[Bozeman]

I don't know if this is a New Zealand thing or just a Christchurch thing but I've yet to see a house with a basement. When I ask why, I'm told that the water table is too high. Is this the real reason? High water tables don't stop basements in the US, for instance. Anyone with any basement experience? Seems like it should be a relatively inexpensive way to have some extra space.

[James 1077]

I don't know if this is a New Zealand thing or just a Christchurch thing but I've yet to see a house with a basement. When I ask why, I'm told that the water table is too high. Is this the real reason? High water tables don't stop basements in the US, for instance. Anyone with any basement experience? Seems like it should be a relatively inexpensive way to have some extra space.

Quite a few of the houses around us in Devonport get raised and/or have the basement dug out so that they can expand downwards.

[CJ22]

Basements, hmmm. None of that new-fangled tek-nowlidgy round here, they just build the houses on a slope so you can slot things in underneath, like granny or the car.

[dilanium]

I assumed it had something to do with earthquakes and unstable ground, but I really don't know.

[Familyofmonkeys]

Basements are supposed to cave in when ground at risk of liquifaction.....most of Christchurch area has this risk due to much ground being sediment from Alps. Higher the water table, the greater the risk of liquifaction in an earthquake, so that kind of makes sense.

[victoria24]

Basements, hmmm. None of that new-fangled tek-nowlidgy round here, they just build the houses on a slope so you can slot things in underneath, like granny or the car.

can you whack the wife in there if you dont have a granny?

[dusk]

no he bloomin' can't :laugh

[Jo Jo]

Basements aren't that common in the UK, either - not in ordinary houses built in the last hundred and fifty years, anyway. And according to Wikipedia, they're not common in Australia, either.

So it may be a cultural thing - most of the early settlers were Brits, who came from a society where the norm was not to have basements (or cellars as they're called in the UK), and therefore it's more a case of "why would you build a house with a basement?", rather than there being any particular reason for not building a basement. (Basements = extra expense + not necessary, so why bother?)

Here, lots of houses have garages and sheds for storage (or space under the house if they're built on slopes like ours is).

[Bozeman]

So it may be a cultural thing
I'm beginning to think that this may be the key point...

[SarahEDH]

I grew up in Tornado Alley in the U.S., where almost every house has a basement. I really miss having one, not due to weather issues but for the secure storage space and work area for messy/dusty hobbies. It’s nice to have a place to put seasonal decorations, or valuable belongings, where they are not in the way of daily activities and no one can get to them without coming through the house first. (Detached sheds can be easily burgled and no one knows a thing until the next time someone ventures into it.) And to be able to do gardening, woodworking, painting or mosaic projects in a climate-controlled environment, without taking up garage space and risking damage to cars – very nice. I had a wonderful basement spot with a utility sink, big benchtop, shelves for supplies, etc., where I could work on projects when the weather wasn’t great. In Missouri, the weather can be crappy from November through May, so . . .

When my daughter was little, my husband and I fixed up a corner of our large basement for her play area, where she could do messy activities (over a sealed concrete floor, hurray) or lounge about on a rug and play with her toys/books. Her basement corner was also a great overflow area, with walls of shelving for treasured possessions that wouldn’t fit in her bedroom as new things came in.

When I get a chance to build, there will most certainly be a basement. :yes

Oh yeah, they're great for wine storage too if you live in the right area -- very constant temperature since mostly underground --

[CJ22]

can you whack the wife in there if you dont have a granny?

I've tried, she won't stay put.

:exit

[BkyMonster]

It varies around the US as well. Some regions typically have basements where others do not. Not that the US is culturally uniform at all despite pretensions to the contrary, but I'd bet there's a geographical/construction concern in ChCh. Most of the house foundations I see aren't more than surface pads (or in the case of my last house, pillars!) either. In the US it was common to see the foundation dug into the ground for the crawlspace if you weren't in basement country. Here the house tends to just be up a bit more for the crawlspace.

[DMcG]

I can think of one very good reason for building at least a tiny basement (http://dornob.com/wonderful-wine-cellars-for-any-room-in-your-house/)!

:cheers

Dougie

[JandM]

I can think of one very good reason for building at least a tiny basement (http://dornob.com/wonderful-wine-cellars-for-any-room-in-your-house/)!

:cheers

Dougie
Those look great! (I saw a brilliant design on another website where they'd transformed a functional staircase, using all the banister area and risers as bookshelves.)

[dilanium]

In Missouri, the weather can be crappy from November through May.


Don't you mean November to October??? :exit

[SarahEDH]

Don't you mean November to October??? :exit

Why, yes I did, but I wasn't sure anyone would believe me :laugh

[M-Squared]

I do actually miss having a basement... in our house in the Chicago 'burbs we had a full basement, 9' ceiling, that we never finished, d'oh! But yes it was a huge storage space and we had many a party that started down there. :D There's only one time where I grabbed the phone (littl'un was at school) and headed down to the basement because the sky had turned green...

Don't need a basement here...


I can think of one very good reason for building at least a tiny basement (http://dornob.com/wonderful-wine-cellars-for-any-room-in-your-house/)!

:cheers

Dougie

There's a big problem in that... how long does wine last in the average house? :cheers :laugh

[dilanium]

I've lived through many a tornado in the basement of the house I lived in while in Ohio. It was half finished- the other half was a work bench, workout room, and laundry room. The finished half was the computer room (there were 5 or 6 down there I think) and library. It was great!

I really do miss having a basement- it's also a great place to hide from people when you're feeling antisocial. :)

[SarahEDH]

Hmm, might be a business opportunity in here somewhere? I bet there are many U.S. expats who long for a basement. A savvy builder would find out what we like and offer that as an option (where soil conditions allow).

Not that NZ houses need to replicate U.S. houses in every way -- it's just that basements are a cool feature no matter where you live.

Off to do research :exit

[Stephen Jones]

I don't know if this is a New Zealand thing or just a Christchurch thing but I've yet to see a house with a basement. When I ask why, I'm told that the water table is too high. Is this the real reason? High water tables don't stop basements in the US, for instance. Anyone with any basement experience? Seems like it should be a relatively inexpensive way to have some extra space.

could it be the fact that NZ has earthquakes perhaps?

[Familyofmonkeys]

could it be the fact that NZ has earthquakes perhaps?

I think that's already been mentioned several times ;)

[BkyMonster]

could it be the fact that NZ has earthquakes perhaps?

I'd imagine that has something to do with it as the West coast of the US is relatively basement poor for that reason.

[Stephen Jones]

I think that's already been mentioned several times ;)

sorry... I joined the debate late in the day...not realising that there were already a large number of pages linked to it.

[Super_BQ]

I don't think it's a cultural thing why basements are popular in NZ. I'm leaning more towards the cost. Along the same reasons why houses in NZ are single story design. Like, Home Depot cheap to build - your DIY garage shed.

The fact that Kiwis treat their homes as an investment to profit, rather than a place to dwell and keep as comfortable as possible. If that was otherwise, we would be seeing more NEW homes built with energy saving features like hot water solar panels (where are they?). Fact that the typical home in NZ changes owners every 6 years or so - far too short for anyone to consider any payback on an energy saving option.

BQ