What is an Egress Window?
An egress window is a window that is large enough that you can use it to exit your home in the event of an emergency such as a fire in the home. Egress means “exit.” In homes, all basements, habitable attics, and bedrooms are required to have an egress opening. Notice that last sentence said, “egress opening.” An egress opening is not required to be a window; it can also be a door. Most bedrooms do not have doors to the exterior, so most bedroom egress openings are accomplished with windows.
We hope these windows are never used, except to allow our teenagers to sneak out (and then again, we hope they’re not used for that either). Nevertheless, having adequately-sized egress windows give us a sense of security because they could save the life of someone in your home someday
The purpose of an egress opening is to provide you and your family a way to escape the home if the normal means of exit from a bedroom or a basement is blocked by something such as fire or smoke.
For example, if there is a fire in the hallway, or if the stairs leading out of the basement are not accessible due to a fire, there must be a way for everyone to escape the house quickly. Since most house fires occur at night, every sleeping room, or bedroom, is required to have its own egress opening.
What is the Definition of Egress?
According to dictionary.com, the word “egress” is both a noun and a verb. The definition of egress is:
- the act or an instance of going, especially from an enclosed place (noun)
- a means or place of going out; an exit (noun)
- to go out; emerge (verb)
Egress Windows also provide firefighters a way into the home
While egress means to exit, egress windows also give firefighters a way to enter the home if they are unable to enter through a door. In order for a firefighter to be able to crawl through a window while wearing their breathing apparatus and other equipment, the windows must be large enough to accommodate them. No firefighter is going to allow an undersized window to keep them entering a home to save someone’s life, but the lack of an adequately-sized window in the right area of the home could slow him down. This is why code dictates the minimum size openings that are allowed.
What are the size requirements for egress windows?
From the inside of the home, the window should be close enough to the floor and large enough to allow someone to reach the window, climb up, and pull themselves out.
Here are the basic requirements for egress windows in the home.
- The bottom of the required opening must be within 44 inches of the floor.
- The width of the opening must be at least 20 inches.
- The height of the opening must be at least 24 inches.
- The net clear opening must be at least 5.7 square feet unless the bottom of the opening is within 44 inches of the ground at the exterior. In those cases, the size of the opening can be reduced to 5 square feet.
- Window wells must be at least 3′ x 3′, and they must allow the window to open fully. If the window well is more than 44 inches deep, it requires a ladder.
- If there is a deck or porch above the basement window well, at least 36″ of headroom is needed.
If I am replacing windows in my home, must they meet egress requirements?
Technically, anytime you upgrade any system in your home, you are required to bring it up to current code. This means that your new windows should meet the code requirements mentioned above. Some AHJ’s (authority having jurisdiction) may grant an exception or variance in some circumstances, but normally you will be required to bring your windows up to code. This means size requirements and safety glass requirements in certain locations.
One thing to keep in mind is that there are various ways to enlarge a window, and some ways may be easier and other ways. While every situation is different, it is normally easier to increase the height of a window than to increase its width. This is because you can often simply lower the bottom of the window with some simple changes to the wall framing under the window. To increase the width, much more extensive changes are normally required to the header and support structure above the window.
Summary
We invest money in a lot of things for our protection such as insurance, but we hope we never have to use them. Egress windows is one of these. Adding new windows to an older home can add beauty, energy efficiency, and safety. Other things such as smoke detectors and having an emergency plan that everyone is familiar with can help keep your family safe. Egress windows are only a small part of the equation that will help keep your family safe.
© 2020 Mike Morgan
This article was written by Mike Morgan, the owner of Morgan Inspection Services. Morgan Inspection Services has been providing home, septic and well inspection services throughout the central Texas area since 2002. He can be reached at 325-998-4663 or at mike@morganinspectionservices.com. No article, or portion thereof, may be reproduced or copied without prior written consent of Mike Morgan.
