Residential Window Height From Floor

The 2018 irc continues to require the bottom of openings created by operable windows to be a minimum height of 24 inches above the adjacent interior floor when they are more than 6 feet above the grade outside the window.

Residential window height from floor.

It can be simply calculated by following calculations windows height from floor level height of door height of window. Vinyl windows are the latest and greatest in standard window sizes as they are pre fabricated and come in a variety of sizes. Similarly many windows can be set lower than the common height of 3 feet above the floor. When a door is being used to meet the egress requirements it must be either a side hinged door or a slider.

According to code check complete. Traditionally that height was meant to allow the placement of furniture under the sill. But if nothing is in front of the window lowering the sill will increase ventilation the more operable glass the greater the air flow and allow you to bring in. Exceptions can be made for windows that do not open more than 4 inches or that have window guards or opening control devices in compliance with astm f2090 17.

Means of egress doors in the irc 2018 irc section r311 3 1 restricts threshold height a required exit door in residences to 1 inches from the top of the the threshold to the floor or. The 2012 ibc international building code and the irc international residential code requires the bottom sill of operable windows to be a minimum height above the interior floor when they are 72 inches or more above the grade outside the window. An illustrated guide to the building mechanical and electrical codes by redwood kardon et al conditions requiring a window to have tempered glass include a window lower than 18 inches from the ground larger than 9 square feet in area with a top higher than 3. Window placement is greatly varied as exemplified by the narrow windows placed real high in 1950s tract housing and the low and tall openings located almost on the the floor in suburban mansions of recent years.

The 24 inch sill height is typically above a small child s center of gravity reducing the likelihood of the child s toppling over the sill. Window height varies by location style and period. Also note that if a window is being used to meet the egress requirements in addition to the above the sill height of the window shall not be more than 44 inches above the finished floor. If the height of the door is 7 ft and the height of the window is 4 ft then the height of the window will be 7 ft 4 ft 3 ft.

The minimum window sill height requirements are intended to reduce the number of injuries from falls by children through open windows. So the standard height of the door from floor level is 2 1 m or 7 ft. Wood windows are still popular especially in homes that are true to their era. The code regulates this minimum sill height only.