“I lived in my parents’ basement for quite a while when I was younger,” Steve said with a laugh. “And my memories of that time were not exactly pleasant. My Dad did his best to fix it up, but there was no hiding the fact I was down in the cellar, where it was cold and damp.”  He shook his head. “So when my daughter came to me about having our basement remodeled into an apartment for her, I had my doubts.”

The basement renovations of yesteryear are a far cry from the sophisticated basement remodeling systems available in Hingham and other Western Massachusetts towns today. Two key components that make a difference are improved insulation and soundproofing.

“Insulation keeps the cold out and the warmth in,” Steve explained. “Back in the day, we used fiberglass bats. I was surprised when our Hingham basement finishing contractor recommended a rigid board insulation product. But it turns out that if you want real insulating power and a successful way to fight off both moisture and rodent problems, the rigid board insulation is the way to go.”

“My daughter tends to be loud,” Steve said. “Whether she’s talking on the phone or listening to music, the volume is all the way up. When her bedroom was upstairs, I learned to deal with it. But the idea of having her directly under our bedroom concerned me. I don’t want to be able to hear her when I’m trying to sleep, and I’m sure she doesn’t want to hear us!”  Soundproofing panels address this issue in basement renovations by introducing sound-buffering layers that give parties both upstairs and down peace and quiet.

“Now that we’ve had our basement remodeled, I have to say it turned out pretty nice,” Steve said with a smile. “It’s definitely better than the living quarters I had when I was that age!”