A Jeannette basement has stories in it: an old wall from the glass-works years, a gas furnace, a floor drain that may remember July 2019. Our carpenters start by asking what the water has done down there, then build a room that's ready for the next storm.
Jeannette Basements
Close to 31% of houses in Jeannette predate 1940, and some neighborhoods still send rain and sewage down one pipe. Owners want the space downstairs, but they want it planned by someone who asks about the last bad storm first.
On July 11, 2019, waste and rainwater rose as high as four feet in one West Jeannette basement. Owners on the streets that took the worst of it still want the room, and ask what's worth putting down there.
We plan it in layers. The line gets protected first, then floors and walls that can be hosed and dried: tile or stained concrete, foam board instead of fiberglass, no carpet. Furniture and boxes stay light enough to carry upstairs.
Basement waterIn a house this old, a downspout or an outside stairwell drain may still run into the sewer line. MAWC warns that rain getting into a lateral behind a closed backflow device can come right back up through the floor.
Before any valve goes in, we find every pipe that feeds the lateral. Downspouts get cut off and turned out onto splash blocks or lawn, an areaway drain goes to a sump, and only household drains stay on the sewer.
What older basements hideOver a third of Jeannette homes have two bedrooms. A new baby, a teenager tired of sharing a room, or a parent moving in sends owners down the basement stairs looking for a third.
An egress window and well go in, a grown adult can get through, with a smoke alarm linked to the ones upstairs and heat from the furnace. Where the floor drain sits nearby, the bedroom goes on the drier side of the basement.
Basement bedroomsClose to half the owners here moved in after 2009, in a city where the typical home is worth about $114,000. They want a basement the kids can use at a price in proportion to the home's value.
An open room with a painted ceiling instead of drywall, so the joists, valve and cleanouts stay reachable. Plank flooring on the concrete, insulated and drywalled walls, and can lights finish it for less.
Basement price rangesHouses built before 1940 may stand on brick, stone or early block. Owners ask whether a wall that old can be finished at all, or whether it should be left bare and whitewashed the way it has always been.
Usually, yes. Loose joints get repointed, the face gets parged, the grading outside gets fixed, and studs stand off the masonry with an air gap so old masonry can still dry. A wall that's moving gets an engineer before we start.
Walls before finishingAbout 41% of Jeannette's owned homes are headed by someone 65 or older. Many want a place for model trains, sewing or woodworking that keeps the clutter off the dining table and out of sight.
Bright task lights over a long counter, closed cabinets, a row of outlets at counter height and a dehumidifier to keep tools from rusting. Handrails on both walls and a switch upstairs and down keep the stairs safe.
Hobby and craft roomsHomes and owners: Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024 for the city, rounded. The 2019 basement: Tribune-Review, July 2019.
The rest of the job
How it runs, what it costs and who builds it are on our main basement finishing page.
A Basement in Jeannette
Three things bear on a Jeannette basement: the city's code office, the county authority's work on the combined pipes, and the authority's own rules on who covers backup damage.
7:30–3:30Code office hours, weekdays
Interior alterations appear as a category on the city's home permit form, and the Building and Code department reviews them at City Hall. The full rundown is on our kitchen remodeling page for Jeannette. We file the papers and stay for the inspection.
Jeannette permits, explained12th–15thWest Jeannette streets hit hardest
In parts of Jeannette one pipe carries both rain and waste, and 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th streets have backed up most. The authority's project takes out catch basins and enlarges lines along Chambers Avenue. Our Jeannette bathroom page covers it, along with the backwater valve.
The sewer and the valve, explained72 hoursTo report a backup to MAWC
MAWC says damage from sewage backing into a home is the homeowner's responsibility, not the authority's, and backups must be reported within 72 hours. It suggests asking your insurer about backup coverage. With a finished room downstairs, that call is worth making first.
MAWC: sewer backups (opens in a new tab)Basement Questions
These come up with Jeannette owners before a stud goes up below. For the rest of the job, see our basement finishing page.
Ask a QuestionThat depends on the walls and the sewer line. A dry basement with sound block walls is the simple case; repointing old masonry, disconnecting downspouts, a backwater valve or an egress window each add to it. A written price comes after we walk it with you.
Typical costsWaiting may not change the plan. Reporting on the project said it won't entirely prevent flooding, only curb some of it. Either way, the lateral gets protected and the finishes chosen to dry out, so the room makes sense before and after the work.
WPXI: the sewer project (opens in a new tab)No. A sump handles groundwater rising under the slab. A sewer backup comes up through the floor drain and the fixtures from the line itself, so it needs the line protected. Some basements need both, and we plan the two together.
Backup protection, explainedLikely enough to test before anything else. The state has close to 3,900 results from Jeannette homes, and about 41% reached its 4-picocurie action level. A high result means the mitigation pipe and fan go in before the walls, routed where they won't crowd the room.
Radon in JeannetteWe'd steer you away from wall-to-wall anywhere the sewer has backed up. It's the first thing lost when water comes in and it holds odor afterward. Tile or vinyl plank with a big area rug gives the same warmth underfoot, and the rug can go to the curb or the cleaner.
Basement floorsOther Services
The same crew rebuilds Jeannette kitchens and baths, turns attics into bedrooms and fixes sagging porch roofs around the city. Pick a service below.
Kitchen RemodelingNew layouts, new cabinets, new counters: framed, built, and installed by the same crew.View Service
Bathroom RemodelingFull gut renovations with proper waterproofing, new framing, and tile set by hand.View Service
Attic FinishingUnused attics framed into bedrooms and offices: subfloor, insulation, drywall, and a proper stair.View Service
Additions & ADUsAdditions and accessory dwelling units (ADUs), framed from the ground up and tied in clean.View Service
Windows & Exterior DoorsWindows and exterior doors set, flashed, and trimmed so water stays out of the wall.View Service
Exterior Restoration & Structural RepairsRotted trim and siding, sagging joists, failed sills: opened up and repaired to solid wood.View Service
Decks & Covered PatiosDecks, covered patios and three-season rooms, flashed to the house and built for Westmoreland winters.View ServiceVerified Google Reviews
5.0 out of 5 · 17 reviews
Written by the homeowners we've worked for across Westmoreland County. Every one verified on Google, every one pulled from the real feed.
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Tell us about the project in the form or give us a call. Either way, estimates are free and the number is the number — priced to the actual work, written down before anyone swings a hammer.
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529 Forest Ave
Trafford, PA 15085
