How To Install Basement Egress Windows (page 3 of 4)

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Basement Egress Windows: Rent A Concrete Saw With a Diamond Blade

Your basement or lower-level walls will be either poured concrete or concrete block. In this article, we show you how to cut through concrete block. For a poured concrete wall, we strongly recommend that you hire a professional to cut the opening ($600 to $1,000). Doing this yourself is difficult and dangerous because of the weight of the slab you cut loose.

Cutting through concrete block is no picnic either. The two major tools you’ll need are a concrete saw and a hammer drill. Choose a concrete saw with either a 12-in. or a 14-in. blade. The 12-in. saw will work fine for an 8-in. thick wall. We used a 14-in. saw because our wall contained both 8-in. and 12-in. blocks. Along with the saw, rent a diamond blade. This blade will pay for its higher cost in time saved because it cuts much faster than abrasive blades.

Some rental stores carry only gas saws; others rent both gas and electric. We recommend electric so you won’t have to worry about fumes while you’re making the inside cut. Also, the electric saw is less bulky, making it easier to get in tight spaces. If you use the electric saw, especially if you wet the blade, plug it into a GFCI outlet to protect yourself from electrical shocks. These are big, heavy saws that take strength and attention to control. Always wear goggles, gloves and hearing protection when operating them.

When you rent the hammer drill, also rent a masonry drill bit long enough to go through the wall: 12 in. long for 8-in. block and 16 in. for 12-in. block. Expect to spend about $120 to $140 to rent the saw, hammer drill, diamond blade and masonry bit for the day.

Roll Up Your Sleeves And Grab a Shovel
Begin by digging the well to the rough window well size. (We’ll tell you about well construction in our March issue.) Then move on to the egress window installation. We actually finished our well first, but it’s usually easier to get the window in and then finish the well around it.

Tip: Keep a tarp handy so the sides of the well won’t wash in if it rains.

When you position your window layout with masking tape, remember to make the cutting lines about 3-1/2 in. wider than the rough opening required (listed with the window dimensions). Add the width of the header plus 1-3/4 in. to the rough opening height. The extra space is for the 1-1/2 in. treated wood rough frame plus room for adjustment. Cutting through concrete isn’t as exact as cutting through wood!

Since our egress window was in a wall perpendicular to the floor joists (in a weight-bearing wall), we built a temporary support wall to carry the weight before cutting out the window opening and putting in the header.

Sawing concrete creates an incredible dust cloud. So when cutting inside, tent the area around the cut to confine the dust. Having a helper spray water on the blade with a hand pump sprayer while you cut reduces the dust about 90 percent. But you’ll have to clean up a mucky mess on the floor.

Tip: Apply a bead of insulating foam to the floor to act as a curb to contain the water. Allow a day for the foam to harden.

For height accuracy, lay out your cutting lines on the inside wall. Since you have to cut from both the inside and outside, drill through the wall at the lower corners with a hammer drill held perfectly level, to establish the layout on the exterior. Or drill through the center of your proposed layout if you build your window well first. That way you can adjust your layout to center on the well before drilling the corners.