When we decided to finish the basement, we thought about doing it ourselves. Suddenly the idea got put aside due to our hectic schedules. We heard about the Colorado Home and Garden show and military members had free admission…so we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to search for a basement finishing company. One should shop around to get that big bang for the buck when it comes to big-ticket items, right? So we went about aimlessly through the convention center like running mice through a maze trying to find the big cheese.  We collected numerous business cards and/or flyers and even gave our information to only one company. Afterwards, we called some companies and never heard from them. Some stopped by, took a look and in return, all we got was a bid. Others wanted to finish the basement in four weeks. Really?!!  Searching for a basement company is like a box of chocolates… you never know what you’re goanna get.

Frustration began to settle and taking a break from the basement thing was a good idea. We began to wonder if we should just do the basement ourselves. After two weeks of frustration, Brooke from “The Basement Edge” contacted us. It really didn’t matter if we called back, but we had two factors to consider. Recall, there was only one company we shared our information from the Colorado Home and Garden show and two, their BBB rating. Just in case you don’t know, it’s an A+.  Obviously we did, otherwise we wouldn’t be writing this blog!

The first meeting: We met Todd the construction manger and Brooke the interior designer.  Together we discussed our potential floor plan. While Todd jotted down measurements and plotted everything, Brooke showed us some options for the flooring, cabinetry, bathroom fixtures, pretty much everything one can imagine. Wow!

The second meeting: This time we only met with Brooke. She presented two designs and it was free…no strings attached! Something we didn’t get from most other companies. The first floor plan was pretty much how we envisioned the basement to be and the second plan just wowed us; an upgrade from the first of course (if you get to work with Brooke, you’ll understand).

A couple of weeks later, Brooke arranged another meeting to go over the price options for the two designs. We received most bids via email…hmmm. Three for The Basement Edge – ZERO for all others!

The third meeting: Brooke arrives with Marty. Who’s Marty? Marty is the owner of the company! Who does that?  Anyway, Brooke presented the two designs again and proceeded to cover the price options for the initial design; page by page the anticipation was killing us. Finally, we get to the last page and surprisingly their bid came in slightly lower than most others.  Okay…off to a good start and to the second design. Since we chose some upgrades with the second plan, the bid was now higher than most. Needless to say, without hesitation we signed the contract that day.

Today, a few months later, we’re in our final stage. We met with Todd the other day and went over some punch list items…nothing major. Since we are about done with the basement project, we wish to share some important facts concerning our overall experience thus far.

Todd and all the subcontractors have been great; meeting every expectation.   In fact, we got the opportunity to meet with the city inspector during two inspections.  In each, the inspector was impressed with the framing, electrical work and plumbing craftsmanship.  His exact word was “Textbook.”  Keeping it basic, paying attention to detail and doing things right the first time equals absolute perfection.

Then there’s Brooke.  She has an amazing talent who possesses an intuitive imagination.  No task is too great for her. Time after time she affords the personal attention you require and is known to go that extra mile even if things do turn out to be a bust.

Anytime we had questions for Todd, Marty or Brooke, it might have taken a day or two, but they never went unanswered!

As for us, we have enjoyed working with all of them and are very pleased with the basement.  So pleased, that we have hired them to do some other things around the house; mainly the kitchen and bathrooms. As our final point… in the future we will gladly pay the extra buck to receive this kind of treatment. It feels as though we have hit the jackpot! We rate them a P++. If you have an appreciation for Presentation, Personal attention, and Perfection, then “The Basement Edge” is the company for you!

Holly and Joyce –

Hello!

I am happy to say that our basement is now finished!   Since my last blog, they painted, installed the rest of the plumbing fixtures, hung shower door, layed carpet, and did some final touch ups.  Couple of  suggestions for those of you looking to have your basement finished.  Along the way, try to make your decisions ahead of time regarding things such as type of shower door you want (sliding door or swing door.  I finally went with a swing door & am glad I made that choice.  Since I had a hard time deciding what I wanted, Todd had a rep from the shower door company come to my house.  He was great to talk to & was able to get me exactly what I wanted.  As far as paint goes, get 2 or 3 different samples from the paint store & paint smalls areas on different walls throughout your basement.  Since light can vary from room to room, depending on the direction of the sun, this will let you see what the different colors will look like.

I don’t know if I mentioned this before, but I wanted to also let you know that if you change your mind on things during the process (reasonable things….which way you want a door to swing, etc), Marty & Todd are flexible as long as you give them enough notice.  Also, if you want to add things, that weren’t originally in your contract, and are within reason, they will work with you on that as well.  For example, I wanted a ceiling fan added to the guest room & they were able to install one that we picked up at Lowe’s & also install the right switches on the wall.  I also asked if they could add a few things in my second story guest room (ceiling fan & light in closet).  Of course, these things aren’t free, however, very convenient when the electricians were already here.

One last bit of advice!  We decided during the process to have a door bell chime added to the basement .  This way, if someone was at our front door & rang the doorbell outside, we would hear it in the basement.  It is a great feature to have.

We are very pleased to have chosen The Basement Edge.  Marty & Todd & their contractors were great to work with.  I would highly recommend them, if you are thinking of having your basement finished.

Suzanne

Hello!

Our basement is almost done!  They have installed all of our tile, trim, doors, wet bar & bath vanity and custom cabinetry.   They have primed all of the walls for paint next week.  Everything is moving quickly now & looking great.  Since I last blogged, we had some visitors.  Mice!  Ha ha.  My advice to anyone having their basement finished, is to make sure their basement windows are closed as much as possible, to avoid them from coming in.  We have caught a few of them, so that is good news.

Anyway, the basement is looking good.  The custom cabinetry in the mancave room looks awesome!  David & Justin did such a good job.  Now that we finally picked a stain color, they will work on that next.   The tile looks great too!  We went with a vertical, staggered layout (13×20) in the shower, with a vertical glass tile accent and 20 inch tiles on the floor in a staggered/brick pattern also.  It looks very nice.  We also picked granite for the wet bar & bath vanity.  We can’t wait to see that installed.

It seems our communication emails/texts/calls have increased too.  Like I said earlier, everyone has been great to work with and Marty & Todd are responsive to our inquiries.   This makes the process go much smoother.

So, the basement should be finished in about 2 weeks.  We can’t wait to start enjoying our new space!

Until next time!
Suzanne

Hello!

Dry wall is up & texture was completed today!  We are getting closer to our finished basement!  Everything is moving right along as planned.  The various workers have been on time & have been working very hard.  Since I last blogged, we had our 1st set of county inspections.  Arapahoe County inspected framing, electrical, plumbing, and heating.  There were just a few things that had to be fixed, but very typical.  The inspectors even said it’s a short list compared to most.  They also commented on how well the plumbers did their job.  Definitely gave me more reassurance.

The communication so far has been good.  Marty & Todd have been very responsive to my various emails/calls regarding electrical, dry wall and material selections (countertops, tile, carpet, etc.).  They were also very responsive recently, when my husband & I were out shopping for our wet bar appliances.  We needed to know what size microwave & fridge to get & they texted me right back with the dimensions. 

They were also able to do a little side-job for us.  We asked if they could run electrical in our guest bedroom upstairs for a ceiling fan.  They ran the electrical & installed the fan in just a couple of hours.  Not only were they fast, but you couldn’t even tell they were there.  They left the room very clean.

I also met with the custom cabinetry guy the other day.  He has been very pleasant to work with so far.  I am also impressed with how well they keep the dumpster empty & porta potty clean.  By this I mean, the other day I noticed a truck out the side of our house, emptying the waste.

Until next time!
Suzanne

Hello!

It’s amazing how much is done already in just over a week!  The framing is finished, and plumbing & electrical is almost done.  It’s funny…a few people have asked me how my basement project has been coming along & if I’m over it already….I said “Actually, no.”  It’s been very painless so far.  Other than the noise from nails being pounded into the wall & concrete being busted, it really is as if there’s no one here.

I am really impressed with all of the crews.  They have been real pleasant & easy to work with.  The other day, we had our walk-thru with the electrician.  He was so patient & listened to everything I wanted; placement of the outlets, switches, lights, etc.  The plumbers were very easy going also.  They answered all of my questions & were even able to add an extra outside water spigot for us.

So far, none of our normal day-to-day life is being disrupted by the contruction.  This is especially nice, since we have 2 small children & an elderly dog.  There is a lot of noise in the beginning, but that is just how it is.  Most of the major noise doesn’t last too long, I would say about a week.

I’m also really impressed with the owner of The Basement Edge, Marty Shelburne & Construction Manager, Todd Tetrev.  They are very prompt & readily available to answer any questions.  The other day, I had a small list of items that I had questions/concerns on.  I emailed the list to Marty & Todd & just a few hours later, got a response from Marty that they were addressing our issues.  Most of the issues can be resolved, except for the ceiling height in the utility room.  Marty explained that there was just too much duct work, plumbing & electrical.  She said it would look very choppy if they worked around it.  She also explained that we would still have more ceiling height than most finished basements.

Tomorrow, we are meeting with Marty to finalize our carpet,tile, countertop & cabinet choices.  We are also going to be having a first inspection within the next week or so.

Suzanne

Hello!

I am writing this blog to tell you about my experience with the Basement Edge from start to finish.  I was referred to the Basement Edge by a neighbor.  They gave them VERY high marks.  SO, we called Marty, the owner, and set up a meeting.    In the initial meeting, she stayed at our house for a couple of hours & was very thorough in telling us about the company & the process.  Not only was she very congenial, but also listened to what we were looking for in a basement.  I agree with one of their other customers, Brian……we like the fact that they provide a ‘fixed price’ quote that would not creep up as time went on.

Did I mention how patient & professional they are?  In the beginning, we worked with Brooke to come up with a design for our basement.  She showed us 2 plans…the one that we came up with & another one that she came up with.  We are very open to ideas, so really liked that they gave us options.  We also like that they are very flexible & have worked with us to meet our vision.

A few weeks ago, we were able to go visit another clients basement project.  It was nice to meet another customer of theirs, see the progress on their basement & see how pleased they were with the Basement Edge.

Last weekend we met the owner, Marty, to go pick out tile.  I was a bit overwhelmed at all of the options, but she & a sales rep made the process very easy, listened to what we wanted & liked & helped us to narrow down our choices.

Today, the construction began!  The framing crew was on time, polite & went over the plans with us.  Marty was also here to go over everything with us & the crew.  Really made us feel at ease.

SO, so far so good!   They have gotten a lot done in just the 1st day.  I will continue to blog the progress!

Until next time!
Suzanne

Well, the basement is finished. Bottom line up front: I highly recommend Basement Edge for anyone looking to have some remodeling done.

The basement was finished  over 3 weeks ago, but I have been caught up with work. So far, everyone who has seen the basement is blown-away. In a few months, it went from a cement slab floor and base insulation to an amazingly nice set of rooms. To summarize the project from start to finish, and the things I found noteworthy:

Initial meetings: I took bids from several contractors in the area. The majority of these contractors required multiple calls and rescheduling just to meet for the first time.  Basement Edge was always on time, and very accommodating of my shifting schedule. As for the others (if you are reading this)…. If I have to call you more than twice to schedule an appointment, and you still don’t return the calls, how can I trust you to work to the level I want, and complete on time? Basement Edge has this process down.

Design: Marty was very helpful (and patient) as I was trying to figure out exactly what the basement should look like. We worked together very well to create the final plan (well, I have to give her props: She had great ideas, and I simply had to pick and choose from these plans to create my own). If you have something crazy that you want done, Marty has probably seen it somewhere before and can make it work for you.

Framing: Great crew, very fast, very efficient, always on time and polite.

Drywall: I missed the drywall crew, but amazing how fast they got it up.

Paint, etc: All great work.

Overall: Very professional. Marty caught a few things even before I did, informed me about them, along with the date they would be fixed. You cannot ask for better customer service than this.

Recent updates….  Tiling work is done for the floors, the bathroom is starting to look like a bathroom, and the cabinets have arrived.  Things are speeding up (perceptually anyway), and it certainly looks like the project will complete on time.  Absolutely no complaints since the last post.  Really only one hicup so far (an electric wire was cut early in the project), which I think is pretty good, all things considered!  The crew that has been working here have been great and absolutely no complaints with them.  I think painting comes next, so we are almost on the home stretch!

A lot of changes have happened this past week. Drywall is up and the mudding (filling the joints between drywall panels) is done. The first round of texture spraying was done yesterday, so it will be ready for paint soon. Met with Marty again to pick out the bar-top surface. Just having the drywall up really helps visualize what the room will look like when complete. Really looking forward to seeing the final product!

Here are a few photos during the drywall phase.