Why Egress Windows Matter
Building code requires a code-sized egress window in any basement bedroom or finished living space, it’s the safe way out in a fire and a way in for first responders. Beyond safety, an egress window floods a basement with daylight and lets you legally call that space a bedroom, which adds livable square footage and resale value. In practical terms, the residential code adopted across our Iowa and Illinois service area requires a net clear opening of at least 5.7 square feet — minimum 24″ tall and 20″ wide — with the sill no more than 44″ above the floor, and a window well of at least 9 square feet with a permanent ladder or steps when it’s deeper than 44″. We confirm the exact requirements with your local building department on every job.
Done Cleanly, Done to Code
Cutting the Opening
Precise cutting of the foundation wall, poured or block, to the code-required opening size, with the wall properly supported and finished.
Window & Well
A code-sized egress window and a sturdy window well with a built-in ladder or steps, sized so it’s a true, usable exit.
Drainage That Works
A gravel base and proper drainage at the bottom of the well so the new opening never becomes a place for water to collect and leak in.
Clean Finish
Sealed, trimmed, and cleaned up so the finished result looks like it was always meant to be there, inside and out.
A Bad Egress Install Is a Leak Waiting to Happen
Egress windows are only as good as the drainage and sealing behind them. When they’re put in wrong, the well fills with water and sends it straight into your basement. If you’ve got an existing egress window that leaks or settles, we’ll find out why and fix it, not just sell you a new one.
An egress window is a waterproofing project that happens to include a window.
Every egress install we build is designed to protect the basement first.
Free · no obligation
Not sure what your home actually needs?
Tell us what’s going on. We’ll diagnose the real problem and put a written estimate in your hands, usually within one business day. No pressure, no commissioned salespeople.
More Than Cutting a Hole in the Wall
Any opening below grade is a path for water. Done right, an egress window gives first responders a way in during an emergency, your family a way out, and your foundation a dry, properly drained opening. Done wrong, it’s a permanent leak. Here’s the process, and why every step matters. Most egress leaks aren’t coming through the glass; they come up around a window well that was never drained.
Excavation
We dig out the well area to the correct depth and width for a code-sized window, carefully, without disturbing the footing.
Drainage First
A gravel base and a drain tied into the drainage system so the well can never hold water against the wall.
Precise Foundation Cut
A clean, square opening is cut into the foundation wall, sized exactly to the window and properly supported.
Waterproofing & Flashing
We seal and flash the new opening so the penetration we just made can’t become a future leak.
Window Well & Window
A code-compliant egress window and well go in, big enough to climb out of in an emergency and to let daylight in.
Final Grading
We backfill and grade so surface water runs away from the well, not into it.
That’s why a Behncke egress window protects two things at once: a safe way out for your family, and a dry, sound foundation.
Adding a Bedroom or Finishing Your Basement?
We’ll measure your space, confirm what code requires, and give you a clear written quote to add a safe, dry egress window, usually within one business day.
Recent projects from our crews
Real egress window installs across the Quad Cities.
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Prefer to pay monthly?
Spread your project into manageable payments through our independent third-party financing partners. Financing is optional, and approval and terms are set by the provider.
Straight answers, no sales pressure
Egress window questions we hear from Quad Cities homeowners
The questions we get most from Davenport, Bettendorf, Moline, Rock Island, and LeClaire, answered the same way we’d explain them at your house.
Can I get a quote to install an egress window?
Absolutely, the evaluation is free. One thing worth knowing up front: an egress window is really a waterproofing project that happens to include a window. The well, the drainage under it, and the cover matter as much as the glass, and we install the whole system, window, ladder, exterior trim, well, and cover, not just the opening. Egress projects typically land in the $2,000–$5,000 range, and we’ll quote yours from the actual wall and grade.
Can you put an egress window in a block or finished basement?
Yes to both. We cut the opening in poured or block foundation walls and install the full egress system, and in a finished basement we work with the wall you have and put it back together cleanly around the new window. Because we handle the well and drainage too, a finished-basement egress won’t come back to haunt you with a leak later, which is the whole point of doing it right the first time.
My egress window is leaking, can you fix the window well drainage?
Yes, and a leaking egress is almost always a well-drainage problem, not a window problem. When the well can’t drain, water backs up and comes in around the frame. We fix the drainage under and around the well so the water has somewhere to go, and make sure the well and cover are actually doing their job. It’s the same “manage the water” thinking we bring to every wet-basement call.
Do you travel to my town, and what’s the average cost and timeline for an egress window?
We cover the Quad Cities metro, Davenport, Bettendorf, LeClaire, Moline, Rock Island, and the surrounding towns. Egress windows typically run in the $2,000–$5,000 range depending on the wall and how much digging the well needs, and it’s usually a tight, predictable job rather than a drawn-out one. We’ll give you the specific number and timeline after we see the spot, text us and we’ll set up the free look.
Recent Work
