How Secure are Basement Windows? TAGS: basement egress windows | Basement Windows | Egress windows | means of egress

Adding a means of egress to your basement is required by national building code – but do they make your home more vulnerable? Sadly, criminals are opportunistic. Whether it’s an unlatched window, an oversized doggy door or a spare key hidden under a mat, enterprising thieves are always finding ways to bypass home security and rob homeowners. Which is one concern many have about adding a basement window to their home. After all, a basement window is at ground level – perfect for thieves to access – and most are hidden in the backyard, or in a basement window well, …Continue reading →

A Kid’s Playroom: Making the Most of your Basement Space TAGS: basement | basement remodel ideas | Basement Windows | Egress windows | Refinishing your basement

Somebody once equated having young kids to owning a blender, but not having a lid for it. The metaphor is accurate – most parents know how messy and chaotic kids can be! This is why finishing a basement and turning it into a kid’s playroom is an idea that appeals to a lot of parents. There are a lot of advantages. Firstly, it’s totally secure. There are no exterior doors and patio windows to worry about, so parents can leave their kids to play in the basement without them worrying about wondering off. Secondly, it’s self-contained. Kids can make an …Continue reading →

Finish a Basement Apartment Safely with Egress Window Wells TAGS: basement | basement egress windows | Basement Windows | Egress windows | emergeny escape | finishing a basement | means of egress

To finish a basement apartment safely includes having a “means of egress” – a building code requirement that calls for an easy escape in the event of an emergency. But don’t look at your window wells as an obligation – think of the opportunities they could offer instead. Egress window wells are not just a building code requirement – they offer a number of additional benefits that can help make a basement apartment much more enjoyable. When you’re planning to install your basement window wells, consider the advantages of the different rooms you could install them in: Kitchen: There are …Continue reading →

Smart Moves to Keep Your Basement Dry TAGS: Adding egress windows | basement remodel ideas | Basement Windows | bringing fresh air in a basement | damp basement | Egress windows | finishing a basement | prevent mold in basements | Refinishing your basement | Sunlight into a basement

Basements get damp. It’s one of the natural laws of the universe – like how when you drop a piece of toast, it always lands butter-side down. But there are things you can do to keep your finished basement dry, fresh and welcoming. For many homeowners, adding egress windows helped eliminate their damp problem – as it gave a free-flowing source of fresh air that helped expel lingering moisture. But if you’re deciding to finish your basement, there are some other tips and techniques you can use to minimize or eliminate the risk of dampness. The first is to consider …Continue reading →

Window Well Pictures – Before and After TAGS: basement egress windows | Basement Windows | Egress windows | Photos

Before and after pictures of Elite window wells by RockWell installed for a newly constructed home’s finished basement. Tweet

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 →

What does Egress Mean? TAGS: Basement Windows | circulate air | Egress windows | emergeny escape | Windows

The English language is a funny thing. For the most part it’s constantly changing, evolving and developing. Then, sometimes, you’ll find a word so old people have practically forgotten where it’s come from. For example, according to signs in railroad stations, you still “alight” from a train – even though most people think “alight” means setting something on fire. Another commonly confused word is “egress.” Ask most people what the definition of egress is and they’ll generally answer “a type of bird.” (That’s actually an egret.) Egress is another word for “exit”, and is used in building code to refer …Continue reading →