It’s important to have your own space in your home. For most people, this place is usually the bedroom. But if you’re a married man your bedroom won’t really offer much alone time. Your wife might have her own room for crafts or an office and you should have something similar as well.
Your basement might be the perfect choice for you to turn into a man cave. It’s relatively isolated from the parts of the house and chances are it isn’t really used much so it won’t get much traffic.
Find out the essential things you’ll need to turn your unused basement into the perfect man cave where you can relax.

Bare essentials:

A dehumidifier
Basements can get humid and musty sometimes. Not the ideal atmosphere for relaxation, isn’t it? To prevent this, get a dehumidifier.

Moisture-resistant walls and flooring
Concrete walls may look cool but if you really want to keep your basement dry, it is a good idea to build insulation walls in your cave. A simpler solution is coating your walls several coats of priming paint and see if the moisture is kept at bay.

For more comfortable flooring, install some vinyl tiles or planks which could also provide a thermal divide between your feet and floor. Softer materials like carpets aren’t recommended as they will pose future problems if you have issues with water leaks or moisture.

Insulation
Temperatures will drop come winter time and your basement won’t be spared. To keep your man cave warm and cozy, you can insulate the exterior walls of your house or get yourself a portable electric heater.

Basic plumbing
To save you and your friends trips upstairs when watching games, you could invest in installing a sink and a toilet in your basement. You could also invest in a small freezer or refrigerator to keep your brew cold.

Now that you know what bare minimum to do, let’s focus on design tips to turn your basement into your dream man cave. While men aren’t usually the best and most stylish of designers, you can still make your space look sleek without having to go all out.

Design essentials

Have a “Wow Effect” Piece
Naturally, you’d want to impress your friends with your man cave (and to be honest, probably even make them envious). All you need is one ‘wow’ piece to showcase. It could be a glass case of your collection of choice, a wine cellar with old, expensive wine or even wall aquarium. It will depend entirely on your interests.

This wow piece will can easily turn your basement into your very own personal space. A mark of your territory, if you will.

Man cave=/= storage room
It could happen unconsciously. You wake up one day and your ‘man cave’ looks more like a storage space than a room where you can relax. It will make it easier for you to relax without having to look at clutter of stacks of old magazines every time you go down to watch a game.

Having just a few pieces of your most valuable possessions like vintage flags or cool posters can also turn into good conversation-starters.
Hide wiring
Before you bring down your entertainment system downstairs, make sure you have a plan of how to hide the wiring. There’s nothing as slightly irritating than wires and cables sticking out and tripping people physically and visually.

You can hide wires behind furniture or discreet corners. You can also use cable covers or even zip-ties if you can’t really hide the wires.

Your man cave doesn’t have to look like an actual cave. With these simple tips, you can turn that blank basement into your own personal relaxation spaces where you can hang out with yourself or friends.

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