Bedroom Egress Window Requirements
If a room has even the remote possibility of later becoming a bedroom include an egress size window.
Bedroom egress window requirements. Egress window logic and the building code. Window wells must be at least 3 x 3 and they must allow the window to open fully. Basement egress window requirements. The city of bloomington has a nice handout on egress requirements explaining these requirements.
Building codes in many areas require them to be large enough to allow entry for a fully equipped firefighter. For determining egress window sizes and placement the international building code holds that every bedroom must contain at least one egress. Besides the height width and overall square footage requirements that the basement egress window must meet there are certain requirements for the window well surrounding the window. The trickiest part is the window egress.
Basement egress windows have special requirements. Since you re below ground you have to make sure that the window can still fully open without obstruction. Here are the specifics you will want to include in a window used for egress for a future bedroom clear area of opening. The bottom of the egress window opening can t exceed 44 from the finished floor.
The old saying always leave yourself an out is especially true when it comes to home fires. The minimum opening area of the egress window is 5 7. All of these rooms are required to have a means of egress. When the basement stairs are blocked by a flaming television true story or fire and thick black smoke are racing down a hallway toward a dead end bedroom windows that are large enough for you to escape and for firefighters to enter become.
If you have a basement that has a bedroom recreation room den family room media room office or home gym. The base of the well can be no more than 44 inches above the bedroom floor. An egress window should be large enough for residents to escape through in case of emergency. If there s a deck or porch above the basement window well at least 36 of headroom is needed.
Egress window well code requirements. The area of a window well shall not be less than 9 square feet with a horizontal length width of no less than 36 inches. To qualify a basement window as an egress you may also have to install window wells to enlarge windows and allow access. Make sure the basement window well has enough area to move around in and if the well is especially deep make sure you have a ladder attached to it for an easy.
If the sill is below ground the window itself will need larger dimensions 9 square feet. When the sill height of an egress window is located below grade common for egress windows provided for a basement a window well must be provided.