Means Of Escape Vs Child Safety

[jagillham]

We have had the building inspector around to sign off a couple of RSJ's since we opened up the lounge / diner - which were opened up to the kitchen by the previous owners. (The downstairs is basically one huge room now).

Apparently due to this, we now have to have ‘means of escape’ windows upstairs. The current windows the top section opens, with the lower part being solid.

I wasn’t too worried about this, until the other half pointed out that this now makes it a lot less safe. Her logic being a small child deciding to lean out a window is much more likely than a fire.

Is there anything that can be done about this?

 

[rjm2k]

Find out if building regs allow "break glass" escapes and have one of the special hammers in place next to the current window?

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Window restrictors. Or alternatively you should have checked the fire regs before you removed the wall.

What is the cill height of the escape window to be.

Still, these things only happen to other people.

 

[jamesr36]

The building inspector is right. If the only way from the upstairs bedrooms to the outside is by walking through another room then you need fire escape windows in those upstairs rooms.

To be fully compliant each room must have a window with a clear opening 0.33sqm min, 450min height, 450min width, 1100mm max off the floor.

Regs regarding falling out say that the opening must be at least 800mm off the floor. This is considered safe. If it is lower than this then you need a rail.

On existing houses the building inspectors often allow bit of leeway if you are close to these dimensions but he is not going to allow escape through a fanlight.

 

[luisdesign]

The cill of the window should be 800mm above the floor.

An alternative would be to create a hall on teh ground floor to separate the bottom of the stairs > door area from the rooms on the ground floor.

How many floors does your house have?

 

[jagillham]

It's a mid terrace, just the ground & first floor. Originally it was "2 up 2 down" with the stairs in the middle. Now they are against the party wall.

I wasn't too sure why what we had done means the existing upstairs windows now require changing! Although the stairs have moved, they never exited by a door in the first place.

 

[jamesr36]

The house complied with the regs of the time it was built (if there were any). When you carry out alterations that require building regs approval they generally make you bring that bit up to the current regs. eg an old staircase can to stay as is but if you fit a new one in a new position it must comply with todays regs.

I think he's got you on this one and danger of falling out the window is not going to get you off the hook.

 

[^woody^]

What is the problem? A means of escape window can have a restrictor as long as it can be disengaged

 

[jagillham]

No particular problem except I could do without the expense of replacing them! The back of the house windows will be best part of 5m above a concrete slab, so all seems rather pointless from a climbing out point of view. If the fire brigade turn up with a ladder, I'd happily let them break the windows if needs be!

Anyway, if restricters are permitted, guess that is what I'll have to do

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

If you find your house on fire and the only way out from your raging inferno that started in your kitchen that has now provided thick black smoke outside your kids bedroom door a 5m drop onto a concrete floor might not seem such a bad option eh?

Muppet!

 

[grovepark]

You can always fit or get windows pre fitted with restrictors that will also open as a MOE window if required.

I'm sure you don't see the need to muck about with your windows BUT imagine if there was a fire at your house and someone was hurt or worse. Would you then be going back to building control to ask why they had not insisted you change the windows?