Posted: 1/18/2010 8:46:30 AM EDT
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I had a glass block basement window that was 31 inches wide and 18" deep (came to top of the existing grade).
But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement. I decided not to pay the $4500 the contractor wanted to install one, even though i had no clue how to do the work. Instead, I went to home depot and rented a roto hammer for $54. i used the chisel to chip out around 700 lbs of basement wall. Then I cut the old frame out with a angle grinder. And then I dug out the fucking clay mixed with fucking rocks with a pickaxe. I only jammed myself in the face with the axe handle one time. Well, twice. And I had to move the ground rod for the electric. I filled the hole with water up to the bottom of the window and it percolated into the surrounding soil in like 10 minutes The window is an anderson casement that meets the egress code, got it at HD for around $200ish When it was finished, I realized that I was an awesome mixture of cunning and testosterone. 
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Nice job. I priced one out retail...the contractor was smoking crack. He wanted north of $5k for what I needed in my old home. Two guys, one shovel. A concrete cutting company charged me $500.00 for the hole and the "T" notches for the 4" I-beam I installed for the header and to replace the brick plate that was cut out. I bought a pre-fab'd egress system with steps and drains had a some stone delivered... Cost was less than $1400.00 after all was said and done. |
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Sorry if I appear to be a killjoy. It's one of the things I got paid for as a construction manager. Does the egress window need to be 'operable' to qualify as an egress in your jurisdiction? How deep is the media below the window before you hit clay? You need 'storage space' for the water that floods in from the sides and over the top faster than the 10 minutes it takes to drain the initial space. If it rains for several days, and the ground is saturated (saturation time depends on grade and soil type, as well as elevation above hardpan/bedrock, and local water table) you may need a sump pump crock and sump pump to drain the window well. Winter usually manages to freeze exterior sump pumps. When you went deeper - you put 3 vertical walls with an empty space on the inside next to a functionally taller column of water on the outside (under wet/rainy conditions) looking for someplace to drain into. You did a real nice job, I just don't want you standing inside looking out at the catfish in the aquarium on the other side of the glass.  |
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Quoted:
Sorry if I appear to be a killjoy. It's one of the things I got paid for as a construction manager. Does the egress window need to be 'operable' to qualify as an egress in your jurisdiction? How deep is the media below the window before you hit clay? You need 'storage space' for the water that floods in from the sides and over the top faster than the 10 minutes it takes to drain the initial space. If it rains for several days, and the ground is saturated (saturation time depends on grade and soil type, as well as elevation above hardpan/bedrock, and local water table) you may need a sump pump crock and sump pump to drain the window well. Winter usually manages to freeze exterior sump pumps. When you went deeper - you put 3 vertical walls with an empty space on the inside next to a functionally taller column of water on the outside (under wet/rainy conditions) looking for someplace to drain into. You did a real nice job, I just don't want you standing inside looking out at the catfish in the aquarium on the other side of the glass. Good points, i considered all this before i started. I'm a civil engineer and i've studied the whole basement water thing in detail over the years my house is on a steep incline, this window well is located in a berm, a local high point there is no groundwater runoff at the window the berm the window well is in is basically just the spoil the contractor dug out of the basement when they built the house. It's this weird sandy clay shit with rocks in it the size of a football. If you saw the jobsite you'd give it two thumbs up, groundwater would more or less have to flow uphill to flood the box but you make good points and you definitely need to address the water problem when doing this work to answer your questions, the gravel layer is 16" deep, the window cranks out, and the clear opening passed inspection |
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Nice job. I priced one out retail...the contractor was smoking crack. He wanted north of $5k for what I needed in my old home. Two guys, one shovel. A concrete cutting company charged me $500.00 for the hole and the "T" notches for the 4" I-beam I installed for the header and to replace the brick plate that was cut out. I bought a pre-fab'd egress system with steps and drains had a some stone delivered... Cost was less than $1400.00 after all was said and done. If i had paid for a contractor to do it I would have went with a full basement stairwell, the cost is practically the same. |
Note to self, call Cyborg543's local code enforcement dude, taunt with with the fact that Cyborg543 had the audacity to not use one of the Code enforcement dude's brothers in law/family Member/Drinking Buddy for project, thus "stealing" 4500 from somebody's retirement/Yuenling-fund.  (good job)
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Quoted: Nice job, looks great and all. But one question; Why the fuck would your code require YOU TO MAKE AN EASY WAY FOR SOMEONE TO BREAK INTO YOUR BASEMENT?!?!  But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement. I believe that code is targeted for having a basement bedroom. If someone is to be sleeping downstairs they need that window to be able to escape in case of a fire. |
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Nice job, looks great and all. But one question; Why the fuck would your code require YOU TO MAKE AN EASY WAY FOR SOMEONE TO BREAK INTO YOUR BASEMENT?!?!
But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement.
The egress window is required on all basement finishing jobs and one is required for every bedroom. The idea is that a fireman needs a minimum of 5.7 sq ft to go thru the window with gear on. I have the window protected with magnetic switch and glass break sensor for the alarm system. plus the window is located on the side, but at the front corner facing the street and yes, it is pressure treated lumber |
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Nice job, looks great and all. But one question; Why the fuck would your code require YOU TO MAKE AN EASY WAY FOR SOMEONE TO BREAK INTO YOUR BASEMENT?!?!
But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement.
I believe that code is targeted for having a basement bedroom. If someone is to be sleeping downstairs they need that window to be able to escape in case of a fire. you need it for any basement refinishing now, not just bedrooms, but you do also need one for each bedroom |
Something to be said about a job well done! I wish I had friends like you, mine can fix coffee. That's it. 
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Quoted: Quoted: did you put a drain at the bottom? no, i tried to tie into the basement drain tile, but it was too deep. so i used a 16" lift of gravel post pics when you get seepage on your basement walls  our city code is all new builds have this escape hatch thingy also - my house when it was being built - it is nice to have extra sunlight  |
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Note to self, call Cyborg543's local code enforcement dude, taunt with with the fact that Cyborg543 had the audacity to not use one of the Code enforcement dude's brothers in law/family Member/Drinking Buddy for project, thus "stealing" 4500 from somebody's retirement/Yuenling-fund. (good job)actually, they were so surprized that somebody in the township actually wanted to meet code, they bent over backwards to help the job along my town is a bunch of wealthy but cheap pricks my house cost 600K, it had off-brand lightbulbs from poland in it when i bought it |
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Nice job, looks great and all. But one question; Why the fuck would your code require YOU TO MAKE AN EASY WAY FOR SOMEONE TO BREAK INTO YOUR BASEMENT?!?!
But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement.
The egress window is required on all basement finishing jobs and one is required for every bedroom. The idea is that a fireman needs a minimum of 5.7 sq ft to go thru the window with gear on. I have the window protected with magnetic switch and glass break sensor for the alarm system. plus the window is located on the side, but at the front corner facing the street and yes, it is pressure treated lumber This. I sat still waiting for someone to answer the egress question correctly. Although the window meets egress, the sash needs to be removable. Sash is not removable on a casement-code violation. The well needs to be retro-fitted with drain tile looped into the system when upgraded-code violation. The first flash flood and that window is going to explode, the sump will not be able to keep up with the water from the tile and the water rushing into the pit and the basement will flood. No drip cap on the top of the window-caulked into stucatto board. Nice DIY effort, but this is what the "crack smoking" contractor charges you $4500 for. |
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did you put a drain at the bottom? no, i tried to tie into the basement drain tile, but it was too deep. so i used a 16" lift of gravel post pics when you get seepage on your basement walls
our city code is all new builds have this escape hatch thingy also - my house when it was being built - it is nice to have extra sunlight http://images20.fotki.com/v527/photos/4/499657/1936776/100_0002-vi.jpg You can get seepage with or without tile. The tile in the window well drains the water that fills up the well. It has nothing to do with wall seepage. |
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Nice job, looks great and all. But one question; Why the fuck would your code require YOU TO MAKE AN EASY WAY FOR SOMEONE TO BREAK INTO YOUR BASEMENT?!?!
But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement.
The egress window is required on all basement finishing jobs and one is required for every bedroom. The idea is that a fireman needs a minimum of 5.7 sq ft to go thru the window with gear on. I have the window protected with magnetic switch and glass break sensor for the alarm system. plus the window is located on the side, but at the front corner facing the street and yes, it is pressure treated lumber This. I sat still waiting for someone to answer the egress question correctly. Although the window meets egress, the sash needs to be removable. Sash is not removable on a casement-code violation. The well needs to be retro-fitted with drain tile looped into the system when upgraded-code violation. The first flash flood and that window is going to explode, the sump will not be able to keep up with the water from the tile and the water rushing into the pit and the basement will flood. No drip cap on the top of the window-caulked into stucatto board. Nice DIY effort, but this is what the "crack smoking" contractor charges you $4500 for. The window meets egress code, i have the permit to prove it. it's a casement that cranks open to the required clear dims It doesn't need a cap, the stucco goes down to the window opening, which is recessed. Don't forget the top of the original window frame is still in place. There's no gap for water to enter. That window frame on the exterior is just for looks, it doesn't actually cover any opening. regarding drainage, normally i would agree, except that I have a 16" lift of gravel and the well is in a berm 
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Quoted:
Quoted:
Nice job, looks great and all. But one question; Why the fuck would your code require YOU TO MAKE AN EASY WAY FOR SOMEONE TO BREAK INTO YOUR BASEMENT?!?!
But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement.
The egress window is required on all basement finishing jobs and one is required for every bedroom. The idea is that a fireman needs a minimum of 5.7 sq ft to go thru the window with gear on. I have the window protected with magnetic switch and glass break sensor for the alarm system. plus the window is located on the side, but at the front corner facing the street and yes, it is pressure treated lumber I guess I'm used to the pock marked stuff. It looks good to go then. |
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Quoted: I love working with professionals.Quoted: Sorry if I appear to be a killjoy. It's one of the things I got paid for as a construction manager. Does the egress window need to be 'operable' to qualify as an egress in your jurisdiction? How deep is the media below the window before you hit clay? You need 'storage space' for the water that floods in from the sides and over the top faster than the 10 minutes it takes to drain the initial space. If it rains for several days, and the ground is saturated (saturation time depends on grade and soil type, as well as elevation above hardpan/bedrock, and local water table) you may need a sump pump crock and sump pump to drain the window well. Winter usually manages to freeze exterior sump pumps. When you went deeper - you put 3 vertical walls with an empty space on the inside next to a functionally taller column of water on the outside (under wet/rainy conditions) looking for someplace to drain into. You did a real nice job, I just don't want you standing inside looking out at the catfish in the aquarium on the other side of the glass. Good points, i considered all this before i started. I'm a civil engineer and i've studied the whole basement water thing in detail over the years my house is on a steep incline, this window well is located in a berm, a local high point there is no groundwater runoff at the window the berm the window well is in is basically just the spoil the contractor dug out of the basement when they built the house. It's this weird sandy clay shit with rocks in it the size of a football. If you saw the jobsite you'd give it two thumbs up, groundwater would more or less have to flow uphill to flood the box but you make good points and you definitely need to address the water problem when doing this work to answer your questions, the gravel layer is 16" deep, the window cranks out, and the clear opening passed inspection  |
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Whats the standard water saturation time for your area? Is 10 minutes enough?
Was the hole you chipped out part of a load bearing area? What backing/liner did you use between the wood and soil, even pressure treated wood should not have direct soil contact. Not just for degragation but for termite attraction. ETA: Any other pics? Before, During and After? |
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Quoted:
I had a glass block basement window that was 31 inches wide and 18" deep (came to top of the existing grade). But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement. I decided not to pay the $4500 the contractor wanted to install one, even though i had no clue how to do the work. Instead, I went to home depot and rented a roto hammer for $54. i used the chisel to chip out around 700 lbs of basement wall. Then I cut the old frame out with a angle grinder. And then I dug out the fucking clay mixed with fucking rocks with a pickaxe. I only jammed myself in the face with the axe handle one time. Well, twice. And I had to move the ground rod for the electric. I filled the hole with water up to the bottom of the window and it percolated into the surrounding soil in like 10 minutes The window is an anderson casement that meets the egress code, got it at HD for around $200ish When it was finished, I realized that I was an awesome mixture of cunning and testosterone. http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/9808/img1966s.jpg a contractor wanted $4500 to do that job? wtf was he smoking? my buddy sitting next to me owns a company that primarily does foundations but does that very same kind of work, he claims it shouldn't have costed more than $1200.00 and that's worst case scenario, excluding issues with foundation that needed to be addressed in order to comply with code. Edit: Nice job though! |
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I had a glass block basement window that was 31 inches wide and 18" deep (came to top of the existing grade). But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement. I decided not to pay the $4500 the contractor wanted to install one, even though i had no clue how to do the work. Instead, I went to home depot and rented a roto hammer for $54. i used the chisel to chip out around 700 lbs of basement wall. Then I cut the old frame out with a angle grinder. And then I dug out the fucking clay mixed with fucking rocks with a pickaxe. I only jammed myself in the face with the axe handle one time. Well, twice. And I had to move the ground rod for the electric. I filled the hole with water up to the bottom of the window and it percolated into the surrounding soil in like 10 minutes The window is an anderson casement that meets the egress code, got it at HD for around $200ish When it was finished, I realized that I was an awesome mixture of cunning and testosterone. http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/9808/img1966s.jpg a contractor wanted $4500 to do that job? wtf was he smoking? my buddy sitting next to me owns a company that primarily does foundations but does that very same kind of work, he claims it shouldn't have costed more than $1200.00 and that's worst case scenario, excluding issues with foundation that needed to be addressed in order to comply with code. Edit: Nice job though! What do houses cost where you live? here they cost $500K to $1m |
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Whats the standard water saturation time for your area? Is 10 minutes enough? Was the hole you chipped out part of a load bearing area? What backing/liner did you use between the wood and soil, even pressure treated wood should not have direct soil contact. Not just for degragation but for termite attraction. ETA: Any other pics? Before, During and After? i'll see if i can scare up some more pics the well is in a berm, there's nothing for the water to do but drain away. the biggest storm we ever had was 4.5 inches, i put 20 inches of water into the well, it to 10 mins to drain. i'm pretty sure I'm GTG on that score no plastic liner was used, township didnt require it the concrete removed was an enlargement of an existing window, which takes care of the load bearing problem. you should figure on any basement wall being load bearing |
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I had a glass block basement window that was 31 inches wide and 18" deep (came to top of the existing grade). But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement. I decided not to pay the $4500 the contractor wanted to install one, even though i had no clue how to do the work. Instead, I went to home depot and rented a roto hammer for $54. i used the chisel to chip out around 700 lbs of basement wall. Then I cut the old frame out with a angle grinder. And then I dug out the fucking clay mixed with fucking rocks with a pickaxe. I only jammed myself in the face with the axe handle one time. Well, twice. And I had to move the ground rod for the electric. I filled the hole with water up to the bottom of the window and it percolated into the surrounding soil in like 10 minutes The window is an anderson casement that meets the egress code, got it at HD for around $200ish When it was finished, I realized that I was an awesome mixture of cunning and testosterone. http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/9808/img1966s.jpg a contractor wanted $4500 to do that job? wtf was he smoking? my buddy sitting next to me owns a company that primarily does foundations but does that very same kind of work, he claims it shouldn't have costed more than $1200.00 and that's worst case scenario, excluding issues with foundation that needed to be addressed in order to comply with code. Edit: Nice job though! What do houses cost where you live? here they cost $500K to $1m Montgomery County Maryland (Germantown) most SFH's range from between $500-$800K, hell...I sold my two bedroom condo (1100sq feet) for $300K 2 years ago. My buddy does work on homes well under $500K to well over 1 Million dollars. |
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I had a glass block basement window that was 31 inches wide and 18" deep (came to top of the existing grade). But I needed a 5.7 sq ft egress window to meet code while finishing my basement. I decided not to pay the $4500 the contractor wanted to install one, even though i had no clue how to do the work. Instead, I went to home depot and rented a roto hammer for $54. i used the chisel to chip out around 700 lbs of basement wall. Then I cut the old frame out with a angle grinder. And then I dug out the fucking clay mixed with fucking rocks with a pickaxe. I only jammed myself in the face with the axe handle one time. Well, twice. And I had to move the ground rod for the electric. I filled the hole with water up to the bottom of the window and it percolated into the surrounding soil in like 10 minutes The window is an anderson casement that meets the egress code, got it at HD for around $200ish When it was finished, I realized that I was an awesome mixture of cunning and testosterone. http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/9808/img1966s.jpg a contractor wanted $4500 to do that job? wtf was he smoking? my buddy sitting next to me owns a company that primarily does foundations but does that very same kind of work, he claims it shouldn't have costed more than $1200.00 and that's worst case scenario, excluding issues with foundation that needed to be addressed in order to comply with code. Edit: Nice job though! What do houses cost where you live? here they cost $500K to $1m Montgomery County Maryland (Germantown) most SFH's range from between $500-$800K, hell...I sold my two bedroom condo (1100sq feet) for $300K 2 years ago. My buddy does work on homes well under $500K to well over 1 Million dollars. hmmm... too bad i did not know somebody like your friend, i would have paid $1200 gladly |
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Looks good. Does the eves hang over the space?
Reason I ask is that I put in a 3 foot egress space but only had 2 foot eves. It snows a bunch where I have the cabin. The egress filled with snow and then when it melted went through the window into the basement. I now have a lean-to to deflect all snow and water off the egress space. Does not look pretty but it does the job and I don't have close neighbors so they don't object and it isn't in a city so no code violations.. |
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Looks good. Does the eves hang over the space? Reason I ask is that I put in a 3 foot egress space but only had 2 foot eves. It snows a bunch where I have the cabin. The egress filled with snow and then when it melted went through the window into the basement. I now have a lean-to to deflect all snow and water off the egress space. Does not look pretty but it does the job and I don't have close neighbors so they don't object and it isn't in a city so no code violations.. The well has 16 inches of gravel in it, so I'm not experiencing any water problems. Some companies make a clear plexi dome for bad weather |
