Get matched with top egress window pros in Clayton, NM

Egress windows are typically required for basements with habitable space or living quarters. Not all basements or lower levels require egress windows. However, egress windows are required in homes with living spaces such as bedrooms and living rooms in a basement. The International Residential Code and International Building Code require sleeping rooms to have a specific size egress window. Check your local building codes to confirm the requirements in your area.

Yes, you can always make an existing window bigger, but the job complexity varies widely depending on the location of the window and the framing around it. Exterior walls are always load-bearing, so making windows wider will require structural changes that make for a more complex but doable project. Making windows taller often won’t require structural changes.

Most professionals can install a window well in two to three days, depending on the size of the well and the window you want inside it. If you’re just replacing an existing window well, the work is much less intensive, and most experts can get the job done in just one day. Connecting the window well to a drainage system or installing a custom concrete window well will naturally take longer, but even the most complicated installations shouldn’t take more than three days.

You install a window well 8 to 12 inches deeper than the base of the window sill. After filling the well with drainage rock, the well should sit 3 inches below the bottom of the window. The top of the window well should also be at least 3 inches higher than the surface-grade ground. The window well should be about 6 inches wider than the window opening.