Minnesota Administrative Rules

1309.0310 SECTION R310, EMERGENCY ESCAPE AND RESCUE OPENINGS.

IRC section R310.1 is amended to read as follows:

R310.1 Emergency escape and rescue required. Basements, habitable attics, and every sleeping room shall have at least one operable emergency escape and rescue opening. Where basements contain one or more sleeping rooms, emergency egress and rescue openings shall be required in each sleeping room, but not be required in adjoining areas of the basement. Where emergency escape and rescue openings are provided they shall have a sill height of not more than 44 inches (1118 mm) measured from the finished floor to the bottom of the clear opening. Where a door opening having a threshold below the adjacent ground elevation serves as an emergency escape and rescue opening and is provided with a bulkhead enclosure, the bulkhead enclosure shall comply with section R310.3. The net clear opening dimensions required by this section shall be obtained by the normal operation of the emergency escape and rescue opening from the inside. Emergency escape and rescue openings with a finished sill height below the adjacent ground elevation shall be provided with a window well in accordance with section R310.2. Emergency escape and rescue openings shall open directly into a public way, or to a yard or court that opens to a public way.

Exceptions:

1. Basements used only to house mechanical equipment and not exceeding total floor area of 200 square feet (18.58 m²).

2. Basements or basement bedrooms when the building is protected with an automatic sprinkler system installed in accordance with IRC section P2904 or NFPA 13D.

3. Basements or basement bedrooms that comply with all of the following conditions:

A. constructed prior to August 1, 2008;

B. undergoing an alteration or repair; and

C. the entire basement area, when all portions of the means of egress to the level of exit discharge, and all areas on the level of exit discharge that are open to the means of egress is protected with an automatic sprinkler system in accordance with IRC section P2904 or NFPA 13D.

R310.1.1 Minimum opening area. All emergency escape and rescue openings shall have a minimum net clear opening of 5.7 square feet (0.530 m²).

Exception: Grade floor openings shall have a minimum net clear opening of 5 square feet (0.465 m²).

R310.1.2 Minimum opening height. The minimum net clear opening height shall be 24 inches (610 mm).

R310.1.3 Minimum opening width. The minimum net clear opening width shall be 20 inches (508 mm).

R310.1.4 Operational constraints. Emergency escape and rescue openings shall be operational from the inside of the room without the use of keys, tools, or special knowledge.

Exception: Windows with approved window opening control devices and installed in accordance with ASTM F 2090. The devices shall not require the use of keys or tools to operate.

R310.1.5 Replacement windows. Replacement windows installed in buildings regulated by the International Residential Code shall be exempt from the maximum sill height requirements of section R310.1, including subsections R310.1.1, R310.1.2, and R310.1.3, if the replacement window is the manufacturer's largest standard size window that will fit within the existing frame or existing rough opening. The replacement window shall be the same operating style as the existing window or a style that provides for an equal or greater window opening area than the existing window.

R310.1.5.1 Licensed facilities. Windows in rooms used for foster care or day care licensed or registered by the state of Minnesota shall comply with the provisions of section R310.1.5, or all of the following conditions, whichever is more restrictive:

1. Minimum of 20 inches in clear opening width;

2. Minimum of 20 inches in clear opening height;

3. Minimum of 648 square inches (4.5 square feet) clear opening; and

4. Maximum of 48 inches from the floor to the sill height.

Statutory Authority:

MS s 16B.59; 16B.61; 16B.64; 326B.02; 326B.101; 326B.106; 326B.13

History:

27 SR 1475; 32 SR 12; L 2007 c 140 art 4 s 61; art 13 s 4; 39 SR 91

Published Electronically:

January 26, 2015