# Egress well for basement not to be "windowless"



## kozac (Mar 12, 2015)

Whats the story on using wells with steps or a ladder to make a commercial basement not "windowless" ?


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## cda (Mar 12, 2015)

Welcome

Which building code and edition are you looking at??


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## cda (Mar 12, 2015)

Looks like it has to be ramps or stairs

903.2.11.1.3 Basements. Where any portion of a basement is located more than 75 feet (22 860 mm) from openings required by Section 903.2.11.1, the basement shall be equipped throughout with an approved automatic sprinkler system. [F]

The 75-foot (22 860 mm) distance is intended to be measured in the line of travel—not in a straight line perpendicular to the wall. Where obstructions, such as walls or other partitions, are present in a basement, the walls and partitions enclosing any room or space must have openings that provide an equivalent degree of fire department access to that provided by the openings prescribed in Section 903.2.11.1 for exterior walls. If an equivalent degree of fire department access to all portions of the floor area is not provided, the basement would require an automatic sprinkler system.

903.2.11.1 Stories without openings. An automatic sprinkler system shall be installed throughout all stories, including basements, of all buildings where the floor area exceeds 1,500 square feet (139.4 m2) and where there is not provided at least one of the following types of exterior wall openings: [F]

1. Openings below grade that lead directly to ground level by an exterior stairway complying with Section 1009 or an outside ramp complying with Section 1010. Openings shall be located in each 50 linear feet (15 240 mm), or fraction thereof, of exterior wall in the story on at least one side. The required openings shall be distributed such that the lineal distance between adjacent openings does not exceed 50 feet (15 240 mm).


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## kozac (Mar 12, 2015)

Njac 5:70-4.7


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## cda (Mar 12, 2015)

kozac said:
			
		

> Njac 5:70-4.7


do you happen to have a link to the codes??? or do they put them online??


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## cda (Mar 12, 2015)

not sure how old this is:::

http://www.wdsharpe.com/Windowless_Basement.html


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## cda (Mar 12, 2015)

http://www.mendhamfireprevention.org/main_sublinks.asp?id=1&sid=16

Not sure how this is read, it appears all you need is the opening size???

Does not say much about access to the opening.

Sounds like a call the the local ahj where this is at is the best answer.


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## kozac (Mar 12, 2015)

Yes, that is recent. I'm trying to convince my local fire code official to let me use something like this: http://www.bilco.com/Foundations/Store/shopdetail.asp?product=1WW-1*ScapeWEL-Window-Wells---Planter-Design

but he keeps saying that "Entire opening must be above grade". How can this be? And whats the point of that product then? It says it right there that it is code compliant.


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## mstehlin (Mar 12, 2015)

The window well is code compliant for an emergency egress window that is required in bedrooms below grade.  But this is a different requirement.

The intent is that a fireman can shoot a fire hose into the window.  The window well might be too tight to manuver with a hose


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## cda (Mar 12, 2015)

kozac said:
			
		

> Yes, that is recent. I'm trying to convince my local fire code official to let me use something like this: http://www.bilco.com/Foundations/Store/shopdetail.asp?product=1WW-1*ScapeWEL-Window-Wells---Planter-Designbut he keeps saying that "Entire opening must be above grade". How can this be? And whats the point of that product then? It says it right there that it is code compliant.


A basement would be above grade if partially buried

STORY ABOVE GRADE PLANE. Any story having its finished floor surface entirely above grade plane, or in which the finished surface of the floor next above is:

1. More than 6 feet (1829 mm) above grade plane; or

2. More than 12 feet (3658 mm) above the finished ground level at any point.


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