Basements are the tried and true, go-to rooms for home theaters. They usually make the perfect area for home theaters because they’re naturally dark and shut off from the light outside, plus you’re not getting sound interference from anywhere else in the house when you’re underground. With a little acoustic work and soundproofing, that basement entertainment room is as good as the theaters.
But what happens when you didn’t win the basement lottery, and you have a small basement that you’re trying to fit a whole home theater into? You improvise! Read on for some of our favorite tricks to make the most out of your small basement and get some fresh seating ideas for a basement home theater.
Create Tiered Entertainment Room Seating
One of the best ways to make use of a small basement home theater is to add levels to your seating. Not only does it look professional and well-thought-out, but it allows everyone to see the screen without having to fight over seating.
Maybe you don’t have room to put a row of four theater room recliners, but you could always have a loveseat entertainment room recliner in the front, and then two recliners in the back raised with a riser platform for home theater chairs. Or you could do two rows of three—one in the front, and one in the back. You get the idea. It’s by far one of our favorite ideas to make the most of seating in a basement home theater that’s on the smaller side.
Having that raised row of entertainment room seats in the back might not seem like a space-saving technique at first, but not only does it work wonderfully in small spaces, it also adds a level of literal and metaphorical elevation to your space. The designer effect it adds works just as well in larger spaces too.
Invest in Modular Seating
If you have a smaller basement space that you’re making into a home theater, even buying regular entertainment room seating can seem like a struggle to fit into your room the way that you were envisioning. One of our favorite seating solutions for basement theaters on the smaller end is to invest in modular furniture.
Modular furniture lets you make the most of your space on your own terms. You can construct, deconstruct, and reconstruct all over again to get the appropriate seating layout for nearly any situation. The beauty is that your modular home theater chairs and recliners can be configured and pushed together in nearly any way.
Say you’re hosting five people over for a movie night—you can put a row of three theater room recliners in front, and then put two seats behind those up on a riser platform for home theater seating. Or if you’re hosting three people next time, get rid of the two seats in the back and use the freed-up space as an area to serve snacks and drinks. It’s all about making the most of the available space you have.
Make Use of Curved Seating
If your basement is on the smaller side, there’s a chance you might not be able to fit a row of theater seating in it in a way where a) it fits, and b) everyone is still able to see the screen. Enter home theater seating that’s slightly curved. Having that slight curve is important, because not only does it let you make the most of your space, it always keeps everyone’s chair angled more towards the screen than a straight row can offer. If you have four seats in your basement home theater and the end seats aren’t in line with the screen, switching them up for an angled row of four curved entertainment room recliners keeps everyone’s line of sight pointed at the screen—because no one wants to crane their neck for two hours just to see a screen.
Similarly, making use of entertainment room seating that backs up right against the wall is another way to save on already-small space. Since seats like these are engineered to be as form-fitting to the wall as possible, it frees up a tiny amount of space, hopefully allowing you to use it to your advantage, or just keeping the room from feeling too claustrophobic.
A small basement space doesn’t mean your home theater has to suffer or be diminished in any capacity. With all the innovative seating layout ideas for basement home theaters out there, there’s bound to be one that works for you and unlocks your home theater’s true potential.