Basements or cellars (depending on which part of the country you 
are from) are primarily seen as dark and dingy parts of a home. 
In most cases they are considered a useless area or are used as a 
"catch all" for family discards that haven't quite made it to the 
curbside for trash pick up yet. Well, with the skyrocketing 
prices of real estate these days and the lack of any substantial 
property to use for an addition to our homes, the basement, after 
years of being ignored and neglected, is finally being recognized 
as a useful, cost effective resource for adding more living space 
to our beloved homes. 

Several factors that have to be considered before any serious 
basement renovations take place include ceiling height, stair 
pitch or steepness and emergency egress. All three of these 
requirements can differ considerably depending on where you live. 
You can call your local building department and they can tell you 
these requirements. As for what emergency egress is, it is 
basically an emergency escape. A door of at least 30" wide in 
most areas is considered a very safe egress but a window has to 
be a certain size and a minimum distance from the floor in order 
to be considered safe. Believe it or not, the way the safe size 
and height of a basement window is calculated is by determining 
how easily an overweight elderly person (considered worst case 
scenario) can open and climb out of in case of a fire or another 
emergency. In reality, these building codes were put in place 
because no one is going to get out of one of those old metal 
framed 18" X 30" pull in basement windows very easily (especially 
an overweight elderly person) and they would probably die trying 
in the unfortunate event of a fire.

Most local building codes require both a door and a window egress 
in order for the basement to be considered safe enough for a 
living area. In many cases building codes require an emergency 
egress be placed in every bedroom in a basement as well. If you 
are in the habit of doing home remodeling or repairs without the 
proper building permits, it is very important for you and your 
family's safety that you find out what the code is in your area 
and adhere to it. 

By adding all of the necessary emergency egress you are 
essentially killing two birds with one stone. As I already 
stated, you are adding safety to an otherwise unsafe area but you 
are also adding the benefits of natural sunlight. Adding natural 
sunlight to your basement really gives the area a desirable look 
and a warm feeling you generally can't get without it. Now, you 
may be wondering how people get a perfectly smooth, plumb and 
square openings in their foundations. You may have never heard of 
such a thing or don't realize the process even exists. 
Fortunately, there are companies in almost every part of the 
country that actually specialize in the process of cutting 
doorways and windows in concrete walls. These companies are 
called concrete cutting services and / or sawcutting outfits. 
Either way, they are listed in your local or online yellow pages 
under the heading of "concrete breaking, cutting, sawing, core 
drilling etc.". A professional concrete cutter will make the 
process look exceptionally easy and help make short work of your 
basement-remodeling project.

If you are going to take the time to renovate your basement you 
might as well do it right. By following or exceeding your local 
building codes you will ensure your family's safety. Also, be 
sure that you cut as many window openings in your basement walls 
as your budget and the structural integrity of your home can 
handle. This in itself will make your basement the most cherished 
area of your home. You'll be glad you did it. Good luck.

To find some ideas and to familiarize yourself with the concrete 
cutting industry just do a search online for "concrete cutting" 
and check out some of the sites and, of course, be sure to check 
out our website at http://www.affordableconcretecutting.com 

© Copyright 2005 Affordable Concrete Cutting, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Affordable Concrete Cutting Massachusetts services the contractor 
and homeowner in and around Boston and Eastern Massachusetts. We 
specialize in cutting doorways in concrete foundations. Visit our
website at http://www.affordableconcretecutting.com