The thing about bitumen, mopped on "damp proofing", is that it tends to work as an effective exterior drainage plane, so long as: o It is not damaged during backfilling. A back hoe that drops its bucket against the concrete wall and bitumen coating during backfill will probably scrape off (or at leaste damage) the coating; o There are no cracks in the exterior concrete foundation/basement wall surface. If cracks take place, chances are very high that the bitumen will also crack (why wouldn't it?) with the result of a direct path for water infiltration. Clay and other expansive soil types expand with moisture and contract when dry. This continual annual "heave" is one good source of foundation wall cracking. If the hydrostatic level of the soil is high, the subsurface water pressure will force water into the foundation walls and any cracks which may be present over time. A plastic membrane, properly installed, will help to mitigate or prevent much of this since it is not impacted by concrete wall cracking (unless there is major structural movement or failure). You originally expressed concerns about concrete cracking. If you are truly concerned about cracking and movement, bitumen damp-proofing will not provide the necessary protection. Only a plastic membrane applied to a foundation properly designed and constructed for your soils conditions, including proper back fill, may do so. Good luck with your project.

Thanks Louisianapurchase! Ernie and I went out to the gym this morning, it is so, so nice to have plenty of room. I was working out in a space about half this size and had to move things every time I changed exercise or when I wanted to get the treadmill out. It's so nice to be able to set up and just roll through the work out. While I would have loved to have my desk in front of the windows, the sacrifice was worth it. Now I can set up and work out on both sides of the bench when doing alternating sets. I love the two walls of mirrors too. And everything is organized, what a dream! Doing step ups on one side : Then walk around to do split squats on the other, no having to move anything or change weights. Once I have the other bar it will work even better. Now Ernie's take on this. He says he can't understand why mom is keeping all her stuff in his Corgi Cottage, but if it makes her happy he is willing to share. As far as the weight lifting stuff, it was very boring. First she put me in puppy jail, something about her being tripped or me getting squished .. she is silly like that. I tried to remind her how fast I can run and dodge .. but what ever. So I used this time to recharge my batteries. Now I don't understand the whole cardio thing either .. she could just chase me, then we both would be having fun! On the plus side though .. when she got on the eliptical I was sprung from jail. I found her nasty lifting gloves and had my way with them, well until she saw me! It was almost as good as rolling dead worms outside. :)

To play devil's advocate, once you've put in a bathroom and closed off the mechanicals, you've basically just left yourself (or a future owner) with non-permit needing work, or things that can easily done without raising awareness of authorities to finish it up. I've never really understood the concept of different tax rates for finished vs. unfinished basements, because what does it even mean to be finished? I feel it would be much easier overall to just tax basement sq footage at some lower rate - like 30% of above ground space, and call it a day.

I would also consult with your local AHJ to determine the code requirements for various uses of the new basement rooms. It looks like you have good headroom (usually the finished ceiling must be at least 80 inches high), but don't have egress windows. This means it can probably be used as a basement family room or office, but not be a bedroom (that requires an egress window or door). In most areas you will be required to pull a permit, and comply with applicable codes to finish a basement. If you want to make your life as simple as possible, list the use as basement storage, which has the simplest code requirements. For example, most AHJs now require AFCI circuit breakers for receptacles in all living areas, but may only require GFCI for a basement. When they inspected my basement "storage area" and found it had 14 receptacles, prewire for TV and audio in two locations, and in-wall wiring for 5.1 speakers, it was not a problem. They first looked at all the framing and insulation, and later at the A/C wiring/receptacles just to make sure the receptacles were wiring correctly. The only side comment was "lots of wiring for just a storage area." Bruce