Basements can often be dark, dank, and dingy and, well, cave-like. It’s not exactly the kind of place you want to spend much of your waking hours. If you plan to renovate your basement into a media room or family room or even an additional bedroom, you will want to create a space that is as bright as possible despite the limitations of the room below the floor.
A simple way to create the illusion of more natural light is to paint the rooms in a cheerful color (not necessarily white, but light shades of yellow). But sometimes dark basements require something real, more natural light, which means more drastic measures. One way to add lots of light to your basement is to add an exit window.
Add an exit window
An exit window can serve two purposes: adding plenty of light to a dark basement, and providing a necessary safe exit from the basement in the event of an emergency such as a fire.
Check your local codes, but you will most likely need to install an exit window (or an exit door to the outside) if you add a bedroom or “living space” (including living rooms, offices, media rooms, etc.) to a basement in accordance with the requirements of the 2006 IRC International Residential Code. Please note that there are exact specifications for the side and height of the window: they must have a clear opening of at least 5.7 square feet, that is , large enough for a firefighter (with gear) to enter your home through the window. The window, to be eligible for egress, must also be at least 20 inches wide by 24 inches high and 44 inches from the floor.
Manufacturers offer DIY options
There are manufacturers that offer DIY replacement window options that are; the replacement window cost for these code-compliant systems is approximately $ 950. There are also several manufacturers that offer code-compliant pre-fabricated window openings.