Basement Egress Window Well Requirements

Since you re below ground you have to make sure that the window can still fully open without obstruction.

Basement egress window well requirements.

The horizontal area of the window well needs to be a minimum of nine square feet with a minimum horizontal projection and vertical width of 36 inches. An easy to open window that serves as an emergency exit for below ground living space of any kind. Scapewel window wells planter design. Egress ladders and or steps are required on window wells deeper than 44 and.

The egress well must not interfere with the egress window fully opening. These special basement windows meet the current irc code for building a finished basement so you have peace of mind in the event of a fire or accident. However if your basement has habitable finished rooms building codes require it to have egress windows or other means of egress patio door etc. To ensure you install the right egress for your basement we ll break down the residential window well code requirements you ll need to abide by.

Individual states and municipalities may have their own specifications for egress windows. Adds natural daylight and meets building code requirements for emergency egress in finished basement areas. Width x projection egress ladders and or steps. Basement egress windows have special requirements.

What s an egress window. The distance from the egress window to the back of the egress well must be at least 36 the minimum area of the egress well must be 9 square feet. Basement egress windows must also include window wells that provide enough clearance to allow escape. 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.

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. Egress window well code requirements. Windows can be of various total size but their free areas when open must be at least 5 7 square feet. An egress window must open at least 20 inches wide and 24 inches high with a net clear open area of 5 7 feet square.

The sill must be no higher than 44 inches from the ground. Let s be honest during a fire stairs could be blocked or damaged. If a window is more than 44 inches from the ground a ladder or steps at least 12 inches wide must be present. And every basement bedroom whether existing or added is required by code to have an egress window.