Egress Windows and Your Home

Posted by cynthia in Uncategorized | 0 comments

What are Egress Windows?

Egress windows are a type of window that provides an emergency exit from a basement living space.  These windows provide another escape from the basement during an emergency situation other than the stairway to the upstairs.

Where are Egress Windows Required?
Most building codes require homeowners to install an egress window only if the basement or part of it will be used as a bedroom, while others will demand an egress window if you plan to use your basement as additional living space.  No matter what kind of room you are plan build, it is always better to be safe and have an alternate escape should a fire erupt on the first floor.

Benefits
Egress windows not only provide safety to you and your family when spending time in your basement, but also provide natural light. This natural light can make your basement feel less like a cave and more like any other living space in the house.

Our dealer network installs egress windows throughout the US, from Burbank ,  California, Omaha, Nebraska to Connecticut.

Basement Insulation for a More Comfortable Home

Posted by cynthia in Basement Finishing, Basement Insulation, Featured | 0 comments

by Francine Maglione

Who wouldn’t love a warmer, cozier house in the winter? Freezing homes are very unpleasant. Cold floors and surfaces force homeowners to wrap themselves in blankets and sweatshirts to stay warm, but there is something you can do that you may not have thought of before: basement insulation and finishing.

Basement Flooding — More Than “Once In A Lifetime”!

Posted by cynthia in Basement Flood, Basement Waterproofing, Featured, Sump Pumps | 0 comments

by Jacques Bouchard

Homeowners can go years without using their battery backup sump pump system. But, as is being discovered in the Northeast these past few months, when you DO need a battery backup — you really need it!

Between Hurricane Irene last August and the freak snowstorm that knocked out power for more than three million homes this week, residents from Maryland to Maine have seen firsthand just how easily a major storm can shut down the power for hours, days, or more.

Sump Pump Comparison Video

Posted by cynthia in Videos | 0 comments

What to look for when you are shopping for a new Sump Pump? Learn from the expert!

Vented Crawl Space Winter Woes

Posted by cynthia in Crawl Space Insulation, Crawl Space Repair, Crawl Space Sealing, Crawl Space Vapor Barrier, Featured | 0 comments

This homeowner tried to make his home more comfortable by applying fiberglass insulation between the floor joists, in his vented crawl space

What Happens To A Vented Crawl Space In The Winter?
Crawl space vents are designed to pull outside air into your home, creating a continuous supply of outside air that moves through the crawl space at all times.

While many would debate the usefulness of ventilating a crawl space at any time of the year, contractors can certainly agree that during cold weather, these vents should be firmly closed. However, the truth of the matter is that few homeowners actually perform this yearly task.

How A Vented Crawl Space Affects Your Home’s Energy Efficiency
The purpose of your crawl space is to house the utilities in your home, including utilities that use energy to create heat, such as your home’s furnace and air duct system, as well as your hot water heater and pipes.

Housing these utilities in the crawl space during the cold winter season means that they will have to continually work harder and use more energy to do their daily task. This has a major impact on your home’s utility bills!

Basement Systems Takes Home Multiple Awards and Honors

Posted by Francine in Basement Systems Inc., Community, Company News, Larry Janesky | 0 comments

Larry with Sen. Richard Blumenthal and 2011 CT Business Hall of Fame Inductees

Basement Systems, Inc. ® has had a busy spring season full of awards and honors. Company founder and president Lawrence Janesky now has another distinction to add to his credentials. Janesky has recently been selected as a finalist for Executive of the Year in the 2011 American Business Awards®.

The American Business Awards^SM, also known as the  Stevie® Awards, honor and generate public recognition of the achievements and positive contributions of organizations and businesspeople worldwide. Janesky is one of five finalists for Executive of the Year for companies between 100 and 2,500 employees.

This year’s Stevie® Award winners will be announced during the annual gala on Monday, June 20, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. More than six hundred executives from across the U.S.A. are expected to attend. The event will benefit Camfed (camfed.org), which fights poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa by educating girls and empowering women to become leaders of change. The ceremonies will be broadcast on radio nationwide by the Business TalkRadio Network.

Basement Flood: When Mother Nature is Not to Blame

Posted by cynthia in Basement Flood, Basement Leaks, Basement Waterproofing, Drainage, Featured, Interior French Drain, Sump Pumps, Uncategorized, Wet Basement Repair | 0 comments

When we think basement flooding, the first thing that comes to mind are torrential downpours, summer storms with thunder and lightning,  knocking down trees and  power lines. Some of us, usually the ones with chronically damp basements, might even think snow melt.

Very few take into consideration that Mother Nature is absolutely not the only one that can cause a basement flood. Truth is that there is no such a thing as a flood safe basement.

Think about it. Your basement is box buried below grade. Any water that gets into it can only get out if pumped upwards.  You can’t rely on gravity to get rid of it.

Pipes run through the basement, and it usually houses water heater tanks and cold water tanks,  as well as washing machines. All of which have the potential to leak and malfunction, putting your basement underwater.

And let’s not forget running toilettes, overflowing sinks, backed up drains and all the small accidents that can happen upstairs and cause water to pour into the basement.

It is not a matter of if, but when your unprotected basement is going to flood.