Pat doesn’t have comments enabled on his blog, so I will respond here. He’s working on getting his basement remodeled.

Having just gone through serious water damage in my basement, I’ll relate a bit of my experience. Unless the sump pump is new, spend $100 and replace it. It’s good insurance. Check that the outflow plumbing is OK with a good backflow check valve, and follow instructions to the letter. I installed my replacement pump with a union (before the check valve) so it could be unscrewed and removed from the pit for maintainence now and then. I’d also recommend a battery backup auxillary pump if you have anything valuable in the basement and you think the electricity will ever go out during a storm. I didn’t install one because my pump failed without a power failure.

When it somes to flooring, avoid carpet unless you’ve really waterproofed the basement, your sump system is in good shape, and you plan on checking it periodically to see that it still works.

Good alternatives are solid vinyl flooring and laminates. There are laminates out that look like hardwood, are reasonably water resistant, and not too expensive.

It’s also worth looking at using mold/moisture resistant drywall or greenboard for the first 4 feet of wall (from the ground up). Your basement could never flood, but if it does it’s nice to be prepared. You can also get discounts on your insurance if you have some of these features.

Just my 2 cents. Good luck Pat.