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Basement Egress Windows

Adding an egress window to your basement can mean you can add valuable living space on the lower level. Each bedroom in a house must have at least one egress window that meets state building code.

Usually 5.7 square feet of clear opening (5.0 in some instances) must be available for a fire fighter to climb in with his gear on. In basement remodeling situations, this can become problematic because the basement windows in older homes are usually much too small. Cutting the existing opening in the block or concrete wall becomes necessary in order to add a legal bedroom.

Cutting the block wall is usually necessary to get a large enough window in place.

Single Casement windows are preferred because they can usually be sized to the same width as an existing basement window with only the height being adjusted by cutting the block wall straight down.