Not exactly a woodworking question, but related. I bought an old house and there’s a nice spot in the basement for me to set up my shop, but it’s completely unfinished. Cinder block walls and concrete floor. As far as I know, if I want to actually finish it, I need a permit and inspections, which seems like a lot of hassle. All I really want is to seal the floor (not sure how best to do that) and have a way to hang cabinets. Do I just drill into the cinder block? It feels weird to put a bunch of holes in the foundation of the house. Or do I put up some basic framing to hang things off of? Or does that start to require permits? Any advice? Just not sure how best to proceed.
Okay, all good info. I will eventually want to run more electric, but I’ll hire someone for that. I’ll have to check on the framing and see if permits are required, the actual process seems easy enough.
If the walls are framed and open, it’s pretty simple and easy for new lines to be run. Shouldn’t be too expensive to hire an electrician for that. However, code may require that you close the walls after that or you may have to use a particular kind of junction box if you want to keep the walls open. Any electrician you hire should know what is required, and they should be handling all of there permits. Always make your contractors pull their own permits.
Also, don’t be too afraid of permits. In your area you may be allowed to do some work and get the permits yourself. Again, ask the local office, they can be your friends.