TGD B windows in bedrooms

sydthebeat

section 1.5.2 of TGD B 2006 for 1 or 2 storey dwellings state that "any habitable room which is an inner room should be provided with a window for escape or rescue purposes"...


my query is... is a bedroom accessed from a hallway an 'inner room'??? if not, the regs say it doesnt have to have a window.....

now before anyone kicks off about principles etc.. we ALWAYS insist on escape windows for every bedroom and habitable room.. we wont sign it off otherwise... so i suppose my query is what do others do??.. am i reading it incorrectly???...... if im not why would such a hazardous reg even be considered when the TGD was revised...

sinnerboy

If the Hallway ( like most do ) leads directly to the external - the bedroom is not an inner room .

As you say Syd - regs or no regs - I would always provide an escape/rescue window

sydthebeat

yeah, i just rechecked the 97 reg and they had the same situation....

but it has become somewhat of an industry standard now... so why does it still exist, or why wasnt it changed with the revision..

i cant think of any situation at all in which it could be considered acceptable.....

RKQ

En-suite considered an "inner room"?
Therefore it could require an escape window -"any habitable room which is an inner room should be provided with a window for escape or rescue purposes"...

Poor Uncle Tom

sydthebeat wrote: »

.....the regs say it doesnt have to have a window.......

About the year 2000 I was asked to Certify an old LA house which was for sale. It had an inner room being used as a bedroom which had only a roof window for light. I checked with the BC officer who gave me a letter saying, if the hallway outside the room had a smoke detector and a seperate alarm sounder inside the room, it would be acceptable.

I disagreed with him, and promptly fell out with him over it, but I wouldn't Cert it and the room was re-classified as a store/study and the house was sold as a one bedroom.

Anyway, some of the regs necessitate a judgement call, but I think you should only call it as you feel happy about it. imo.

sydthebeat

RKQ, an 'en-suite' isnt a habitable room according to TGD B.
But i have accepted escape windows located in en-suites that serve bedrooms... my view is that the toilet, usually located under the window, actually aids escape as it can be used as a stepping tool. (dont want to get too off topic however...)

P.U.T. yes, ive had similar situations..... but is it even good enough to have it reclassified as a 'study'..?

Does anyone sign off bedrooms without escape windows??

muffler

Regs - stranger than fiction.

I think the intention since the inception of the regs was that bedroom windows could be used as an alternative means of escape as opposed to the primary means.

Isnt it odd that there is no specific mention of a fire escape bedroom window in a new build but there is for replacement windows.

muffler

sydthebeat wrote: »

RKQ, an 'en-suite' isnt a habitable room according to TGD B.

Agreed.

sydthebeat wrote: »

But i have accepted escape windows located in en-suites that serve bedrooms... my view is that the toilet, usually located under the window, actually aids escape as it can be used as a stepping tool. (dont want to get too off topic however...)

Been there and done that despite the local BC officer telling me that the toilet bowl is classed as an obstruction :eek:

sydthebeat wrote: »

Does anyone sign off bedrooms without escape windows??

I dont unless in the situation mentioned above with an en suite window.

Poor Uncle Tom

muffler wrote: »

...the local BC officer telling me that the toilet bowl is classed as an obstruction :eek:

Especially if there is someone on it!

Ditto the En-Suite window providing escape for the Bedroom.

Mellor

The clause above stats that any inner habitable room needs an escape window, on all stories,
its purpose is to ensure that inner rooms on GF have escape routes, and incase there are sitting rooms upstairs in a 2 story etc.

But that fact that a bedroom is not an inner room wouldn't discount it. It says any inner room needs a window, not only 0inner rooms need escape windows.

Para 1.5.8.2 Sets out the need for all bedrooms (on all floors) to have escape windows.

And for the record, a bedroom isn't an inner room, and Para 1.2.3 actualy says that it can't be an inner room

Slig

Actually just off the top of my head, I think it says a little further on that all bedrooms in a domestic dwelling should be provided with an escape window regardless of if they are inner rooms or not. At least it did in 2000. I havent TGD B on me now but I'll check on Thursday.

sydthebeat

Mellor wrote: »

The clause above stats that any inner habitable room needs an escape window, on all stories,
its purpose is to ensure that inner rooms on GF have escape routes, and incase there are sitting rooms upstairs in a 2 story etc.

But that fact that a bedroom is not an inner room wouldn't discount it. It says any inner room needs a window, not only 0inner rooms need escape windows.

Para 1.5.8.2 Sets out the need for all bedrooms (on all floors) to have escape windows.

And for the record, a bedroom isn't an inner room, and Para 1.2.3 actualy says that it can't be an inner room

Thanks mellor.....

that complete clears it up.... the requirement was always there, i just didnt find it....

As a general provision, in addition to the specific
situations referred to above, all bedrooms in
dwelling houses, other than bedrooms with doors
that give direct access to the outside at ground level,
should comply with the provisions outlined in
Paragraph 1.5.6."

again.. thanks...

Mellor

No worries, B is awkward to look through,
"Ctrl+F" is a life saver

RKQ

sydthebeat wrote: »

Does anyone sign off bedrooms without escape windows??

No! I would rather peel the skin off my face with a sharp blade!

Yes I agree an En-suite is not an inner room. I don't see a wc as an obstruction, in pitch black darkness I'd be glad to use it as a step to escape a fire - God forbid. It seems some BC have weird ideas.

Retro-Fit

Regs are based on BS 5588 i think its part 11, gives guidance on inner rooms and attic rooms.

sinnerboy

RKQ wrote: »

No! I would rather peel the skin off my face with a sharp blade!.

I do this every morning in the bathroom actually . Must buy new razors

Slig

sinnerboy wrote: »

I do this every morning in the bathroom actually . Must buy new razors

At that rate I'd grow a beard!:D