Tag Archive for: walkout basement

Thinking about renovating your basement?  Does your home sit on a sloped lot?  Maybe you should consider creating a walkout basement for your home.

Most basements are not put to use.  Either they weren’t created for living use (low ceiling height, unfinished floors, etc), and other times the conditions down there don’t lend themselves to human habitation (leaky walls, mold, lots of spiders, etc)

Basements, as the name suggests, are areas beneath the main structure that you can walk in and out of without using stairs. Ideally, they have windows and allow access on level ground. In this case, some people also call them daylight basements. If you are fortunate enough to have one (and there is sufficient head height) you can legally use it as living space and benefit from these other advantages:

  • Added value to your home at far less than the cost of a room upstairs
  • A more attractive proposition should you decide to sell some day

A walkout basement is usually only achievable when the property has sufficient slope to allow for it. Unless constructed at the same time as the house, part of it may end up below ground with concomitant damp problems. Ideally there should be sufficient slope on the rear side of the home to accommodate it. This obviates the risk of the approach-side of the house appearing architecturally awkward.

While it’s ideal to create a walkout basement when originally constructing the home, often times it didn’t fit the budget, or just wasn’t in the plans with the original construction.  When creating a walkout basement on an existing home, you’ll want to make sure:

  •  Waterproofing protection is incorporated during the construction process
  •   Foundation support are maintained to accoodate the new design
  •   The new design is in harmony with your existing home

While creating a walkout basement can be expensive, the value from the added living space will add value to your home that wasn’t there before.  In Toronto, there is a lack of available property, so homeowners are looking to make the most of the property they already have.  A walkout basement is a perfect fit to add an entire floor of living space to your home.

While this sort of renovation can be costly, it is often possible to stagger these costs on a site that slopes away from the access point. In this case, it may be feasible to leave the raw walkout basement structure unfinished, and complete fitting it out when funds become available. In this event it is vital to ensure two things.

  • There must be legal head height after allowing for ceiling space.  This is accomplished by lowering your basement.
  • The walkout basement must have waterproofing for its design life.

This is because it is often impossible to retrofit access to the inner wall, and to repair leakage afterwards. Builders seldom understand these things, which is why you should consult an expert.

Basement contractors in Toronto for walkout basementAs a basement waterproofing company in Toronto, sometimes we come in to waterproof a basement or repair a foundation because the home owner is finishing their basement so it can become a rental unit.  We’ve been asked in the past by homeowners whether a basement apartment is legal in the city of Toronto.  Our answer is “it depends”.  There are several criteria that must be met in order for a basement apartment is to be considered legal or not. Most professionals in real estate and the construction industry would have a hard time answering this question as it’s very complex.

Some regulations are retrospective, while others are in force regardless of timelines.  Below is a brief outline of several factors that go into determining the legality of a basement dwelling in Toronto, though you must contact a lawyer for legal advice to truly determine if it’s legal or not.

Differences in construction methods, confusing time-frames and complicated rules make the answer to this complex. The following summary provides a general background. Home buyers should check details carefully before buying based on first impressions, and risking expensive consequences later.

The same applies to sellers and their agents. The days of a terse “retrofit not warranted” are no longer sufficient. They are advised to make more complete disclosure of compliance. However it remains the buyer’s duty to inspect the premises in terms of law.

Finishing a walkout basement in Toronto

Fire Regulations

This is the only section of the Ontario building code that is retrospective. This means that a once-compliant basement may no longer be so. Requirements for basement apartments include:

  • Dry walls between a basement and main dwelling must have a thirty-minute fire-rating.

 

  • There must be an alternative exit. This can be a basement window, provided it complies with size and positioning rules.

 

  • A basement must have a smoke detector (connected to the main house if the fire rating is in doubt).

 

  • Some municipalities require a carbon monoxide detector in addition.

The only sure way to confirm legality is to obtain a retrofit compliance certificate from the local fire department. Some sellers arrange these to encourage buying confidence.

Other Building Regulations

Changes to general building regulations are not retrospective. Basements built pre-1995 are exempt because there were no laws applying to them at the time. More modern ones (and older ones without evidence of construction dates) must meet the following requirements in order to be used as apartments:

  • The minimum height is 6 foot 5 inches measured from floor to ceiling.

 

  • The entrance opening must be at least 32 inches by 78 inches.

 

  • Bathrooms must have either windows or exhaust fans.

 

  • Parking space must be evenly distributed in the case of multi-apartments.

 

  • A valid certificate of electrical compliance is necessary.

Ceiling Height

Some older basements fail to meet the ceiling-height requirement because they were originally built for storage, not habitation. Techniques exist for lowering basement floors without affecting structural integrity. A buyer contemplating this should allow for the cost of construction work (and total re-fitment afterwards) in their calculation of total purchase price.  In some locals, have full length windows or a walkout basement may be a requirement for a legal basement apartment.

In Summary

The rules that are summarized here are necessary to ensure safe, comfortable basement apartments, and merit compliance for this reason alone. The homeowner who chooses to ignore them risks stiff fines from city inspectors – and having to vacate apartments and forfeit rental income too.