What size does a basement egress window need to be?

Big enough that the fully open window leaves the minimum clear area in Oshawa's by-law and the Ontario building code, with no side under the minimum dimension. It's the opening that's measured, not the glass. The installer checks it against the current wording before ordering.

Do I need a permit to enlarge a basement window in Oshawa?

Yes. Oshawa's exemption covers only a same-size, same-type replacement on a house, so enlarging a basement opening needs a permit. Check with the City before anything is cut. In Whitby, Ajax or Clarington, your own town or municipality issues permits.

What affects the cost of an egress window installation?

Mostly the work around the window: foundation type, how much is cut, the header, digging, the well and its drainage, and equipment access. Then the window style and finishing. A same-size swap is a far smaller job. Request a quote with a photo and the wall type.

How do I keep an egress window well from filling with water?

Give it somewhere to drain. The well needs gravel at the base tied into the weeping tile or another drain, and ground that slopes away from the house. Silt and leaves clog the gravel over time, so clear them each fall. If it still fills after heavy rain, have the drain checked.

Can a bedroom window have security bars and still count as an egress window?

Only if the bars open or come off from inside without a key or tool, because the by-law requires exactly that. Fixed bars block the exit. For a basement or ground-floor bedroom, look at bars with an inside release, or at security film, which leaves the opening free.

Egress windows · Oshawa

Egress windows for basement bedrooms

Oshawa's property standards by-law says every floor of a home with a bedroom needs a window someone can climb out of, opening from inside without tools. That covers your own basement bedroom and one you rent out. Often the old window is too small, and enlarging it takes a permit. We connect you with a local installer who does egress work, from the concrete cut to the well.

Explained against the City's by-law
Straight answers on permits
Pros who handle the cut, window and well

Get a free quote 905-470-3454

Cranked open, an enlarged basement casement leaves nearly its whole frame clear.

The rule

The egress rule in plain terms

Section 6.10.1 of Oshawa's Property Standards By-law sets the test, and its size minimums match the Ontario building code. Three things decide whether a window counts.

Enough clear opening

A minimum unobstructed area, plus a minimum for every side, measured with the window open as far as it goes. Long, low basement sliders often have the area but not the height.

Opens from inside, no tools

No key, no tool, no trick. A window painted shut or behind fixed bars doesn't count, however big it is.

Sill height

The by-law's sill limit exempts basements, but plan an easy way to reach the window anyway.

Rentals

Rentals and basement bedrooms: what the by-law expects

The by-law applies to every home in the city, owned or rented. A basement room let as a bedroom needs a compliant window before the tenant moves in, and security bars that need a key or tool to open make it fail.

More Oshawa households rent than anywhere else in Durham, often in older houses whose basement windows were sized for light, not a way out. See our property standards guide, and property managers for several units at once.

Making it bigger

Enlarging an opening: permit, cutting, header and well

A same-size swap on a house is ordinary window work with no permit. A bigger opening always needs one, so check with the City's building permits team before any concrete is cut. The work usually runs like this:

Permit and plan
The installer, or the contractor finishing your basement, prepares the opening size, header and window details for the City.
Dig and cut
The outside is dug out and the foundation cut with a concrete saw. Expect noise, dust and plastic sheeting inside.
Header and window
A header carries the load over the wider opening. The window is set, sealed, insulated and trimmed.
Well and drainage
A well goes in on a drained gravel base, with soil graded away from the house.

Window styles

Window styles that meet egress: casement, slider, hopper

Style decides how much of the frame you can use.

Casement

Swings out and leaves nearly the whole frame clear, so it passes in the smallest opening.

Slider

Only half opens, so the frame must be about twice as wide as the opening you need.

Hopper or awning

Tilts rather than swinging clear. Fine for a rec room, rarely enough for a bedroom.

Wells and water

Window wells and drainage

Most complaints about egress windows turn out to be about water in the well.

Sized for a way out

The code sets the clearance in front of the open window; the installer sizes the well to it.

A bottom that drains

Gravel tied into the weeping tile lets water leave. A solid bottom, or a drain buried in silt and leaves, fills after heavy rain.

Kept clear in winter

Winters here cross the freezing mark again and again, so snow in a well melts and refreezes against the sash. Clear it out.

What changes the quote

What drives the price: foundation, cut size, well and finishing

Egress jobs differ mostly below the soil line:

Poured concrete, block or older masonry foundation
How much the opening grows, and the header it needs
Window style and frame
Digging, the well and its drainage
Room for equipment between close-set houses
Inside finishing, plus permit drawings and fees

Photos of the window inside and out, its rough size and the wall type are enough to start.

Request an egress quote

Free quotes from independent installers in Durham.

Questions

Basement egress questions

Explore your options

Local pros take on basement egress work across Oshawa and nearby, including Downtown Oshawa, Lakeview, Courtice and Whitby.

Planning a basement bedroom?

Tell us the room, the current window's rough size, and whether the wall is block or poured concrete. We'll pass it to a local egress installer, who'll quote and explain the permit.