Barrington Hills, Illinois
Basement Remodeling in Barrington Hills
Big houses on big lots usually mean big basements, and the ones out here are wetter than people expect. We solve the water before anything gets framed.
The reason Barrington Hills basements fail is almost always water
A finished basement in a village with no storm sewer is a different job. Roof water, grade water and the seasonal table all have to go somewhere, and on these lots there is no curb to send it to. We have opened up basements out here where someone had drywalled straight over a weeping wall, found the stud bottoms rotted and the insulation holding moisture like a sponge, and the owner had no idea until the smell started.
So we start outside. Downspouts extended well clear of the foundation, grade corrected where it has settled back toward the house, drain tile checked and the sump proven under load. Only once the basement stays dry through a real rain do we start framing. It adds a week. It is the week that decides whether the room is still good in ten years.
Already have water?
If you are seeing a damp patch, efflorescence on the block or a musty smell after storms, call before you plan the room. We will tell you what it is and whether it is a drainage fix or a bigger problem.
Call (847) 380-8212What we do here
The rest of the work in Barrington Hills
Same builder, same crew, whichever of these you need.
Custom Home Building in Barrington Hills
Custom homes on five-acre Barrington Hills lots. Well, septic, long drives and mature oaks handled before the foundation goes in. Talk to Skycrest at (847) 380-8212.
Read the pageCustom Home Building
Skycrest builds ground-up homes on your lot or one of ours, across Barrington and the northwest suburbs. We are at the table before the plans are final, which is where the money is really spent.
Read the pageRemodeling & Additions
Older suburban houses hide things. We find them before demolition rather than after, so an addition lands square against the existing roofline and the new work does not announce itself as new.
Read the pageBasement Remodeling
A lower level that does not feel like a basement
Most Barrington Hills homes have the ceiling height to do this properly, and often a walkout or a deep window well on the downhill side. That is daylight, and daylight is what separates a real room from a carpeted hole. We plan the layout around whatever natural light the grade gives us, then build the rest of the lighting to match it.
- Exterior drainage corrected and tested before a single stud goes up
- Egress sized to code, and sized so the window is worth looking out of
- Mechanical rooms kept accessible, because the well tank lives down here too
Nearby
The closest finished work
We have not photographed a project in Barrington Hills yet, so these are the nearest ones rather than local ones.
Questions
Asked in Barrington Hills
Something not answered here? Call (847) 380-8212 and ask us directly.
Does a finished basement affect my septic system?
It can. Adding a bathroom or a wet bar adds fixtures, and the health department rates septic capacity by bedroom count and fixture load. If the plan includes a bedroom down there, that is a septic conversation before it is a framing conversation. We check it early so nobody is surprised at permit.
Can I put a bedroom in the basement?
Yes, with proper egress and the right smoke and CO detection, and subject to the septic rating above. The egress window is the part people underestimate, because on a full-depth foundation it means cutting the concrete and building a well big enough to climb out of.
How long does a Barrington Hills basement take?
Ten to sixteen weeks for most of them once the permit is in hand, depending on whether there is a bathroom and how much of the mechanical layout has to move. If drainage work is needed outside first, add two to three weeks and do it in a dry stretch.
On the map
Where Barrington Hills is
Cook, Lake, Kane and McHenry Counties. Close enough that a site visit is a drive, not a trip.
Building or remodeling in Barrington Hills
Tell us the address and what you are thinking about. You will get a straight answer on whether it works, what it costs and how long it takes, including when the answer is no.