Wondering if there is any ‘general wisdom’ or ‘tried an true’ framer’s rules about ideal window heighth. I’m now framing in windows on a pretty high fourth floor. I’m personally comfortable with a fairly high sill … about 51-plus inches .. that’s about sternum highth for me. It guards against constantly being ‘watchable’ from the street. But now that I’ve got one framed for that heighth it somehow appears MUCH higher than the 48/49″ (also hi .. i know) that I usually go for. (no, it does not designate window height in the blueprints… it shows a ‘window’ .. height to be determined at building.)
Any thoughts on this?
thanks –
nb
Replies
aahhh shucks.
c'mon fellas .. share the mental wealth!
n
One common "rule" is that all headered openings have their tops at the same height. Makes for a nice line of casings around the room. That, plus window size, gives you the sill height.
Sleeping rooms in cities want a higher sill height than living rooms. Bathrooms higher still. It's a privacy thing.
Fire egress codes also control sill height in bedrooms, on at least one window if no outside door is present for egress.
Just my random thoughts.
Bill
I agree with Bill- head casings should usually align. 48 or 51 sounds quite high to me. Maybe it's a country thing, but I'm used to the window sills being at 32-36", leaving space for a window close to 4' tall. Bathroom windows are set higher, and the window itself is shorter, but the bedroom windows I've noticed are set the same height as living room windows.
I also think that it's odd to not designate a window height on blueprints.
zak
"When we build, let us think that we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone." --John Ruskin
"so it goes"
Same as porch railings, make it "pee-able" height. Which varies by pee-er and equipment of said pee'er.
"Same as porch railings, make it "pee-able" height. Which varies by pee-er and equipment of said pee'er."
Yeah. I think I saw that in the code somewheres. ;-)
Reminds me of that old joke:
Two guys peeing off a bridge. Sez guy 1: "Man, that water is COLD!"
Sez guy 2: "Yeah. And it's DEEP too!"
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
"Same as porch railings, make it "pee-able" height. Which varies by pee-er and equipment of said pee'er."
ah! very good. if THIS is the 'rule of thumb' I'm good. I'm only of average physical heighth, around 5/10 ... but the other half of the consideration means that the 51" that I've got the sill at now would be perfect for me if that's the criteria.
thanks!
;-)
Edited 8/21/2007 5:37 pm ET by newbuilder
What is the room being used for? If people will be standing and want to look out, it can be higher (like in hallways or areas where peopl might be gathering and talking while standing). In dining room or living room, sills can be lower so peopl can see out while sitting. As others mentioned, privacy is important too--if you can see out, others can see in. A book I saw once showed how if the whole building, or floor is elevated, (or if the window is on second floor or in a room above a partialy buried basement), the sills can be lower without losing privacy.
You certainly want to be aware of code issues with regard to having it too low. Most AHJs have tightened this up (raised the required sill height) over the years due to kids falling out of windows. If the window is too low it will require somes sort of restraint system -- bars or safety glass or some such.
You want to take into consideration the look from the outside also. High small windows can look like a prison.
If the sill is low on the inside and it makes you feel to exposed you can always put something in front of the window. So you can change it later. But you can't make it look better form the outside later.
We have a project in the future with a low wall we are going to be sitting behind. But we will want some privacy. I'm going to build it low and then have movable objects (potted plants) that we will put on the wall. It will be customized later after we have sat there for a while. It keeps the plan flexible and avoids mistakes.
You could look at this issue the same way. Think about how it will look from the outside and think about what you could put in front of it afterwards.
thanks everyone .. good stuff ... much appreciated
nb
You want to take into consideration the look from the outside also
Excellent point, and one that is often overlooked by designers today.
If the window is in a bedroom, our code reads no higher than 44"... also, if it's in a bedroom you might want to pay attention to egress size.
Whoever it is I wish they'd cut it out but when they will I can only guess.
They say I shot a man named Gray and took his wife to Italy,
She inherited a million bucks and when she died it came to me.
I can't help it if I'm lucky.
Correct if it is the ONLY window in that bedroom. Others don't all need to be egress portals, just one of them.I know you know this, just clarifying for the lurkers.Bill
Back when I was reading up on the code here, there was one thing that required a minimum height of 42", or you have to put in bars to keep people from falling out. In another place, for bedroom emergency egress, there was a maximum of 42", so the fire dep't could get you out thru the window.
Therefore, the answer is the same as in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: 42. ;-)
-- J.S.