Egress Windows in Calgary

Safe & Energy Efficient Egress Windows for Your Home

Egress windows are meant for escape in case of fire or other emergency and are required by the National Building Code of Canada.

Windows designated as egress windows must be large enough, placed correctly, and easy to open without special tools. These vinyl windows are occasionally paired with ladders or steps for an easy escape from basements and upper floors.

RVW Ltd will be pleased to help you inform where to install egress windows and advise you on what sort of window is best to use ideal size requirements and any issues regarding installation.

Where Can You Install Egress Windows In Calgary For Your Home?

The requirement for egress windows is for bedrooms (rooms used for sleeping purposes) on all floors as well as in basements.

In new construction, egress windows are required in a basement if the design is such that rooms will later be finished off as bedrooms. If you add a basement bedroom to an existing home, you must install an egress window in that room as well.

Adding egress windows to an existing home is not just a necessary chore to satisfy the building code. Egress windows can be attractive as well as functional and make your home more livable as well as increase its resale value.

Where Do You Need Egress Windows in Your Home in Calgary?

The requirement for egress windows is for bedrooms (rooms used for sleeping purposes) on all floors as well as in basements. In new construction, egress windows are required in a basement if the design is such that rooms will later be finished off as bedrooms. If you add a basement bedroom to an existing home, you must install an egress window in that room as well. Adding egress windows to an existing home is not just a necessary chore to satisfy the building code. Egress windows can be attractive as well as functional and make your home more livable as well as increase its resale value.

What Windows Qualify as Egress Windows?

There are a specific size and other requirements for egress windows. The International Residential Code has four requirements for egress windows.

Egress windows shall provide unobstructed openings with areas not less than 0.35 m2 (3.8 ft2), with no dimension less than 380 mm (15 in.). The unobstructed opening must be measured between the window components (sashes, jambs, sills, opening mechanisms, etc.)

The point of these requirements is that children will be able to get up and through the window in case of a fire and that adults will fit through the opening.

Remember that the requirements have to do with the clear space in a window opening and not the size of the frame or the glass panel. It refers to space through which you and your children must crawl to get to safety!

You Must Be Able to Open an Egress Window without Tools

During life and death, an emergency is not the time to be looking for keys for a lock or a screwdriver, plyers, or spanner. Thus a requirement for egress windows is that they can be opened in a hurry without the use of special keys or tools.

If a basement or main floor window is fitted with a security screen or bars, they must have must also be easy to open without having to go looking for tools!

The Total Open Area is Important for an Egress Window

The minimum dimensions of an egress window are twenty inches for the width and twenty-four for the height. However, a twenty by twenty-four-inch opening only has an area of three and three-tenths square feet!

The opening has to have a cross-sectional area of five and seven-tenths square feet.

Don’t worry. At RVW Ltd we know building codes for Calgary and throughout Alberta and we know our egress windows. Come to see us, and we will be pleased to show you attractive, durable, cost-effective windows to use as egress windows. For example, a casement window with a hinged sash typically works well for this purpose even in cramped spaces as the window swings free and leaves all of the opening available to egress.

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Egress Windows FAQ

A window through which a person can escape the house in case of an emergency.
f the opening enlargement is not required – the basement egress window cost will be the same as the regular window. If there is opening enlargement involved the price will vary from $1020 for the re-framing on the above ground level floors to $2500 for the concrete cutting and excavating for the basement. Call (587) 707-9257 and talk to Calgary egress windows experts about your next project.
An awning window can’t be egress, because it doesn’t provide sufficient clear area when open.
Yes it does, unless it has a door that leads directly to the outside.
Absolutely, for a room in a house to be considered a legal bedroom – it needs an egress window unless it has a door leading directly to the outside.
Yes you can. It will involve (aside from installing a window) excavating, cutting concrete, removing a large amount of debris, installing a new pressure treated frame in the concrete, adding gravel for drainage, installing a proper window well.
The most common windows used for the egress are sliding windows and casement windows.