Thread: basement egress

I'm looking at building a new house with a 1,000 sq. ft. basement in the Greensboro NC area and my question is this. I know according to code that any basement with bedrooms needs an egress window to allow for escape. my questions are, does each bedroom need an egress window, or if I install a 6' patio door in the main open area adjoining the bedrooms with walk up stairs to the outside, do I still need the egress windows in the bedrooms?

Thanks.

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Yes. each room used for sleeping must have an emergency egress, although it does not necessarily have to be a window. See IRC R310.

Isn't there an exemption when sprinklers are present?

310.1. No exemption for sprinklers.

Although this is a bit off subject, I thought the attached NFPA 101 matrix may be helpful to those what may like to download it.

Originally Posted by Mark Fisher

Isn't there an exemption when sprinklers are present?

In the building code, yes if the sprinkler systems meets certain criteria, but not in the residential code.