Level Green's postwar houses sit in clay that swells after a soaking rain and shrinks back in August, and their basements show it in hairline cracks and a damp corner or two. Our carpenters steady that ground first, then give the house its extra room.
Level Green Basements
Roughly 45% of the homes date from the 1940s and '50s, and about half their owners arrived before 2000. They know their basements well, and they ask for rooms that fit the next stretch of life.
Upshur clay under most of Level Green swells when it's wet and pulls back when it dries. Owners notice hairline cracks in the block that seem to widen in spring, and they ask whether a wall like that can ever be finished.
Often it can, once the water is managed. We seal the cracks, carry downspouts well away, regrade so the clay stays drier, and watch any crack that moves. Framing stands a little off the block so seasonal movement never cracks the drywall.
Walls before finishingIn about half of Level Green's households someone is past 65, usually as one of a couple. With the kids grown, they want a downstairs den with a TV, a comfortable chair each and the laundry a few steps away.
One warm, carpeted room off the laundry, with a heat supply from the furnace, lights on dimmers and outlets where the chairs go. A sturdy stair rail and bright stair lights make the trip down an easy one.
Dens and family roomsRoughly one household in four has kids, and Level Green Elementary on Cypress Court is close by for many of them. Parents ask for a quiet room downstairs for homework, crafts and projects that need a table left out.
A big work table under bright, even lights, a wall of shelves and bins, outlets for laptops along the counter, and a floor that cleans easily after glue and paint. Sound insulation overhead keeps the TV upstairs out of it.
Study and craft roomsAround 20% of houses here are this century's, and some sit on a full poured basement nobody ever finished. Owners there want the whole level finished at once, with the open plan the newer framing allows.
We plan around the main beam and the trunk duct, add soffits where they must go, and run circuits, lights and cable before the ceiling closes. A bath rough-in, if the builder left one, gets checked and finished.
Finishing a newer basementA basement bath sits lower than every other drain in the house, so it's the first place a sewer backup would show. Owners adding one ask how to keep the new room from becoming the overflow.
When those fixtures are lower than the nearest upstream manhole lid, code requires a backwater valve, which we install. If they're lower than the house drain itself, a sealed pump raises the waste to it.
Basement bathroomsFive out of six homes here have three bedrooms or four. Even so, holidays fill every one. Owners ask for a guest room downstairs with its own bath, so visiting family can settle in downstairs.
A bedroom with an escape window cut through the block and a well outside, a bath beside it, and a small sitting corner. An interconnected smoke alarm and its own heat make it ready for winter guests.
Basement guest roomsHomes and households: Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024, Level Green census place (rounded, since the place is small).
The rest of the job
How it runs, what it costs and who builds it are on our main basement finishing page.
Downstairs in Penn Township
The mail says Trafford, but Penn Township's codes govern here. Those codes say where sump water may go, both inside the sewer and out in the yard, and the sewage authority adds advice on backups.
§133-34Sump water kept off the sanitary line
Level Green and Harrison City share the township's permit process and its sewer code, which bars sump and foundation-drain water from the sanitary line. Our page on Harrison City basements spells out both instead of repeating them here, and the filing and inspection visits are ours to handle.
Penn Township basement rules§144-10Township stormwater code
Under the township's stormwater chapter, a sump or downspout should feed an approved drain system or soak into grass or plantings whenever that's workable. On Upshur clay that soaks slowly, we carry the outlet far enough out that the water doesn't circle back to the wall.
Penn Township Code §144-10 (opens in a new tab)RiderSewer backup cover, added to the policy
The township sewage authority notes that a standard homeowner's policy may not cover a sewer backup without a special rider, which it calls usually not expensive. Once the basement holds carpet, furniture and a bath, that rider matters more. Our Level Green kitchen page has the authority's advice.
The sewage authority's adviceBasement Questions
Five things people here ask before the framing goes up. The full process lives on the basement finishing service.
Ask a QuestionThe walls and the plan decide it. Dry block with stable cracks costs least; regrading for the clay, a cut-in egress window or a bath with backup protection raises it. You'll have a written price after we walk the space.
Basement price rangesNo. Level Green shares Trafford's 15085 mail code, but it's part of Penn Township, so the borough of Trafford's sewer-lateral rules don't reach it. Penn Township's permits, its sewer code and its own sale inspection are what count here.
Level Green and Penn TownshipOften. The state has 101 radon results on file for Level Green addresses, and 41 landed on or over the line the state sets for action, almost all of them taken in basements. Test first; if yours is high, the mitigation system goes in before framing.
Radon in Level GreenNot if the water is handled and the framing is kept off the block. Seasonal shifting in the block then stays behind the new room instead of showing up as cracks in its drywall. If a crack is still moving after the drainage work, we bring in an engineer first.
Walls before finishingAs storage, often yes. We seal the crawl section with a vapor barrier, insulate its walls, light it and add an access door from the finished room, so it holds bins and holiday boxes dry. It rarely has the height to become living space itself.
Storage spacesOther Services
Our Trafford shop sits next door, and from it the crew remodels Level Green kitchens and baths, opens up attics and builds additions, besides finishing basements. Choose one 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.
Get in Touch
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.
Call or Text
412-730-8805
hello@alltradeshq.com
Hours
Mon–Fri · 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Closed Sat & Sun
Shop
529 Forest Ave
Trafford, PA 15085
