Minnesota adopted a new state building code in January of 2015, and with it came numerous changes. I blogged about the new Minnesota building code last January, but there was one important change I never mentioned. It concerns the addition of window fall protection, located under section R312.2. Here's the exact text from the Minnesota State Building Code, which comes directly from the 2012 IRC (which we adopted in 2015):

In short, double- and single-hung windows located within 36 inches of the floor and having an outside drop-off of more than 72 inches need safety devices that prevent the windows from opening fully. Specifically, the window can't open enough to allow the passage of a 4-inch sphere.

I'm sure there are several different types of safety devices available, but the only ones I've seen are sash stops that look just like regular sash stops. They stay in the open/locked position until manually closed. After they're manually closed, you get to open and close the window once. After that, they automatically return to the open/locked position. The video clip below shows a demonstration.

For information about the reasoning behind this new requirement, click here: child window safety. I feel the same way about this new requirement as I do about plastic outlet plugs: They're super annoying, but nobody wants kids getting hurt or killed.

Author: Reuben Saltzman, Structure Tech Home Inspections