My daughter is 2 months old only and we have been living in basement. have anybody ever found any problem relating to health??? what arrangements should i take care of while living with new born babies? it has good size window and sunlight comes in the morning.
Main problems to watch out for are mold/dampness and lack of air circulation.
Sunlight is also important, but looks like you have that covered.
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"Mah deah, there is much more money to be made in the destruction of civilization than in building it up."
-- Rhett Butler in "Gone with the Wind"
I would not put my baby in basement or live with baby in basement. Its just personnel thinking. We are struggling so much with our son's health, due to unknown reason.
We love our kids so I would not put single reason which can ruin their health.
Basement don't get enough air circulation as well as not enough sunlight. Even its not safe for pregnant women.
But this is just our personnel opinion.
I do respect what everyone can effort it and what they can give to their children. I know all parent love so much for their child. Almost all are same. And they do also so much for them.
so I would just advice you, if you can make little bit changes in your income or save other places if you can ...move out and leave in appartment. Even if appartment is not decent but its upstair.
we just love our kids as like other parent do so much.
I don't agree with the above poster. I think basements may differ from house to house. If you have adequate circulation and stay away from damp settings and ensure no fungus growth then things should be fine. Lots of people have really good furnished basements. If circulation is poor open the windows (at least in the summer).
People all over the world raise healthy children very well and many have much worse conditions than our Canadian basements.
In this economic condition I can understand living in a basement apartment if necessary. However of course if affordability is there then moving to an apartment with more windows and light though may not make much difference in physical health, but the extra light may make things more +ve.
One more thing, you must have vents in the basement. Ensure you have the vents you use open and the ones you don't are closed. Also you can talk to the landlord to ensure the fan is running properly.
Another thing (which I myself initially ignored) is ensure the landlord or yourself puts a nice furnace filter regularly (every month) in the house (roughly 5 bucks)
Location: British Columbia
Posted on: 07-06-09 01:18:17
Quote:
Originally posted by wall-E
Another thing (which I myself initially ignored) is ensure the landlord or yourself puts a nice furnace filter regularly (every month) in the house (roughly 5 bucks)
Good posting. I agree. Perhaps the original poster can also purchase a air purifier to use in the babys nursery.
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~ Morning rain
please read my post carefully. I have said it is personnel opinion.
No one need to agree.
In other country, if not winter like here...house architecture is different. Here, if we get that easily air inside the house, it will never keep it warm in -40 degree.
However, vent and everything need to be very clean.
Most of the immigrant rent the basement. They don't have knowledge about consutruction of the house forget about basement. Desi find cheap contractors to finish the basement and they do very poor job.
so I mean to say, its baby's health so be very careful what you chose for them.
If we can limit our expenses like cell phone ...or any other usage which does not harm baby's health that should given first priority.
Baby's health is very very fragile. Most imp is the lung. in first year, baby need very good environment.
Again, its very personnel opinion.
If your baby will get sick, one of the parent will not able to work..so forget about saving..no second income.
Regardless, most of the basement have problem. And as said above to identify that problems you need very good home inspector which inspect what is behind the wall to inspect it.
I would say, rather than spending money in having all basement where you want to say... apartment is safer.
There is lots of way saving money.
Lots of people, rent 2 bedroom apartment and then share another room with single person..which comes even cheaper than basement apartment and smart way of saving money. 
Hello AmericanChai. I am not trying to start a fight but really curious as to your logic.
A basement to an apartment or the 1st floor of the house is similar in many ways. The vents throw out the SAME air irrespective of which floor you are on. More likely the landlord and tenant are using the SAME air filter. The drywalls are more or less the same.
The real concerns about cheap construction could be bad paint, poor electric wiring (leading to a fire), but all basements have to be certified in Canada.
The big difference is the amount of sunlight ... just assume you are raising your baby in the UK where they get no sunlight as is
But to the original poster: I am no expert on this topic and maybe you should consult some expert or experienced person. The reason you post this message because there is some concern, so may be consider moving to an apartment which many times may be just a few dollars more than the basement. But then again an apartment does not necessarily mean "healthier" air.
