Basement additions

A basement addition, sometimes called a basement renovation or lowering, creates real living space beneath an existing home. In older Ottawa houses the limiting factor is almost always headroom, and the fix is underpinning or bench footing to gain the height a finished ceiling needs.

That work is structural. Foundations are underpinned in engineered sections, never all at once, and the sequence is set by an engineer before a shovel moves. Drainage, a sump and a vapour strategy come next, because a dry basement is a design decision, not a product you buy at the end.

Once the shell is right, the finish is ordinary carpentry — insulation, framing, egress windows, mechanical relocations and a layout that gives you a family room, a bedroom suite, an office or an income unit.