[nec2152]

Hello dear folks,

I am looking for advice and use cases from fellow members for constructing a basement along with a bungalow. My dilemma is as follows:

I am constructing an independent bungalow in Pune. The current plan is to construct open parking space on the ground floor (similar to apartments) and then 3 habitable floors above (3 bedroom apartment on each floor). The construction has just begun when I stumbled upon the idea of constructing a basement. I could possibly rework the sanctioned plan and construct an underground basement (imagine basement jutting out around 2 feet over ground). Rest of the building plan would be the same - open parking on ground floor and 3 habitable floors above. The basement would be around 1300 sqft of carpet area.
I plan to use 2 of the floors for personal use and might rent out one floor.

I am half minded if I should stop construction and plan out a basement or not. As it is, I won't be able to build a basement later. The uses of basement that I can think of (suitable for my co-living):

• Any large gatherings or personal functions can happen in the basement. These are rare though and we can do the same in the open parking on ground floor as well.
• Large number of visiting guests can sleep over in basement (again very rare).
• Maybe a media room with home theater and soundproofing (basement would be even better for soundproofing) The idea of a man cave excites me
• Some addition to parking space although I don't need it. I have ample parking on ground floor so if I build a basement my plan is to not build a ramp (so as to maximize floor space on ground floor as well as basement), and do finishing of the basement like habitable floor vitrified tiles and paint etc rather than a parking type arrangement.

The cons that I can think of are:

• Initial cost (around 15L)
• Some hassle involved in re-planning the construction with various parties (architect, contractor) and getting new plan sanctioned from local govt. body.
• Regular cleaning and maintenance even though the usage is rare.

I won't be renting out the basement since any renter would mostly take it for commercial use (like gym or dance classes) and commercial footfall is something I do not want to have in the personal building.

Thoughts of what the usages and cons are for having a basement ?

Thanks !

[libranof1987]

What part of Pune is this? Do you have rock or soil below the surface - that'll play a role in the effort (and hence, cost) of construction. Further, with a basement, it'll not be a one-time effort but will also need periodic maintenance and upkeep to avoid/fix leakages (again, depending on the material below).

If you plan to have plumbing in the basement (for a toilet), you'll have to add that complexity (of drainage) as well.

There are a few builders/civil engineers on the forum so you'll get an informed opinion. A basement sounds cool (esp. as a game room or home theatre etc.) but do account for all the challenges it brings about.

[Turbanator]

Originally Posted by nec2152

I am looking for advice and use cases from fellow members for constructing a basement along with a bungalow.

You have listed the pros and cons well. In your case, since the plans are already passed, you will have to go back for approvals.

What you have is called stilt parking. Basement can be still added if you are keen to use that space in the future. Also, if you decide to sell the house later, the basement, even unfinished, adds value to the building. But if you never want to sell and don't see a need in the next 20 Years, all the monies and efforts will go waste. HT setup works well in the basement, but since your residence will not be connected directly (due to the parking), it may not be as useful as this unit will always be cut off from your living area. The best use case can be a store or renting out which you don't like. So, I will probably skip this and continue the construction.

[nec2152]

Thanks for the quick reply!

Originally Posted by libranof1987

What part of Pune is this? Do you have rock or soil below the surface - that'll play a role in the effort (and hence, cost) of construction.

This is in north Pune - the PCMC area. I have already excavated the entire plot till a depth of about 9 feet and hit hard rock after that. I would not need to excavate further except for the areas where columns/footings would be built.

Originally Posted by libranof1987

If you plan to have plumbing in the basement (for a toilet), you'll have to add that complexity (of drainage) as well.

Yep thought about that and dropped the idea of building a toilet in the basement. I already have a toilet planned on the ground floor so that should be ok.

[poloman]

The biggest problem with basement is leakage and water seepage. You will need a strong retaining wall all around which will jack up the costs. Still you will face minor leakage issues due to water pressure. I have experienced this first hand in our apartment. Water was flowing in from the floor and damaged the entire wooden flooring in the basement community hall. This will be severe if you have water stagnation anywhere close to your house. So unless this is so important please let it pass.

[sagarpadaki]

Basement is not a good choice for any people related activity due to lack of light and ventilation. Infact, a better option would be to use basement for parking and the stilt for all the party/functions/get-together.

Pros of the basement varies from person to person based on their needs. For me the cons are

1. Cleaning. Not easy to clean the basement since the water has no where to go. Whereas on stilt you can slope it towards the gate/road and the water will drain out.

2. Flooding/water accumulation during heavy rains. Preventing water from entering the basement can be mitigated to a large extent by covering the entrance to the basement. However if the road floods then you cannot prevent water from entering the basement. Depends on the locality where you stay.

3. Dust/dirt accumulation. Since the basement is at a lower level than the road, a good amount the dust and dirt and small debris/kachra will get into the basement. Again cleaning those will not be as easy as stilt.


I would suggest you use the top most floor/terrace for the mentioned activities. Provide lift access upto the terrace. Shelter the terrace with terracotta tiles and few industrial grade water coolers for summer and you can do whatever you want there!

IMO, basement are a passé now.

[subraiyr]

Basement designs have gone out in India. Not sure if they were ever the in thing. But some questions jump out

You said that you have excavated to a depth of about 9ft from the ground. Assuming that you want a basement, with the flooring, ceiling and proofing against water ingress, the basement height would reduce further. You will end up with a basement with a height of about 7.5 to 8ft in total. This is not a good height for a liveable room. Again, if you are using it as a man cave, there are challenges with regard to good acoustics. The shorter the ceiling height, the throw and return of sound is quicker causing distortion. As others pointed out, you will have to shore your walls effectively for water seepage and leakage as well. You will also have to provide for ventilation in the basement

One option is to provide a basement with a standard height of 10 - 12 feet, but it will then end not at ground level, but above the ground level by at least a couple of feet. This will make the building incongruous and of course prone to more weather conditions.

I would recommend that you build out an attic instead of a basement. I am not aware of your current design, but an attic with a nice sloping roof would do wonders - better drainage during rain, more space and you can have nice skylight windows which offer plenty of sun. Also, the sloping roof can house your solar panels making it more eco-friendly.

[IndieGooner]

Originally Posted by subraiyr

I would recommend that you build out an attic instead of a basement. I am not aware of your current design, but an attic with a nice sloping roof would do wonders - better drainage during rain, more space and you can have nice skylight windows which offer plenty of sun. Also, the sloping roof can house your solar panels making it more eco-friendly.

I suppose this would avoid the need of getting plan re-approved (assuming that it is a sheet/shingle roof rather than concrete)?

[Sran]

Don't do it, you will never use your basement to justify the cost. In fact you will not even use it after a year or so. It will become a store house that you paid 15 lakhs for + maintenance.

If not provisioned or budgeted for, I would suggest you install a small lift with half that money which will be far more useful and exciting. Instead of tiles flooring go for good marble flooring. Make your doors of Saagwaan wood/Sheesham wood instead of plywood/plyboard. Buy wooden furnitures of high quality of saagwaan/sheesham instead of generic and useless furniture made of cheap engineered wood/babool(acacia) wood. Buy a jacuzzi. Build saagwaan bed and wardrobes with saagwaan board. Use high quality exterior and interior paint. Buy new electronics. The best is upgrade your car, nothing better than that.

1. If all these are provisioned for, then if you wish you can build basement swimming pool. Basement swimming pools are great fun. Expect an average cost of Rs 50,000/year for maintenance.


2. You can build basement parking if there is a FAR issue. PCMC is not a flood prone area. You can then build ground floor for your living. Ground floors are good for aged parents. But it is not cost effective. Nothing is cost effective in building basement unless it is a high rise building that needs structural support, ample parking area and to offset FAR.

3. If not a swimming pool, you can rent the space/hall for small parties. 1 person uses 20 sq.ft of space in hall. 1 toilet which will have 1 urinal, 1 lavatory space and 1 wash basin with a total area of 50 sq ft will be needed. Laying out the buffet table(3 nos.) will require another 50 sq ft. 15 sq ft for door opening(swing area). 80 sq ft for staircase. So out of 1300 sq ft of area the usable are will be 1300-(50+50+15+80) = 1105 sq ft. Now with retaining wall areas and some miscellaneous you will have a 1000 sq ft for use. I don't know for certain(building by laws are different each city), but that specific area will be charged under commercial property tax legally but you aren't advertising and just loaning out the area to friends and family(wink wink). So a pax of 50 along with few servers can be accommodated.

[condor]

IMO, ditch the basement. Make plans on the roof top. You can even have a wood cabin on top for sleep-overs. The Home theatre can be in your house/hall. The roof top can have your workshop etc, where you can do you work. Any noise from such work will also get diffused more easily than in a basement. Lighting and ventilation will also be better, and you can even enjoy the mornings/evenings there.

[Dhillon]

We have basement and it is approx. 1300 sq.ft. The same size that you want to construct. 15 years back, it costed us half of what you are quoting (and about 20% of total construction cost). And trust me, we have not used it much (except for 3-4 family gatherings/functions). Instead, we keep on spending money to fix water seepage. This is very frequent, specially during rainy season.
From your limited use case and our own personal experience, please avoid constructing a basement.

As Sran has rightly said : -

Originally Posted by Sran

It will become a store house that you paid 15 lakhs for + maintenance.

Well, this has been true in our case.

[nec2152]

Thanks everyone for the inputs.

Yes I already plan to use the rooftop for various needs, will install solar panels at 10ft height and keep some good sun-proof furniture there for spending time during mornings and evenings.

I am already constructing the max allowed FSI and on top of that, having a 1300 sqft basement without additional FSI sounded like a good deal (basement to be counted as parking so no additional FSI impact).

However my usage is predicted to be less and looks like folks who have it have perpetual water seepage troubles so maintenance wise it does not sound worth the trouble. My folks are also not much in favor of basement since they have seen some basements and not happy with the stale air/lack of ventilation.

[Shreyans_Jain]

Originally Posted by nec2152

Thanks everyone for the inputs.

Yes I already plan to use the rooftop for various needs, will install solar panels at 10ft height and keep some good sun-proof furniture there for spending time during mornings and evenings.

I am already constructing the max allowed FSI and on top of that, having a 1300 sqft basement without additional FSI sounded like a good deal (basement to be counted as parking so no additional FSI impact).

My take is that you are lucky enough to be able to build your own house, so build as much as you can. There is no such thing as too much square footage. It’s better to have a basement and not use it than to not have a basement. Even if it is used for storage. My principle is build as much as you can, as per what the laws allow or your pocket allows. You will always be able to put it you use.

As for leakage, seepage etc, it all depends on the local soil/water conditions and the quality of construction. Spend the extra money on proper professional advice and waterproof solutions. There are plenty.

As you are thinking of going solar, pls invest in an automated washing system. Solar panels are a waste of money if they are not cleaned regularly. Output drops drastically with dirty panels. Overhead raised solar panels means they can’t be washed manually.

[Sebring]

I was watching a documentary on new found love for basements in the UK. Land price is so high that residents are digging deeper building massive luxury tenements. Pool, gym, private areas have moved below now. Yes, and new technologies ensure good water proofing and protection against any dampness

[ajayclicks]

Originally Posted by nec2152

Thoughts of what the usages and cons are for having a basement ?
Thanks !

It might not be a bad idea to construct the basement and figure out a way to use it later. Besides some suggestions mentioned above, including your own of a man-cave you could look at the following scenarios:

1. A small home gym for workouts etc. While covid induced lockdowns would be hopefully rare, it did highlight the need to be able to work out from home

2. Potential space for entrepreneurship:
a) I know folks who have become wellness coaches and also others who take online yoga sessions / zumba sessions- this could serve as a nice space for them

b) If an occupant is a photographer, even as a hobbyist, he/she could set up a small studio for product photography etc.

c) Can be converted into a small workshop (stitching, making handicrafts etc.)