theirs low too (not like us, they keep it at 63/64/65 or so......) We plan on making it more comfortable when we're done "weatherizing" it......

But yeah.... for the OP.... You need to add heat to enjoy your basement theater

Yeah I am near Cleveland as well and it gets pretty cold. I just wear a hoodie and I am fine for the most part.

[ryan4blu]

Originally Posted by sentinel41

This guy (link below) used dricore, and he did mention a notable (6 degree) temperature difference if I remember correctly. You can also use a normal subfloor, but you tend to lose more headroom. However, if you do the work yourself a traditional subfloor is cheaper.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1022589

WOW, that was an amazing HT room he made what a great job!! thanks for the link

[CollinViegas]

I have to vents in my basement theater, it stays fairly warm in there during the winter. on the -30 degree days a small space heater is more than enough to warm up the entire theater within 15 mins.

[cdanielski]

I had similar concerns about coldness (Ohio) before finishing our basement. After a bunch of research, the DeltaFL product seemed the best for our application. I was able to get it from Lowe's in 5' wide rolls. With the addition of 3/4" T&G plywood it acts as a wonderful thermal break. Add carpet and pad and the overall thickness is only 1.75".

We only have two air vents for ~1,200 sqft because our furnace was already at its max run capacity. I planned on extra wiring for baseboard heat, but it really doesn't need it. I couldn't be happier with the product.

Here is their website:
DELTA®-FL - Vapor Barrier for installation on concrete slabs, provides a warm and dry floor

Good luck!

[Beta Man]

another option is heating the actual floor.........only downfall, is that you would need to do wood/tile, or some other flooring type (cork maybe??)

I'm installing heating coils in a bathroom, and it's surprisingly cheap and efficient.

[BrianAg95]

I am in the process of finishing my basement now, and of course a HT corner will be included.. As for warmth...

I did do the following:
Dricore panels for subfloor over concrete. It makes a huge difference in how the floor feels to your feet, and it does add R value. ALSO you should never have that moldy carpet stink with them, as any condensation coming through the concrete has an air channel and does not get into the pad and carpet.

Insulate Insulate Insulate. I did R13 on my walls as I did 2x4 walls. The gap between the floors and ceiling around the perimiter I did about R43. ( R30 + R13). Make sure you have no air leaks... I found an air leak below our bay window that the builder didn't seal properly, and it was just gushing air.

Added a heat outlet from furnace. My basement came with 2 vents from my first floor furnace. I checked the heat calcs and the capacity of my furnace and it could handle another outlet. So I added the outlet. This made the biggest difference in temps. Now air gushes up my stairs from the basement, so air circulation in the basement is good.

My basement now stays very close to my first floor temp. And I still need to do some window caulking. which should make it even better.

I did put a ceiling heater/fan/light in the bathroom, but it isn't even active yet, and of course would only be used once in a while so isn't affecting the heat down there yet.

I am in Colorado.

Other things I looked into, but did not do. might give you some things to look into.

Radiant ceiling panels. I decided against these as it requires you to insulate the ceiling which I did not want to do.
Baseboard heaters. I ran out of room on my panel, so I decided not to upsize my panel to support the circuits for the baseboard heaters.
Ceiling mounted heaters... similar to baseboard heaters but mounted on the ceiling with fans to push the air down... didn't look into these much.

[Chaco]

you could always drink some hot sauce and get warm down there


just kidding

i would suggest electric heaters on the theater room only, if the rest of the basemant doesnt really need to be warm

[stroudenov]

What is this "basement" thing you speak of?

[DougMac]

Originally Posted by stroudenov

What is this "basement" thing you speak of?

Folks in your neck of the woods who try to put in a basement end up with a swimming pool, AKA a snake and alligator sanctuary. What, on a good day your water table is 3" down?

[EQ3282]

I live in the ATL area, and our basement is finished without insulation in the finished area. It does have ductwork to the HVAC system, but the heat coming out of the vents is barely 63 degrees (inspector tested in Oct). The area is so large, the two vents do little assistance. Our average winter temp is around 59 degrees (floats between 57 and 61 typically). We have a space heater down there, which actually helps a good bit. My fiance still thinks its too cold, which just helps me maintain the 'Man Cave' moniker on the space.

The previous owners told us the AC works much better down there and helps to keep the humidity low. We shall see this summer.

But, regardless, a couple space heaters (ceramic, as they're safer and more efficient) should do the trick. We have the below linked model, which does well to heat half of the 400 sq ft space. I wouldn't expect it to heat the whole area, but if we have it aimed towards our sitting area it keeps it relatively cozy.

http://www.amazon.com/Lasko-6410-Des...034514&sr=8-10