This front entrance door meets the requirement for an egress door. It is 6’8" in height and 36" wide. The bolt lock and the door handle both have easy to use mechanisms to unlock in the case of an emergency.
I did enjoy the video presentation for egress. Visuals are always important for understanding material.
To ensure egress areas such as exterior steps are up to acceptable levels mudjacking may be a good solution for the common settling of the concrete structure. Polyjacking is a newer and, i feel, and better solution but both may not offer a long term solution as the underlying problem may not be cured.
This is a photo requirement post for the class.
Remember when dealing with arched doors that the 36" clearance must extend to the height of 6’ 8". If the peak of the arch is at 6’ 8" then it would not be in compliance. The attached photo is in compliance.
This is a post to satisfy the requirement of performing a “Means of Egress” inspection and sharing my experience.
I regularly inspect properties around the lake and frequently find make shift stairs as part of the main egress. I frequently find stacked rocks that have been positioned to form steps. Be aware that these also need to comply with the safety standards. First they need to be stable and level. Next they can not vary in thickness by more than 3/8" where risers are formed and finally guard and hand rail rules still apply.
Hello,
This is a post to satisfy the requirements of reading two articles and sharing my thoughts:
I recommend that everyone read the article entitled “Limitations of a Home Inspector” and apply the information when performing your means of egress inspection. It is important to remember that we are not code inspectors.
Hello,
This is the second post to satisfy the requirements of reading two articles and sharing my thoughts:
I recommend that everyone read the article entitled “Moisture Intrusion” and apply the information when performing your means of egress inspection. It is important to check for moisture intrusion around all means of egress and landing areas
good day,
on the day of this inspection the balusters spacing was in excess of 4". this picture depicts the actual width while including the surface below (concrete) which was approximately 12’ below. was noted as a safety concern.
good day,
on the day of the inspection the stairwell was found to be satisfactory and within the safety guidelines except as noted in previous post regarding baluster width…
good day, required reading article regarding inspection of stairs. due to the fact of the high number of injuries we as inspectors must think of the elderly, physically impaired and small children when we evaluate the safety of stairways…
Good course.
This image is of front door meeting the requirement for egress. The measurements are 36"x 6’8 required for at least one door in a home or dwelling.
x_ I inspected the exterior wall-covering materials, flashing and trim.
_____ The exterior wall-covering materials, flashing and trim were not inspected, because they
were:
_____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
_X I inspected all exterior doors.
_____ All exterior doors were not inspected, because they were: _____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ___. There were 3 exterior doors. Front entry door measuring 36"x6’8"and side and rear entry doors measuring 30"x6’8" . All doors were metal six panel hinged with thumb lock locking. No visual signs of rote failure to preform properly At time of inspection.__No egress issues were found.
_X I inspected the adjacent walkways and driveways.
_____ The adjacent walkways and driveways were not inspected, because they were: _____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
_X I inspected the stairs, steps, stoops, stairways and ramps.
_____ The stairs, steps, stoops, stairways and ramps were not inspected, because they were: _____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
X I inspected the porches, patios, decks, balconies and carports.
_____ The porches, patios, decks, balconies and carports were not inspected, because they were: _____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
X I inspected the railings, guards and handrails.
_____ The railings, guards and handrails were not inspected, because they were: _____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
__X I inspected the eaves, soffits and fascia.
_____ The eaves, soffits and fascia were not inspected, because they were: _____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
X I inspected a representative number of windows.
_____ A representative number of windows were not inspected, because they were: _____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
___X I inspected the vegetation, surface drainage, retaining walls and grading of the property, where they may adversely affect the structure due to moisture intrusion.
_____ The vegetation, surface drainage, retaining walls and grading of the property, where they may adversely affect the structure due to moisture intrusion, were not inspected, because they were:
_____ inaccessible
_____ unsafe
_____ not present
_____ not within the scope of the inspection ______________________________________________________________________________________________
DESCRIBE:
The type of ___cement fiber panels.
exterior wall-covering materials can be described as: vinyl
stucco
aluminum siding
cement-fiber panels or siding
exterior insulation finish systems (EIFS) wood panels or siding
masonry, brick and stone
other
The exterior was hardy board siding. The home is fairly new and at time of inspection the siding was visuals in tach working properly.______________________________________________________________________________________
REPORT:
_x I did not see evidence of improper spacing between intermediate balusters, spindles and rails. Correction is needed.
_____ I saw evidence of a material defect. Correction is needed. _____ I saw evidence of a functional defect. Correction is needed.
_____ I saw evidence of a cosmetic defect. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Required additional reading.
Window well inspection: Great imformation. Something I dont remember on video that I found in reading was a better understanding why 9 sq. ft. Opening could actually be small for a fully dressed fireman in a rescue attempt.
This is my shared pics and report for egress. This would be the egress door for my house which meets all the necessary requirements. Sorry for the lighting and not rotated.
I read the article on stairway inspections. I don’t know of an apartment, a townhome, or house that I lived where I felt a stairway was constructed 100% correctly. Yet I never really paid attention to it. Like the article said, many time the home owner just gets used to it and doesn’t notice. The last house I remodeled, I increased the stair width to 4 feet, and it made everything much easier. I think most house being built now would benefit by going to 4 foot wide.
This door is on a home in Florida that I snapped a picture of to show a common issue in this state. Due to all of the hurricane requirements, it is very common to see outswing doors, they are more resistant to the high wind pressure put on them making them a popular choice. As you can see in the picture there is a step, not a landing and the door does swing out over the steps. If you look at the picture you can see the hinges are on the exterior. When you look closer you notice that the step heights vary by several inches and there is no threshold sill at the bottom of the door to shed water and seal the door to prevent drafts, water and insect intrusion. The recommendation here is to replace the door, and if it was replaced with another outswing, the steps would have to be rebuilt as a landing with equal steps down to grade from the landing. If it is replaced with an inswing door the steps would still need to be rebuilt to provide equal step heights.
Preformed an egress inspection of the property that am living in, the front door is the primary egress location, the door threshold is 4 inches above the sidewalk that connects to the foundation at the door. The sidewalk at the front door was wider by 2 feet on the left and 1 foot to the right of the 36 inch entry door. This wider section of walkway extended 10 feet away from the structure where it was sealed with a metal frame screen enclosure and storm door. the storm door did not have a keyed lock. The entry door did not have a keyed deadbolt. All of the bedrooms have aluminum single hung winds that were operated and found to be in working order. When the windows were opened and measured they all had more than 20 inches in width and 24 inches in height. There are no steps, stairs or railings on the property. The home was built on a slab, so there is no basement. The rear of the home has 2 large patio door sliders that were found to be operational. results of my inspection tells me the home is in compliance and safe.
Just finished the inspecting the means of egress course and enjoyed it. Loved the mix of instruction and video and pictures from the field. talking about issues has it’s merit, but I have always enjoyed seminars when they share pictures from the field. you could never teach a class that could teach you all of the things you see in your inspection journey. Loved hearing Kenton talk about the “this is not a code inspection” comment that we live and die by, that creates a paradox, because if you don’t know or use the code, how could you know what is or is not a defect or safety issue? the reality is that, it is kind of a code inspection, were just not quoting it or mentioning it in our reports.
Slip that into the egress opening of your mind.
Read the article on preparing your client for emergency, wasn’t really an egress thing, but I thought Egress is all about safety and it would be in a similar vein. The article was interesting and made me feel like I am not really prepared for an emergency. You would have thought that I would have learned my lesson after I was hit by hurricane Sandy, my home is 7 blocks away from the ocean at the jersey shore, and only a block away from the ocean that night. I was without power for over 40 days and no water for almost 2 weeks. made me rethink about telling clients that live in areas known to have emergency situations about being prepared.