By Barry Stone
Dear Barry,
The home we just purchased has one odd element. One of the master bedroom windows looks out directly into the garage. A contractor friend of ours who is now doing some rehab work in the house is telling us that the bedroom window is not legal. Nothing about this was mentioned when we bought the home, and we're wondering if this is a serious problem. -John
Dear John,
Your contractor friend is correct. A bedroom window in a garage wall is a fire safety violation and is an indication that your garage is either an addition or a converted carport. When a garage is added to a dwelling, a primary concern is altering the partition wall between the house and garage to comply as a one-hour firewall. This means that the wall surface on the garage side should consist of plaster or 5/8-inch type X drywall, with no openings that are not fire-rated. Doors in this wall should be fire-rated and self-closing. No door should enter directly into a bedroom, and the wall should contain no windows.
The current situation in your garage is illegal and confirms that work was done without a building permit. When you purchased your home, an unpermitted garage should have been disclosed by the sellers, if they were aware of it. The problem may already have existed when they bought the property. Your home inspector (assuming that you had a home inspection) should have disclosed the firewall problem and the likelihood of a bootlegged addition.
Now that you'll be eliminating the bedroom window, there's another consideration: If the bedroom has no other window, one that opens directly to the exterior of the building, then it does not comply as a legal bedroom. A sleeping area must have an exterior window for ventilation, natural light and fire escape. Hopefully, the garage does not prevent compliance with these requirements.
Copyright 2003-2006 Barry Stone. Distributed by Inman News Features
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