Family Fire Drills: Don’t Forget the Basement Route TAGS: Egress windows | emergeny escape | means of egress | safe basement exit

Egress windows are an important safety addition to any basement redesign – but learning to use them effectively is equally important. Clarence Klein, from Cleveland Ohio, takes fire drills very seriously. “When I was just a kid,” he explains, “I lost my dad to a fire in our home.” Even thirty years later, it’s a terrifying memory that stays with him. “That’s why I’m a bit obsessive about fire safety in my own house.” For Clarence, that means running his own family through twice annual fire drills – outlining all the escape routes from the home, and where to meet …Continue reading →

Installing a Basement Window for Egress: Cutting the Opening TAGS: Adding egress windows | Installing an Egress Window | Photos

This is the most popular image in the Photo Gallery. It appears that people are very interested in the actual cutting out of the foundation for the egress window opening. In this image it is being done with a cement chainsaw. I will have a future post regarding different types of cutting tools for making this opening. Keep an eye out for it. Tweet

April is Safe Digging Month TAGS: Adding egress windows | Dial 811 | Dig Safe

Whether your basement is beneath a ranch house or a mansion, adding windows to it requires one identical process – digging a big hole! To ensure people dig those holes safely, and to reduce the risk of property damage or personal injury, the Common Ground Alliance has declared April to be “Safe Digging Month.” What’s beneath your feet? For homeowners, the answer could be power lines, cables, gas pipes and sewer lines. As more and more townships beautify themselves, more and more of the essential wiring that keeps our cities ticking has been transferred beneath our feet. For homeowners in …Continue reading →

Better Basement Ventilation: A Second Egress Window Brings a Breath of Fresh Air TAGS: basement | Basement Windows | bringing fresh air in a basement | damp basement | fixing smelly basements | prevent mold in basements

National building code requires all furnished basements to have a means of egress – but adding egress window wells can have other benefits as well; as one New Jersey homeowner discovered. “Sometimes I used to wonder why they even built a basement in this house,” admits Lambertville resident Rick. “We lived far enough away from the river that the house never flooded, but for as long as I lived here there was a funky, damp smell downstairs and it just wouldn’t go away.” Rick’s beautiful Victorian home is just blocks from the Delaware river; and his basement is an important …Continue reading →

DIY Basement Finishing: Make Sure You Know the Codes TAGS: basement | basement remodel ideas | building codes | Egress windows | finishing a basement

Richard thought he was smart to finish his basement himself – until it came time to sell his house. “I guess the moral to the story is: Don’t cut corners.” Richard’s talking about the finished basement of his Reading, Pa. home. “My buddies and I did it about five years ago,” he explains. “My wife and I had been talking about finishing the basement for a while, so we bought what we needed from the hardware store and got cracking.” And for a project fueled by six packs of beer and how-to articles found on Google, Richard and his friends …Continue reading →

Get Out of the Dungeon with Natural Basement Lighting TAGS: Egress windows | finishing a basement | gloomy basement | means of egress | natural light | safe basement exit

A finished basement can add lots of extra room to your home – but the lack of natural light can leave it dark and unwelcoming – almost like a dungeon. Adding an egress window is one great solution to bring natural light to every level of your home. Kelly loves the sun. “As far as I’m concerned, the most beautiful part of any home is the sunlight.” That was why she bought her beautiful Cape home, overlooking the park in Babylon, New York. “You can spend as much as you want on decorating, but none of it will make your …Continue reading →