Why Basements Are Rare in Arizona | Rebuild The Block

[@mastifflover504]

As a Phoenix native born and raised, and living here over 40 years, I’ve never understood why we don’t have more basements here. What better way to escape the brutal hot Summers? If I ever design my next home from scratch here in the Vally Of The Sun, there will most definitely be a basement… if not almost entirely built under the ground.

[@ashishpatel350]

probably because of the cost? It's cheaper to just build left or right instead of down

[@24revealer]

We even escpae to the basement from the head here in Ontario Canada!

[@UneducatedGeologist]

Exactly

[@Imhunginjapan]

Not ideal when you have to worry about flash floods

[@nimajnebrm]

Builders design the homes you buy, and they're not going to invest more time/money into something that people may not be willing to pay for.

[@JoeMalovich]

Also a great place to route all your utilities and ducts, instead of the scorching attic.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Yep agreed.

[@markadler8968]

That is some of the cleanest excavation work I have ever seen.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thank you! I’ll let our team know

[@dbphillips1978]

As an excavator, i agree. That's some clean work.

[@levibarros149]

It's a great idea all around. Basements are hidden. Basements are a steady temperature throughout the year. They are more money upfront but end up paying for themselves over the long haul.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Totally agree

[@timothykeith1367]

Depending on the excavated fill, a contractor might charge a steep fee to haul it away. In the Midwest the fill might be spread around the foundation to improve drainage. If you place an online ad for "free fill" somebody will come and get rock or gravel.

[@rebuildtheblock]

@@timothykeith1367yep if you plan ahead you can save some cost with export if you have good dirt.

[@NoelStalker]

also if you do have an unexpected amount of water and end up with water problems, it is better to deal with them in a basement than on the first floor

[@tslucam]

two thumbs up for basements. even if unfinished I wish they were more of a standard in the valley.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Added value for sure.

[@rogersprunt7153]

I built a home with a basement in 2001 in Vail AZ. The biggest hurdle was the government permits for a lite-form basement, that set us back six months. The entire outside shell of the house is cement, and didn't really cost to much more than another home this size. The basement cost about 60% less to heat and cool, and is where we lived for 2 weeks when the upstairs AC failed in the middle of summer. We dug down only six feet, but back filled up to 8 feet, and this lowered the chance of flooding during monsoon season as all water flows away from the house, and raises the flood plain level up 2 feet.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Love it! Wish I could go back to build cost of 2001😢

[@auctionmusic]

hmmm....how was the sump pump?

[@johnlee7085]

Sump pumps are important in old construction that doesn’t have good drainage around and moisture protection of the foundation. Mostly irrelevant with contemporary construction.

[@russmarano19]

@@johnlee7085 maybe I'm calling it the wrong thing, but for basement home here in arizona the downstairs will be below the sewer line, so you need to pump the downstairs bath up to the line. Or else dont have a bath downstairs. Another house I owned in Fountain Hills the entire house was below the sewer line that pump was failing ever two years what a pain.

[@johnlee7085]

Sumps pump usually refers to drainage or seepage through a wall. For a sewer, they are more commonly a sewer and/or ejector pump. If the pump was failing that often, it might have been a problem with the pipe outlet. In large systems, a grinder can be included to promote freer flowing outlet. TBS, there isn’t necessarily a need for plumbing in the basement. Plenty go without, or have sufficient site grading to allow a gravity outlet.

[@countysecession]

I built a house with a basement in West Texas where basements are equally as rare. It won an award at the parade of homes.

[@rebuildtheblock]

I wish we had a parade of homes here..maybe one day!

[@adampositron6871]

Shortly after I bought my condo near Arcadia my cousin asked me to tell her all about it. Among other things I told her that the laundry room was in the basement. She seemed very confused, and it took while of explaining that our three buildings each had a small basement for laundry rooms and other utility relates spaces before she accepted my claim. I'd always taken basements for granted coming from the Midwest. I never knew they were so rare in Arizona. I guess I should feel fortunate to live in a complex with basements. I'm special, lol!!!

[@rebuildtheblock]

Vey special..about less than 3% of home in the valley have a basement! You lick son of a gun!😂😂

[@brianp8384]

Many great benefits; having a cooler place to hang out while saving on A/C, reducing the footprint on the lot for more yard/garden space, less temperature fluctuation to store food or wine (again saving on A/C), tool storage or workshop that isn't scorching hot, etc. Glad to see it's catching on.

[@jayc4562]

Wife's grandfather built a house with a basement in 1925, in Tucson. Way out of town for the time. Now just north 0f the University. Is cool in the summer. When built the house had gas and electricty.

[@rebuildtheblock]

That’s so cool.

[@haberbo]

Basements were more common then because they could take the fill and make adobe bricks. The Franklin museum home is an example of this.

[@MJ-ge6jz]

I had a basement built on a custom house over 20 years ago. I always loved basements and the advantages of a geothermic "Earth Ship" home. I never needed to heat the home during the winter as it never fell below 65 degrees. It also was a very air-tight home and only needed a 3 ton heatpump. One recommendation, use steel support structure through out the basement as AZ is a sea of termits and they will tunnel through your brick or blocks.

[@KRich408]

I spent a winter in Arizona I don't think I would spend a summer there without a basement! I love my Basement in the Michigan UP it has a 8' ceiling that stays cool in the summer and 55 in the winter when it s 20 below outside with 200-300" of snow ❄️❄️ a basement is a must anywhere the water table is close enough, you can keep food down there at constant humidity and temperature, like Root Vegetables. We make Vanilla down there and let it sit several years aging to perfection not like the mass production junk in the stores.😂

[@rebuildtheblock]

Yep basement stays cooler for sure. Because We have the basement on a separate HVAC system (heat pump) so that it is independent of the upstairs heating and cooling we won’t be able to thermally mine. The reason for this is to be able to control basement zone temperature separately from the rest of the house. This was by design by the home owners request but also calculated and designed with our mechanical engineer for best efficiency and functionality. Thanks for your question!

[@lumbrados]

If you can afford to dig into the Earth here in the valley I would say it's worth it because it's cooler for the home. Especially during the summer months. And because it's getting so crowded now you have limited space and two-story buildings can be an eyesore and actually block out sunlight in the winter months.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Totally agree.

[@JSXSProductions]

Grew up in a house with a basement here. It's legit. Absolute legendary space.

[@OurOneLifeAz]

We live in a tri level in Tucson. We love it! The Tucson Desert Museum even has an entire expo on the temps underground. It is much cooler in summer and retains heat in winter.

[@red_light_3937]

I appreciate seeing a video of someone actually building a basement in a Valley of the Sun, AZ home! Born & raise here & I’ve long since been thinking that truly down is our #1 opportunity for new/reconstructed homes given everything everyone wants out of a home these days.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thank you. Can’t wait to see this one come together

[@elgallosabio4364]

We had a basement in Tucson. We loved it! The problem was the caliche. I found through other digging projects, if you soaked the caliche, it softened it so it was much easier to dig out.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks appreciate the tip!

[@johnlee7085]

Caliche sounds like the hard clay found elsewhere. I’ve encountered it in building on our property and use the flooding method. Takes a bit longer but even makes hand digging possible where you would otherwise need a machine. Excavate a little. Flood the hole. Excavate more. It takes longer but is definitely easier. Maybe not cheaper if time is money.

[@timoftheoleilefamily1821]

FINALLY FINALLY somebody 's seeing the light . if you do a great job they will see the light and reap the the enormous benefits . Looking forward to your progress

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks we are super excited about this one for sure

[@victorramosjr2445]

@@rebuildtheblock Im curious how you guys are doing it so that the structure is super water tight.

[@joshuarespecki1883]

​@@victorramosjr2445 like every other basement. About A million times easier here in Arizona versus the Midwest where sometimes your water table May literally be equal to the bottom of your basement.

[@SurfCityBill]

Same basement-less houses out here in California. I was always told it was because the water table was high which is not correct. Unfortunately, without basements, we all use our garages to store everything except our cars.

[@rebuildtheblock]

I feel you on the garage space…never have enough room for all the stuff!

[@_DB.COOPER]

I live in Eastern NM and have one of the few basements in this part of the State. It’s a very nice feature of the house.

[@markwellington1254]

Man it's hot! "Let's go cool off in the basement" doesn't seem like a bad thing to say. Our kids had rooms in the basement that were warm in the winter and cool in the summer(Colorado).

[@2OO_OK]

That is by far the most neat and tidy basement hole I have ever seen. Was that graded with a laser?

[@rebuildtheblock]

We have the best excavation team. Thank you Mo!

[@johnwhite2576]

@@rebuildtheblockfor sure

[@larrysorenson4789]

I live in Glendale Az., a suburb of Phoenix. My home is a classic tri level where the lower level is sunk about 40” into the ground. The reasons that Arizona builders avoid basements include: they don’t have to and, they do not know how to waterproof anything below grade. And this was the case with my home. All the lawsuits were settled before my purchase so I avoided all the fun. I understand that the experts and attorneys put on a real clown show. In the end the builder bought the homes back, made half hearted repairs and resold them. It was a very costly easily avoidable situation. Sadly, there was no lesson learned throughout the ranks of home builders.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Waterproofing a basement is a legitimate concern for basements across the country. But as you said if you do it right the 1st time no need to worry

[@azmusiclover3384]

I have a basement in my home built in 1988 in Mesa, AZ. Love it!!! ❤ Fireplace downstairs too! 🔥

[@rebuildtheblock]

Awesome! I think it might catch on in some areas around the valley!

[@danieldaniels7571]

Lucky you. That's almost unheard of in Mesa!

[@douglaskerr6813]

As an easy coast resident I've always wondered why folks out west didn't have basements you mentioned the difficulty with the native rock in time like this It would be a great place to store extra food and supplies in case some kind of disruption to the local area

[@cherylmysliwczyk5716]

Our house was 980 sq feet ranch. Everybody had the same house where I lived. The basements gave us so much extra room. Pittsburgh has basements and Pittsburgh tolits down there

[@rirkc]

I moved to Prescott in this past March from Providence, RI. I lived in a center-hall Colonial with a full basement. All my homes back east had basements. They're good extra living space, the temperatures are fairly constant year-round, they provide a great space to route utilities, install your air con, furnace and water heater as well as place your laundry. It also provides a great, comfortable area for a workshop you can use winter or summer. Homes with basements simply make more sense.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Love it! Thanks for your comment

[@sobeit3356]

I grew up in Mesa and lived in a home with a basement. Having a basement in that area was good because we could escape the heat. I can't imagine living in a two story home. The rooms on the second story would be way too hot!

[@ArtCore138]

I have a 1930s home in central phenix with a basement. I don't even have glass in the basement window just a screen. It stays cool down there all summer. Think about that. It's cool when it's 120 degrees outside in a room with no AC and an open window.

[@rebuildtheblock]

That’s amazing

[@davidpool8796]

Centex Homes out of Texas built a subdivision at 64 st on the north side of bell road that had a basement option in the 90s. Nicely built homes and a bit cooler than the first floor even during construction. It's a good idea if you don't need a bathroom and sewer hook up and you're not worried about below grade windows during monsoons

[@rebuildtheblock]

That’s a good comment.

[@_DB.COOPER]

Our basement has a bathroom, bedroom, and living room we converted into a game/theatre room.

[@nwsvndr]

You can put a bathroom below the sewer line - just need an ejector pump. Two of the houses I've lived in had these. They work well. (Yes, they can fail, but if designed right, the failure will be contained and it's not a problem whatsoever.)

[@_DB.COOPER]

@ we’ve had a sump pump for decades, it handles the toilet, shower and sink with no problems.

[@mugdiller2124]

Excellent analysis.

[@dusty7264]

I grew up in a house in Scottsdale, it didn’t have a basement, but it has a family room, bathroom, laundry room that are five feet below ground. I lot of the custom homes I have built have underground garages. And rooms. But lots of extra cost and hard digging around here

[@gaoagong]

It's such a great idea. I really wish there were way more of these houses. Our home has a basement and in fact 3 of the last 6 houses I've lived in here had a basement.

[@TheMachinePUA]

I wish my AZ home had a basement - you wouldn't find me out of it in the summer months because I was enjoying the cheap natural cooling of being underground!

[@andreb.8266]

Basements is good, the temperature is more stable, you have easy access to the plumbing, to the electrical, its more quiet, it help keep the house stable and it add space for the present or for the future. My house have one and if I ever change house it will have one.

[@cherylweber1246]

We use our basement half is living space, the other half is utility. During the winter very little heat is required, on summer hot and very high humidity no additional cooling required. Only draw back is a pump and drain system required. Well worth the additional cost we had to dig bellow frost anyway. We live in Northern NY about 15 miles from the Canadian border.

[@nathananderson4920]

Yep we have a walk out patio 1,200 sqft on this one so we will have a drainage sump and waste sump. Can’t wait to see this one come together

[@rebuildtheblock]

Wild

[@james5460]

Grew up with a basement and during the summer it was nice down there. When you walked up the stairs, the sudden rush of heat and humidity hit you fast. I have no basement now and it's really the one thing I miss, but there are also long-term advantages to having your house on a slab. But if I get another house, it will have a decent basement.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Both are great options. Thanks for watching

[@ItsEricAZ]

About 2% of Phoenix area homes have basements. I just checked and of the 22,000 active listings 433 have them. I've done a couple of other searches and have come up with the same 2% number several times valley wide. Phoenix Realtor.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks for the stats. Will be interesting to see data in 10-20 years

[@ItsEricAZ]

@@rebuildtheblock The percentage of basement homes won't change that much going forward as we're seeing smaller lot sizes due to higher land costs. We are building some 40,000 houses per year now and even after 20 years that's 800,000 to 1 Million new ones on top of our 1.4 Million existing homes.

[@lightningdemolition1964]

I do demolition and excavation in davis ca. Very few basements here. I worked on one house where the rebar work was unbelievably excessive. 3 or 4 rows of vertical bars for a two story house. The contractor said it ended up being way more expensive per square foot to go down instead up up or out. Thank the building codes and the cautious engineers.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Can’t wait to show you guys the rebar details on this one. It is crazy #7 rebar every 8” on cantilever basement wall and #5 rebar every 8” on restrained wall

[@charlesbartlett2569]

@@rebuildtheblock The rebar sizes and spacing sound very reasonable for the height of the cut you are showing. It all depends on the assumptions used for passive/active earth resistance of the adjacent soil/rock. A vertical cut like shown tells me it’s what we call standup soil. They are getting paid very little for the risk so the geotechnical engineers get very conservative and the structural engineer designs accordingly. Safety on top of safety. The factor of safety get very high.

[@jesseellington342]

Also a possibility is to drill a couple of geothermal wells in that basement floor. Not sure it works in your climate but a really fantastic way to upgrade a heat pump.

[@TheDanielsherer]

I've got some of the same concerns over here in Las Vegas. Land is getting scarcer in our valley for one. The lower temperatures as you dig down are another. In fact, while you're excavating that, it might be a good idea to either layout ground-loops or drill a hole (similar to a well, but not for pulling out water, but to dissipate heat. You'd then connect to a "ground-loop heat-pump" to heat or cool the property. Its not much of an expense to do that right now, but once you build the house... options disappear or get much more costly.

[@pyhead9916]

Simple reason - COST!

[@rebuildtheblock]

Yes

[@ItsEricAZ]

It's quicker and easier to build a two story vs digging down for a basement, pouring concrete walls, etc, adding sump pumps, etc. So, this cost does inhibit builder interest in doing them.

[@nathananderson4920]

⁠@@ItsEricAZ thanks for all your comments on this thread…in this case the clients really wanted a basement to create space for kids now and later when they come home from college

[@johnlee7085]

Needs to add shortsighted to cost. If designed to incorporate the geothermal benefits of the basement, the capital expense is definitely offset by the operating expense.

[@jbfCanada]

I’m a Canadian from British Columbia, and winter in Scottsdale. In Canada, basements are pretty much universal, except in areas with a troublesome water table. For us, it is about 1/2 the price to add sq footage going down vs. going up. I guess not having to excavate for footings accounts for this. Nice video, thank you.

[@jeff-8583]

I built an addition onto my home in Mesa where we added 2000 SF (1000 of basement and 1000 ground level) and it was the best decision ever. I used ICF block walls filled with concrete and the basement space is ultra efficient. It takes very little HVAC effort to maintain comfort and we were able to downsize the equipment for the whole addition. As a native Arizonan, I've always thought that basement space was much smarter than second stories where possible. Caliche can be an issue even in Arcadia the closer you get to Camelback. Hard digs are expensive! Love ICF construction and i wish I built my whole house out of it.

[@rd4660]

So many words for a simple presentation.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks for watching

[@DavidHutson-pt5pe]

While living in "The Valley of the Sun" over 20 years ago, my observation of how many building contractors were doing things at that time, was that they did EVERYTHING in a way that was JUST ENOUGH TO LAST until they got paid. They were not even willing to do the minimal dig necessary to do a PROPER CONCRETE DRIVEWAY OR PATIO INSTALLATION. They would simply use the minimum forming necessary to keep the concrete where they wanted it until it dried and cured. Then, with the forms gone rain storms would almost immediately begin washing away the soft, uncompacted desert sands and gravel, from UNDER THE EDGES OF CONCRETE SLABS. Bottom line? If you're having a contractor in that part of Arizona do ANY sort of building on your property, you had better put some "specifications" about how you want things done INTO A WRITTEN CONTRACT, AND THEN CHEN THEIR WORK, DAILY, to make sure they are doing what you specified.

[@johnlee7085]

Even a half basement with a berm on a wall will produce a significant geothermal benefit. Had this in the Midwest where there wasn’t as much heat or for as long, but where we also didn’t have ac. Smarter not harder.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Great suggestion

[@Sarafimm2]

Living in Arizona for the past 20 years, I've been racking my brain trying to find out why all the houses don't have the underground air conditioning or basements! I would think there would be far fewer incidents of flooded basements or water issues if everything was closed off correctly--even taking into consideration the monsoons or flash floods. It's not like we have to worry about snowmelt or standing water for months on end. These "choose a model" track homes are garbage in quality. Sliding glass doors and large windows are nice during winter, but are killer for air conditioning during half the year, when temps start staying at 80F or more from May to October (we get up to 125F at the end of July EVERY year). I don't know the cost of heating in the North, but we suffer $300--400 Air Conditioning bills from June to August at the minimum. The temps usually spill over before and after. I've had it be 80F at 9pm on Halloween!! The kids were sweating in their costumes and asking for water along with their candy, it was so bad!

[@rebuildtheblock]

Same here on Halloween my little girl in a butterfly costume almost got heat exhaustion

[@mikeflair6800]

I am in Phoenix, and a tri-level is common, like we have. A subbasement, 3 feet down from the main floor, is the lowest level and the coolest in the house.

[@61rampy65]

I lived on a street in Glendale that had all 1 & 2 acre houses. My neighbor had a partial basement, where he kept a tiny wine cellar. After living in AZ for over 40 years now, so far, it is the only house I've seen with a basement! BTW, his house was built in 1978.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks for sharing with us

[@Hugh_Jassle]

The house I grew up in had a basement. It was the only one in the neighborhood from what I remember. It was the best place to hang out because we were broke and couldn't keep the AC going all day.

[@danieldaniels7571]

I also live in Arcadia. Best part of Phoenix; I love how green is is here. I rent, and like nost buildings in Phoenix, have no basement.

[@BadDadio]

I always wondered why basements were rare in the west. The frostline reason makes a lot of sense.

[@stefanb18]

Grew up with a basement here in Phoenix. Was always cooler in the basement during summer and nice during the winter.

[@rebeccaf286]

How long did it take to get the permits? I think that a basement is an excellent idea and always wondered why more homes didn't have them. Great video!

[@jameshoiby]

Another reason: When we tried to put a pool in at our Arizona house, the caliche was almost as hard as a rock and it took serious heavy equipment to dig the hole. Our Minnesota house basements, on the other hand, could practically be dug out of the soft topsoil with a spade. Even the clay was no match for basic powered farm equipment.

[@stuartdavis798]

Another reason why there are so few basements is the fact that a lot of the folks living in the Valley are, how shall we, say, old. Single level homes are very attractive when your joints hurt. And when you're retired you find you don't want as much space as you thought you did. On the technical side, I'm a retired Geotechnical Engineer, it's cheaper to build a home up or out than down. I saw how my home was built and there was minimal site prep (which is fine for. a single story home on soils where I live). A basement would have would have added 20% to the cost. I also wonder about the utility hookups. I certainly wouldn't want to have a pump for my sanitary. Your point about land being more precious is probably the main reason basements may become more common. Thanks for the video.

[@ivannightly1919]

it maybe hot there but fun fact in the north we spend much of our time in the basement in the summer because its naturally cool there have ben years where I spent almost the full summer in the backyard by the brook in the shade or in the basement all day just to cook at night because my central air failed and couldn't get anyone to fix it. the whole area was built at the same time so all the funaces failed about the same year

[@Not_so_greatScott]

You got the one word: caliche! My parents built their house with a basement in Mesa in the late 70s. The builder ran into caliche and it set them back quite a bit. That might have been the last basement they ever did :) On a side note: all my fiends had basements. Growing up in the eighties was the best :)

[@rebuildtheblock]

Yep some areas are just harder to dig here southwest

[@davidd6626]

Also used blocks for the exterior, it really keeps the place cool year round. Don't like the look, paint it add textured blocks or stucco over it. More upfront but savings there after. I had a cinder block house in Las Vegas and rarely used the HVAC. Transfers cold night air into the blocks at night and cool during the day. Takes in the heat during the day and transfers into home at night. Same for cement housing (popular in the tropics and South Florida

[@SaguaroBlossom]

I *love* basements and think they are a fantastic idea for AZ. Had them my whole time growing up away from Arizona. Never understood why Arizona didn't have more basements since they stay so much cooler naturally. But a basement cost my dad his life. (specifically a basement window well + county inspectors being very unfamiliar with them at the time)

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks for watching! Sorry to hear about your dad.

[@Cucumberflavoredmustard]

The absolute best home layout IMO is a ranch with a full basement. The viability really depends on the elevation of the sewer main in the street. If you can drain out the floor and still make the 1/4" in 12" slope, great. If not a pump is an option, but not ideal. Best option is to run a drain for each floor and a sanitary wye under the front yard, so you can still flush if you lose power.

[@firecloud77]

Another benefit is you can build a huge room dedicated to a powerful sound system, without disturbing neighbors.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Yep. Our clients plan to have there entertainment room down stairs for family movie nights

[@carlchristopher2534]

Great idea for cooling !!!

[@AndrewHarshman]

We did a home inspection just down the street the other day. That's just off of Lafayette and 56th, right?

[@bru1015]

I used to live in a subdivision that offered basements. At the time a basement cost around $20,000 added to the cost of the house. We didn’t get one we put our 20k to be on the man made lake front.😊

[@MojoPup]

Whether it's a location that has cold winters or very hot summers, a basement is a great thing to have. That's another one of many regrets I have about where I live in Florida, not being able to have a basement. The other reasons...high heat/humidity, bad mosquitos, bugs...soo many bugs, and did I mention extremely high heat & humidity (I'm much more of a desert type). For us, it's mainly because water is so close to the surface here and the hurricanes would be constantly flooding your basement. Once you get up into Georgia a bit, you start to see some basements...but not down here unless it's a commercial building for the most part. Where I work now, we have pumps going 24/7 to keep the basement dry-ish.

[@clarencevogel6039]

I am planning on building (with basement) in Prescott area. I would love to see more videos on Arizona basements, and cost breakdowns compared to Slabs or Crawl Spaces. im thinking a 60x40. also could you cover how to determine if a property/lot was "Basement friendly"

[@rebuildtheblock]

Let me see what we can do about covering some more topics around basement building process here in the Valley of the Sun.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Also to answer your question about basement friendly lots. A geo technical Engineer is going to be your friend when doing your due diligence.

[@diegosilang4823]

lived in a 2 story home and during hottest summer months, the upper floors are always unbearably hot, while the lower level is much cooler.

[@JV-wl6ex]

My first guess would have been Efflorescence without doing my homework. I lived in the Las Vegas for 15 years up until the plandemic happened and I was introduced to Efflorescence by accident at my office seeing “grow” out of the sidewalk. Knowing very little about it I did seal my block wall before I installed some planters to try and keep them from sucking the powder out of the caustic soil. I seen a lot of damage done to homes around the valley and I just assumed that it was something that you had to deal with. It just sucked that fences were a total loss in 10-20 years.

[@royromero8496]

They should also install a double tiered roof with plenty of air space between each other pitched

[@garysanchez5744]

coming from chicago and utah, where a home without a basement is unheard of, im surprised at the lack of basements here in az. in mesa when we were first looking at moving here, older homes have basements, but not in cave creek, where we live. you can find 12 foot swimming pools everywhere, so i dont buy the ground is too hard. recently new homes up here have basements, with a horrible extra cost to them.

[@rebuildtheblock]

I should have been more clear it isn’t the difficult of the digging but rather the cost to dig in hard soil and rock. Also basements are typically about 20x the volume of dirt than a pool.

[@Dawood4]

They are also so easy to heat and cool especially in arizona

[@joeharris3878]

Very few basements in the deep south where I'm from . In Minnesota, where I live, seems like everyone has a basement , or sometimes split level with the lower floor partly below ground .

[@rebuildtheblock]

Probably same reasons Az didn’t have too many basements….frost line

[@brianwolgamot7076]

In the valley around Yuma, it would be hard to build a basement home because the water table is so close to the surface.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Yep that is probaply the only place in Az with a high water table…😂😂

[@Chris-ut6eq]

Grew up in Michigan and most homes had basements. Wish you would have covered the cost differences between a standard footing vs basement vs 2nd story build. I would think the cooling of a basement may be a great benefit, but have no data to support this assumption.

[@KenYamaguchi-sg5zr]

Excellent presentation & great information. Thank you. Just curious - what's the cost to excavate a hole that size in Arcadia? Also, how many square feet will the house be, and how much will the house cost to build? I presume it will be one story? Lots like that have to cost near a million, right? You probably had to buy an older house and demolish it? A multi-million dollar project for sure. Thanks in advance for some more information.

[@rebuildtheblock]

This is excavation roughly 70ft x 50ft to accommodate a 2,500 sqft basement / wall out patio. Cost for excavation and dirt export is roughly $40k. Total house will be 5,400 sqft livable (1,500 sqft livable basement). More than happy to answer your additional questions via email. Feel free to reach out to me at [e-mail]

[@rebuildtheblock]

Reach out for more info [e-mail]

[@SergioGarcia-qo1ng]

I worked on a home in gilbert that had a basketball court in the basement

[@portnuefflyer]

The first thing I notice in the cheaper housing here in Idaho, is, no basements! Stupid! I went with a "daylight" basement house myself, with the floor well below the frost line, but the upper 4' of the basement walls above ground, so big windows with a view, making it a compromise between the advantages of a basement with none of the drawbacks. But still, when it's 90 to 100 degrees, walking downstairs shows it's noticeably cooler.

[@rustyknott-W.D]

Native Arizonan here. Where I live in northern AZ, it's impossible to excavate more than a few feet without dynamite because of the subsurface rock. My house sits atop the Kaibab Limestone formation which is the top layer of rock in the Grand Canyon. That means there is 5,000 vertical feet of rock beneath my foundation. This is why we don't have basements. One of the first things we like to do to newbies who ask about basements is hand them a shovel and tell them to try to dig a hole. A few minutes later, the exercise is abandoned.

[@rebuildtheblock]

😂😂😂😂 love it

[@johnroberts3824]

While basements are convenient, every house I've lived in that had a basement has had a water issue at some point. It might not be so much of a problem in the desert, except perhaps during the monsoon season. Personally I never want another basement. I currently live in NE AZ, and let me tell you, the soil at the surface is like dust but if you go down 2 feet it's like the soil was run through a hydraulic press. Incredibly compact and difficult to dig.

[@mikej238]

As a Canadian who owns a home in Phoenix I always asked WHY NOT? Its such an obvious advantage. I have a 2 storey house in Canada with 1000sq ft basement

[@jameswilson5165]

Great informative video. It's so hot out there most of the year, 110 and up, that I would expect that basement homes would be the norm. I guess the excavation costs are much more than I realize. Anyway, in the next video concerning this home, can we see rendered views of what it will look like and the projected price? Thanks.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks for the comment Yes we can cover some of that stuff about cost. Keep following and we will get that released in the new year.

[@charleswelch249]

A basement is very useful space. It's a great food storage space. Free air conditioner. A safe place during inclamit weather, which doesn't happen there much as the Midwest. You get an extra floor without building higher. And you have a great place for your utilities and much cheaper utility bills.

[@ZebraXWarrior]

Hi, lifelong AZ woman here! Growing up, my parents and I moved a lot. A few homes we moved into had basements that always flooded. This was in the East Valley. Nobody in Phoenix knows how to waterproof a basement properly. They always flooded. Guess where my room was? In the flood zone, but we all moved pretty quickly out of those houses and realized after the second home that basements in AZ are no bueno.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thanks for the comment. Liquid water proof with drainage mat., add 36” of Drainage rock and rigid drainage pipe along with a drywall sump should do the trick…lots of innovation has made a huge difference for new home development in recent years

[@TransitAndTeslas]

Same reason we have a light rail when every other major city went with subways. Caliche.

[@daar1113]

I live in Florida and basements seem to be pretty rare here too. I always assumed it was because of the sandy soils and high water table but I don't actually know. I do know that after a tropical storm or just heavy rain event, water seeps out of my front yard and over the curb into the street for a day or two. If I did have a basement it would have to be water tight like a submarine!

[@rebuildtheblock]

Haha like a submarine 😂😂

[@Sergeantgrunt]

I was shocked when I moved here and realized that so many homes did not have a basement. I came from the Pacific NW area and basements are normal. To not have a basement was the same as having one here in the Phoenix area.

[@alsehl3609]

Very nice excavation work!

[@rebuildtheblock]

Thank you I will give our team the props they deserve

[@stevenbarnes8238]

I live in prescott so the easy answer for no basements are big rocks!. We are in the mountains also not many pools.

[@rebuildtheblock]

Totally.

[@carbongrip2108]

Far easier to cool a Single-Story + Basement, I would be interested in seeing the numbers, but a basement might actually pay for its self after 10-years worth of savings that would have went to trying to cool a traditional 2-story house. You might even be able to get away with a single air conditioning unit on a basement home and save from having to maintain 2 units like a traditional 2-story would normally have.

[@scottzagger]

A basement is already cheaper than a second story, typically. But most people will pay a little more to have windows and such.

[@rebuildtheblock]

We have the basement on a separate (smaller unit) this will help to ensure this space is on its own system and when kids move out of the home the energy cost for this 1,500 sqft will be minimal given no one will be residing in this space.

[@ronjones1077]

Always cooler down stairs!

[@Emprivan]

Ok, but most early basments were for ice storage, and had a specific vent that runs up thru the kitchen. The cold air would run thru it by convection/ warm air rising. This would keep milk and other things refigerated. My place in Pasadena CA had just a very small basment barly 8x8, had a ice block sized hole and slide from the outside. I think by the time people were starting to build here in AZ, we finaly had refigerators. But ya, if somehow I had the money, I would build my home compleetly underground here in Sedona AZ. And no... you won't be hearing a hammer hoe going for a year, I'll use rock saws and quarey it out and then build topside stuff with the blocks I cut out. Maybe save the top rock and put it back for the roof after the house is built. Won't even know there is a house there.

[@petekeefe3249]

As a native carpenter 65 years 44 street and Taylor was the only project I've ever been on with pavements they had a terrible backfilling problem because of how the plumbing at the street had to be so deep

[@petekeefe3249]

The whole track looked like a war zone every the streets were collapsing fences were falling in front entries were false and it didn't get the backfield right

[@rebuildtheblock]

That sounds like a horrible situation. Back fill and compaction testing are so important when digging deep

[@jonwarner1977]

We have a basement with a family room, man cave and two bedrooms. It's comfortable for the summer months. In the winter months we move back upstairs family room and bedrooms. We literally save a lot of money on heating and cooling. Then there's the major reason for a basement ... living in comfort. The very hot summer months are brutal! I can't understand why homeowners don't demand basements in the southwest unless they are masochists.

[@actionjksn]

I'm in Ohio and most houses have a basement and they are awesome. My wife is from Phoenix and I've never seen a basement there and a lot of the people there have never seen a basement except on TV. They may be a lot harder to dig there but I think they would be very useful in that part of the country. Especially in the summer time.

[@jamesretired5979]

Always a good idea

[@stuartstuart866]

A basement is an awesome idea. I wonder what the temperature difference would be during the summer. Could you actually stay down there in comfort if you lost power to your air conditioner?

[@rebuildtheblock]

I wish that were the case but in Arizona after 10-20 days without getting below 100 pretty hard to stay anywhere without AC

[@garrettbaudioandvideo]

There’s older houses near the downtown Tucson area that have basements.