Is this floor plan legal? (re building regs)

[Jake]

Anyone familiar with building regs? I wondered if you can see any problem with the floor plan as shown at the url below. Does the bedroom, in particular conform with fire escape regs, considering that the occupant needs to pass through another room to reach the only exit to the outside? (Or does a ground floor window qualify as a fire escape exit?)

flat in question has been this way for a number of years. I'm just wondering if the place will be sellable if it doesn't conform to building regs in this respect, or if there would be other legal pitfalls for a potential buyer (or the seller for that matter).

Thank you,

Jake

[Jake]

PS... It is a one-bedroom flat, all on one floor.

Jake

[auctions]

Doesn't matter whether it conforms - what matters is whether it conformed when it was done. Plus building regs enforcement only has a limited timespan (10 years?) after which they don't have control.

A

[R.P.McMurphy]

Yes IUI, a ground floor window acts as a fire escape. What an odd layout though, is there no back door? are the ground floor windows big enough to get out of?

Steve

[Jake]

Phew! Thank you!

It was originally a 3-bed semi. What used to be the hous's back door is now the ground floor flat's entrance. The house's original front door gives axcess to the stairwell leading up to the upper flat.

Yes, way big enough to ecape through - if you smash one.. They are UPVC double-glazed, so I guess a frail person in a wheelchair would have a real problem.

I wish, when I installed them, I had chosen ones that have a tall, wide opening section bug enough to climb through. The ones I installed only have a narow horizontal opening at the top. So you'd have to smash the main section of the window to escape through it.

Does that still make them a legal fire exit, do you know?

Jake

[tim.....]

No it doesn't. (You can't smash through a DG window with the things you will find in a bedroon)

But it's too late now.

I believe that putting the door the other side of the corner so that it opens directly into the lounge and having a door between the lounge and kitchen would be compliant, if that is what you want to achieve.

But TBH the poor location of the bathroom would put me off more than the (lack of an) escape route if there's a fire,

tim

[R.P.McMurphy]

A fire officer is more interested that there is a way in for a fireman to enact a rescue. AIUI upstairs windows have to be a certain size by law to allow escape or rescue in the event of fire. The current layout is not ideal, but is not illegal, and shouldn't affect saleability.

Steve

[Jake]

I could change the windows to ones that have opening sections big enough to climb through. Would that solve the issue?

Sorry I couldn't follow the above. Which door on the other side of which corner?

The bedroom has an en-suite shower and toilet - not shown in my sketch. But, yes, the fire excape route, wouldn't put me off buying either. I might have a large hammer hanging on the wall next to the window if I was really worried! I am just trying to get a rough undrstanding of my legal position. I am getting the impression that I don't really need to worry too much. Yes?

Jake

[Jake]

Thank you... That's what I wanted to hear. :-)

Jake

[Peter Parry]

Building regulations are the least of your worries. The Housing Act

2004 may be the main one. If it qualifies as a house in multiple occupancy (HMO) it has to meet (and continue to meet) more stringent requirements.

A HMO is defined (amongst other things) as a building which is converted entirely into self-contained flats if the conversion did not meet the standards of the 1991 Building Regulations and more than one-third of the flats are let on short-term tenancies.

Interpretation of the Housing Act can be variable but

a reasonable checklist.

[Peter Parry]

Wrong. The primary aim of all fire legislation is for occupants to be able to escape before the fire service arrive. By the time the fire service get to a fire it is often far to late to rescue anyone as it is smoke, not fire which is the major killer. When a fire is visible from outside a house the occupants are usually dead.

[Stuart B]

I think he /she means moving the external door so it is in/on the wall

90 degrees to the left of where it is just now ...opening directly in to the Lounge ....The other point about a door betwen the Lounge and Kitchen ....Presumably there is no door at present...it isn''t shown there anyway ..just an opening ..but then the bathroom hasn't one shown either .!!!

[tim.....]

Sorry, wasnt clear.

Timonena (no, not really) meant the main entrance door.

AIUI the rule is that there must be an escape route from a bedroom, which doesn't pass through a kitchen, this being the most likely room to have caused a fire.

(So that is no use if your TV spontaniously combusts, but I'm only telling the rule, not justifying it)

tim

[tim.....]

Which makes a 'man sized' openable window on the fourth floor completely useless for purpose. Nevertheless, that is exactly what I had to have.

tim

[Hugo Nebula]

On Sun, 25 Feb 2007 11:37:23 -0000, a particular chimpanzee named "tim....." randomly hit the keyboard and produced:

In what context? A house or a flat? New-build or conversion? And who said you 'had to' have it?

An escape window is an alternative to having a direct route from a ground floor room or a protected route (fire resisting enclosure to stairs, fire doors) from a first floor room. It is allowed in a second floor loft conversion, but only until April when the Regulations change. Any higher, and a protected route or an alternative route (another stair) is required.

[Jake]

I see. Thanks for the suggestion re the door. I had never thought about that option, but it certainly would be feasable. I probably won't bother though (unless ordered to by BC at some point) as the current layout has been that way for about 13+ years.

I might leave a 'jentle-persuader' i.e., lump hammer, on the bedroom window sill instead. (-;

Jake

[tim.....]

Replacement windows in a purpose built flat.

The man doing the quote said that the regs required it.

I assumed that this was for use as an escape via a fireman's ladder. It certainly wasn't a window I would have jumped out of.

tim

[Stuart B]

You can buy pointy hammers made specifically for persuading DG glass to break .

[mmzz]

Is not a protected stair route required to meet regulations, even with an escape window?. .I'm contemplating a loft conversion and it is going to be very difficult to provide a protected stair route from the ground to first floor. (First floor to loft would not be hard to protect) And I would be interested to know what the new regulations are, and whether I need to get plans in quick

[Hugo Nebula]

On Sun, 25 Feb 2007 20:39:00 -0000, a particular chimpanzee named "tim....." randomly hit the keyboard and produced:

Then he was talking bollox.