How to Install a Terraced Window Well in Your Basement (page 2 of 3)

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Bulding a Terraced Window Well: The Benefits

Brightens lower-level room.
Easier emergency escape.
View with a window garden.
Easy-to-adapt 4x6 timberconstruction.
You can build this well as part of an egress window project or simply relandscape an existing window well. Our terraced window well is essentially a series of low, U-shaped retaining walls. In addition to the flood of light it brings to a basement room, you get these four benefits:

Two planting ledges that help you turn the well into a window garden.
Stepped sides that make emergency escape easier, especially for children.
A series of terraces that eliminate a potentially dangerous drop into the well.
A more spacious view, so the area outside the window opens up and expands the room.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the construction process and tell you how to deal with the all-important issue of drainage.

Plan Your Well With Safety In Mind
The primary rules for designing a window well are the code requirements for an egress window. The bottom of the well must be at least 3 x 3 ft., the well can’t interfere with opening the window, and you have to provide a permanent ladder if the walls are more than 44 in. high. Terracing our well eliminates the ladder requirement.

FIG. A: Window Well Details

Click image to enlarge.
Wall Connection

Well Dimensions

Click image to enlarge.
Otherwise, you’re only limited by safety and drainage issues. Any window well is inherently dangerous because of the potential for falls. Covered window wells are safest, but you can’t let the cover hinder the window operation and it must be easily removable (without tools) to provide easy egress and emergency escape.

Terracing minimizes the danger of a fall. We recommend that you construct the widest terraces and lowest steps that your site will allow. You could also put a railing around the well, a feature we recommend if you have a walk nearby. The window well we’re building opens onto a spacious yard, away from walkways. Still, we took the extra precaution of adding a curb about 8 in. above grade plus flower beds and low bushes to keep folks from stepping into it.