Enlarge a window that is already there
Cut the opening taller or wider in block or poured wall, set a new egress-size window, build the well with a drain and a cover, trim inside. Permit and utility locate included.
Egress windows · Wells · Basement bedrooms
A basement bedroom needs a way out.
We cut egress windows, build the wells and finish the room around them. The size comes from the code and the permit. The rest comes from your house.
- We pull the permit
- Written quote, line by line
- A drain in every well
The egress window, explained
Four measurements decide if a window counts
A bedroom downstairs needs the same few numbers in every house. This is where the inspector puts the tape.
- 1
Clear opening
At least 5.7 square feet with the sash open, 24 inches tall and 20 inches wide at the least. The height, the width and the area all have to pass.
- 2
Sill height
No more than 44 inches from the finished floor to the bottom of the opening. A higher sill needs a built-in step.
- 3
Outside this wall
A well at least 9 square feet and 36 inches each way, with a ladder if it is deeper than 44 inches, a drain and a cover that opens from inside.
- 4
Ceiling
Most of the room needs 7 feet finished. Beams and ducts may hang lower in places; the inspector reads the exact limit.
These are the figures we work to; your town's inspector has the last word, and we check at the permit counter before we quote.
The jobs we price most
What an egress job includes, by the opening
Four jobs, each with what it covers.
Egress windows
A new opening where there is no window
A new header over a new opening, the window, the well, the drain and the cover, framing and trim inside. Permit and utility locate included.
Wells and stairwells
A deeper well, with a ladder
For a sill that sits low in the ground: a taller well, built-in ladder rungs and a larger drain pocket.
A walk-out stairwell
A door opening cut in the wall, poured steps and retaining walls, a drain at the bottom. Doors and railings are quoted on their own line.
Rock, a gas, water or sewer line in the way, and a second window each change the number. Your written quote lists every line.
The window job
Day by day, from the chalk line to the inspector
A usual job runs three to five working days. Wet ground or a surprise in the wall can add days, and we say so the same afternoon.
- Visit
Step 1: Measure, mark and permit
We measure inside and out, mark the opening in chalk, call 811 for the utility locate and file the permit.
- Day 1
Step 2: Dig
Hand-dig near the lines, machine-dig where there's room. Dust sheeting goes up inside and the stairs are covered.
- Day 2
Step 3: Cut
A wet saw makes the opening so the dust stays down. A header goes in over it and the buck is framed.
- Day 3
Step 4: Set the window and the well
The window is set, flashed and sealed. The well goes against the wall on gravel and the drain is tied in.
- Day 4 or 5
Step 5: Trim and inspect
Inside trim, backfill, grade away from the wall. The inspector comes while the opening is still open to see.
Around the window
The rooms we finish once the way out is in
Basement bedroom
Framing, insulation, drywall, a door and a closet, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, and heat that reaches the room.
Bedroom conversionsBath and laundry
A rough-in at the right depth, a floor drain or an ejector pit, a vented fan and tile you can wash.
Basement bathsWalk-out and family room
A stairwell and a door where the wall meets the yard, then a room that opens to it.
Walk-out stairwells
Before the saw
We mark the wall, then we file the permit
The window is drawn on your wall before you sign. That's the whole quote: what you see in chalk is what gets cut.
Wisconsin's dwelling code covers the structure, and your town's inspector covers the rest. We measure, we pull the permit and we book the inspection. If an inspector reads a number differently than we did, we change the opening, not the story.
Chalk outline on your wall at the visit
Utility locate called in before anyone digs
Permit filed under our name, with your address
Inspector scheduled while the opening is still open
From homeowners
What a finished window looks like from the inside
“Gaoly drew the window on our wall in chalk before we signed. The inspector measured exactly what she had shown us.”
Anong S.Basement bedroom
“They dug the well by hand beside the gas meter and left the lawn flat. The drain was tied in before the stone went in.”
Christos P.Egress window and well
“The quote listed the window, the well, the drain and the permit as separate lines. Nothing showed up on the bill that wasn't on the page.”
Adaeze O.Basement bath
Sample reviews.
Where we work
Milwaukee and the ring around it
Type your ZIP to see if we come to you.
- Milwaukee County: Milwaukee, Wauwatosa, West Allis, Shorewood, Whitefish Bay, Glendale, Greenfield, Cudahy, South Milwaukee, St. Francis, West Milwaukee, Hales Corners, Greendale
- Waukesha County: Brookfield, Elm Grove, New Berlin, Waukesha
We don't take jobs north of Mequon, west of Waukesha or in Racine and Kenosha counties. We don't build new houses, roofs or decks.
Before you call
Questions we answer on every visit
How big does a bedroom window have to be?
The usual reading is 5.7 square feet of clear opening with the sash open, at least 24 inches tall and 20 inches wide, with the bottom of the opening no more than 44 inches off the floor. Both the height and the width have to be met, not just the area. Your inspector's reading rules, and we confirm it at the permit counter.
Does a window well need a drain?
Ours do. Each well sits on gravel with a drain tied to the footing drain or to a pit below it, so it doesn't fill like a bucket. The cover has to open from inside without a key.
Do I need a permit to cut into a foundation wall?
An egress opening changes the structure, and Milwaukee and the towns around it ask for a permit. We file it, mark the utilities and meet the inspector. Where a town wants the owner's signature, we send you the form.
My house was built before 1978. Is lead a worry?
Federal rules ask for lead-safe work practices when paint is disturbed in a home built before 1978. Windows and demolition are always covered; small repairs under 6 square feet inside or 20 outside are not. We tell you before work starts and leave you the EPA pamphlet. The firm's certificate is on the credentials page.
What does a written quote include?
A list of lines: the window, the well, the drain, the cover, inside trim, the permit and haul-off, with what is not in the price, such as rock, a sewer or gas line in the way, and paint beyond the patch.
Get a quote
Tell us about the room
Send a photo of the wall and window by text, or fill in the form. We call back to set a time to measure.
Phone(414) 555-0101
Hours
- Monday – FridayToday
- 7:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
- SaturdayToday
- By appointment
- SundayToday
- Closed