Requirements for Legal Basement Apartments in Ontario

Building and renting out a legal basement apartment is an excellent strategy to create an additional passive income stream. If you are reading this article you are convinced that building a legal apartment is the right for you, and you want to know how exactly how to do it. Lets dive in to the details of what is required in building a legal basement apartment in Ontario!

The first thing a homeowner should do prior to spending any money is to assess if the property is even capable of having a legal basement apartment built in it. There are a few deal breakers that could make building a legal apartment impossible or very cost prohibitive. These potential deal breakers are:

1) Insufficient lot width. Most Municipalities require a property with an accessory apartment to have a two lane driveway, so the occupants of each unit can park their cars on the driveway without blocking eachother in. Municipalities also have a minimum landscape open space requirement (ie. a limit to what percent of your front yard can be ashpault - often this is 40%). In a case where the lot width is too small, having 2 lanes of a driveway causes the landscape open space to be less than the minimum required, meaning that at the end of the day the driveway would not pass the final inspection. Some municipalities do the math for us and stipulate a minimum lot width required to apply for a basement apartment permit. Always check with your municipality to see what minimum lot frontage is required to build a basement apartment and the minimum landscape open space requirements which will dictate maximum driveway width.

2) Insufficient ceiling height in the basement. Basement apartments require a minimum ceiling height of 6'-5" to meet the Ontario Fire Code, and an average height of 6'-11" to meet the Ontario Building Code. The 6'-5" minimum height applies under beams, ducts, doorways and when going down the stairs to the apartment. If you are assessing whether your basement will have 6'-5" of ceiling height after the flooring and drywall is installed, there should be at least 6'-6" of distace between an unfinished floor and the duct itself to account for the drywall and flooring, assuming a vent duct is the lowest point in the basement. If vent ducts or beams protrude below the 6'-6" mark, there are options to raise them higher but this will be very expensive and are likely to invalidate the business case of building a legal basement apartment in the property.

If your lot is sufficiently wide and the cieling height meets the minimum requirements, you can move to the next step of your project which is to hire a BCIN certified Architect to prepare and submit your building permit application. The preperation and submission of the permit will typically cost around $1500-$2500, and you can expect a 3-6 week lead time the permit application is accepted. Before the architect prepares the drawings for submission however, it is best to have the basement "gutted" to expose all electrical and plumbing behind the walls to ensure the layout of the new apartment is optimized with the existing infrastructure (Plumbing, HVAC, Electrical) and any unknowns revealed early on for incoproration into the design. This proactive step will minimize the liklihood the drawings will need to be revised and re-approved mid-project which could cause significant delays to the project's schedule.

During the permit application review period, work can begin on the framing, plumbing, electrical as well as initiation of orders for longer lead items like kitchen cabinets, countertops, and appliances. Installation of drywall or pouring of concrete however must wait until the building inspector, plumbing inspector, and electrical inspectors are satisfied with the respective work before covering it up irreversibly.

Once the Permit is issued, there are typically 6 inspections which occur:

1. Pre-construction inspection - Intended for any questions you or your contractor may have before beginning the work.

2. Underground plumbing rough-in inspection – This inspection takes place before covering any underground / under slab plumbing work with stone and concrete. This inspection may be grouped with the above ground plumbing rough-in inspection if desired, provided it is left visible for inspection.

3. Framing Inspection / Above Ground Plumbing Rough-in inspection / HVAC Rough in - This typically includes the partition and any structural framing, the above ground plumbing rough-in, and HVAC. The fire separation prep work including drywall boxing of the floor joist cavities (see next section) should be completed at this stage. Electrical work is also to be completed at this stage however you need to contact the Electrical Safety Authority for a separate inspection.

4. Insulation / Fire Separation - Inspection of all insulation and includes the vapour barrier. At this time we will be also looking at some fire separation prep work that will not be visible at future inspections.

5. Occupancy inspection / Final Plumbing / Final HVAC / Fire Separation - The occupancy inspection often includes all remaining inspections including the final plumbing, HVAC final, and fire separations, as well as any outdoor caulking, window wells including stone in window well. All reports are required at this stage including the Electrical Safety Authority letter, smoke duct detector form (if applicable), sprinkler system certificate (if applicable), and any other applicable reports.

6. Final inspection - If minor exterior items which weren’t required for occupancy were incomplete at the occupancy inspection, the final inspection would be required. Once the final inspection has been signed off by the building inspector, a final clearance letter will be automatically e-mailed to the applicant, and a cheque to return the permit rebate (deposit) will be mailed to the payor.

Once the work begins, some Key Requirements which must be followed for each building element are listed below. *Note, always check with your contractor, inspector and archictect to understanding the requirements which apply to your particular situation.

Plumbing

• A Licensed plumber must be used for construction of a legal unit. You will need to provide the building inspector with the Plumber's license number.

• The water supply line from the city supply at the street to the Hot Water Tank must be 3/4" in diameter. In some cases, the inspector may require you to excavate your front lawn and replace the old 1/2" line with a new 3/4" line underground. Sometimes, they may let it go that the line coming into the house is 1/2" but will require a 3/4" inch line from the meter to the hot water tank.

• If you are unable to Type X drywall the ceiling of the furnace room due to the complexity of services in the room, it must be sprinklered instead to meet fire code. The sprinkler configuration cannot result in "dead legs" where stagnant water can occur. This is addressed by installing sprinkler heads on a line in which water passes constantly. Always check with your building inspector to understand expectations around your sprinkler system configuration, as some municipalities require a dedicated sprinkler line with that takes off before the water meter, additing complexity to your plumbing scope if you pursue this option.

• Drain piping must be adequately vented. Existing plumbing drains are typically not vented properly or vented at all. This especially applies to underground drainage below existing basement bathrooms. If you cannot prove an existing bathroom is adequately vented, you will likely have to break apart the concrete and re-do plumbing beneath the slab in order to pass the plumbing inspection.

• It is a good idea (but not a requirment) to add isolation valves giving the ability to shut off the water to the basement unit, or the upper unit in isolation. If practical, it is also good to have the ability to shut off the water to the entire house from the main unit. Ask your plumbing inspector to see what their expectation is pertaining to unit isolation.

• Where clothes washers do not drain to a laundry tub, the vertical standpipe must be a minimum of 2’ long measured from the trap weir to the top of the standpipe and must stop above the flood level rim of the clothes washer.

  

Electrical

• A licensed Electrician must be used for the construction of a legal unit, and the Electrician is to submit an electrical permit for the work through the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) and the work must pass an ESA inspection before drywall can cover up the wiring.

• If the home has a large number of devices which draw more amps like electric ovens, dryers, hot tubs, or electric car outlets to name a few, a 100Amp panel may not be sufficient and the panel may need to be upgraded to 200Amps. This upgrade would cost approximately $3500-$5000. If you wish to avoid upgrading the panel, one option is to utilize gas stoves and gas dryers to bring the amperage down, but installing new gas lines adds cost and gas applicances does introduce the (unlikely but possible) risk of explosion or gas leak.

• Each outlet which is in close proximity to a water source needs to have a GFCI outlet. Outlets in the kitchen are required to be on their own dedicated circuit and are to be 20A not the standard 15A, as some appliances draw more amperage when they start up. All juction boxes must be accessible via a removable cover and not buried behind drywall. All new outlets must be grounded. Existing outlets may be ungrounded as long as the first device on the circuit has a GFCI.

HVAC

• To satisfy heating and ventilation needs, a supply duct is necessary in every room, except for small closets, small storage areas, and the furnace room (depending on its size). When adding a second unit to a basement, it is best practice for supply air ducts to be positioned near the floor level, although ceiling placement may be acceptable. However, in a walk-out basement, supply ducts must be lowered to floor level. All heating supply ducts should be hard ducted.

• Each floor level requires at least one cold air return. In basements, the cold air return must be lowered to floor level. Since basements are usually cold, installing a low wall return helps draw the cold air off the floor. Unlike heating supply ducts, return air ducts do not need to be hard ducted and can use wall stud and floor joist cavities as the return air pathway.

Smoke Alarms

• You will need smoke alarms in your second unit and they must meet the CAN/ULC S531 performance standard. A label on the alarm will indicate whether it meets this standard. Your smoke alarms must also have a flashing light (strobe) when they are activated. Proper placement of smoke alarms is important. Refer to your approved permit drawings for marked locations, they must be located:

  • On every level of a house,

  • Outside sleeping areas,

  • In each bedroom in the second unit,

  • In common areas of the house shared by occupants of both units, such as shared entrances and laundry rooms, and

  • Each bedroom in the primary unit where;

  • both dwelling units share the only exit from either of the units, or

  • A 15 minute horizontal / ceiling fire separation is permitted and installed (as previously mentioned in the fire separation section)

  

  Interconnected Smoke Alarms

  Where the secondary unit requires more than one smoke alarm, the Building Code requires the smoke alarms to be wired so that the activation of one alarm will cause all alarms within the dwelling unit to sound.

  Additionally, the smoke alarms will need to be interconnected between the two dwelling units where both dwelling units share the only exit from either of the units, or a 15 minute horizontal / ceiling fire separation is permitted and installed. See Fire Rating chart below to determine if you require interconnected smoke alarms between units.

  

  Some smoke alarms have a wireless interconnection feature. Wireless interconnection must not depend on wifi or electrical power to operate the interconnection between alarms. Please review with your Building Inspector to ensure any wireless interconnected smoke alarms you wish to use will pass inspection.

  
  

  Carbon Monoxide Alarms

• In addition to smoke alarms you may also have to install carbon monoxide (CO) alarms. They are required if your house has any appliances, such as a furnace, water heater, stove, etc., that uses natural gas, propane or other similar fuels. They are also required if your house has an attached garage or wood burning fireplace. Carbon monoxide alarms can be either electrically powered or battery operated and must be located near bedrooms and sleeping areas in the second unit, refer to your approved permit drawings for marked locations. It is also possible (and oftentimes practical) to install a combination smoke alarm and CO alarm.

  
  

  Duct-Type Smoke Detector

• The Building Code allows a house with a second unit to have a single furnace and common system of air ducts for both units. For fire safety, you will have to install a special type of smoke detector in the main supply or return air ducts. When activated, this device turns off the fuel supply and electrical power to the furnace causing it to shut down and preventing the spread of smoke from one unit to the other.

  Duct-type smoke detectors must meet a specific performance standard known as UL 268A. To ensure you have the right detector and the installation is done properly, a qualified electrician or HVAC specialist will need to complete the installation. The duct-type smoke detector is not interconnected to the other smoke alarms in the building but is hardwired directly to the electrical pane

Soundproofing

• For a the ceiling of a basement apartment, the joist bays are to be packed with at least 1 layer of with Rockwool "Safe n Sound" insulation. This said, Sound proofing is very important for the tenant's enjoymnet of the unit and you will get much better sound proofing if the joist bays are packed with as many layers of Rockwool as possible.

• Before 5/8" type X drywall is installed on the ceiling, noise dampening 'resiliant channel' is also recommended (but not required) to be installed for the drywall to hang from which helps to further reduce sound transfer between units.

  

  
  

  Fire Seperation between units

• Any wall which seperates the two units must have 1/2" drywall on both sides of the wall.

• The furnace room wall must have 1/2" drywall on both sides of the wall.

• At any location where ventilation or non-fire proof device will penetrate through the drywall, (eg. Bathroom fan, ceiling vents, non-fire proof laundry standpipe, potlights access panel) the joist space behind the penetration must be "boxed in" with 5/8" Type X drywall and sealed with fire retardant caulking.

  

  

  
  

• The furnace room door must be a certified fire door. These doors are typically solid wood and come with a sticker of authenticity which looks like this on the edge:

In addition, fire doors must have a self-closing device strong enough to swing the door closed and latch, both the top mount self closer or the spring loaded hinge self closer are acceptable

Fire Stopping

When a fire separation is required to be penetrated by services such as electrical wires and plumbing pipes the penetration shall be tightly fitted or fire stopped to maintain the integrity of the separation. Standard fire caulking may be used to fill the annular space around non-combustible penetrations, such as steel gas pipes, copper plumbing, etc.

Small combustible service penetrations, such as ABS or PVC pipe, PEX waterlines, electrical wire, etc., must be sealed with an intumescent fire caulking which expands to seal the penetration when the pipe burns or melts away.

Larger combustible penetrations may exceed the size limitations of fire caulking products and an approved fire stop device such as a collar / donut must be used.

Access Panels

Where building services contain shut offs or valves that require access, such as hose bibs, and are located within the fire separation, fire rated access panels may be used. The access panel will have a self-closing device to ensure it does not stay open.

Alternatively, the joist space can be enclosed with a drywall box as described earlier. This approach permits the installation of a non-fire rated access panel.

Service Rooms

The fire separation in service rooms, such as the furnace room, must also have a complete fire separation which is smoke tight and properly fire stopped, unless a sprinkler system is installed as mentioned in the Plumbing section.

Adding or Enlarging Basement Windows

Adding or enlarging windows is common when adding a second unit to an existing basement. When adding or enlarging a basement window there are some important items to be aware of.

• Proposed windows must be installed to the size specified on the approved permit drawings.

• If located in a foundation wall, ensure the width of the window does not exceed 3’-11” for the foundation cut.

When a window is being widened, or a new window is being installed, a lintel is required over the opening in order to support the floor above. If the exterior of the house is brick or masonry an additional steel lintel may also be required. Refer to your approved permit drawings for the lintel locations and sizes.

In addition, the wood lintel supporting the floor shall extend a minimum of 3 ½” beyond the window opening on both sides. If a steel lintel is required for brick or stone veneer, it shall extend a minimum of 6” beyond the window opening on both sides.

Egress Window VS. Escape Window

The Building Code has specific egress requirements for secondary suites and for floor levels contain bedrooms. Depending on how the building and units in the building are configured either an ‘egress window’ or a ‘means of escape window’ is required. These types of windows are not the same and have many different requirements. Please carefully review your approved permit drawings and the details attached in your permit package to determine which is applicable to your project.

Modpro Egress Solutions are experts in both egress and escape windows and is dedicated to serving the Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, Brooklin, Oshawa, Courtice, Bowmanville, Peterborough, Cobourg and surrounding areas! Contact Modpro today if you have any questions about your egress window project, we'd be happy to help in any way.

Egress Window

Where your approved building permit specifies that an ‘egress window’ is required the window shall,

• be openable from the inside without the use of tools

• provide an unobstructed open portion having a minimum 0.35 m² (3.8 ft²) with no dimension less than 380 mm (15”).

When a sliding window is used these dimensions apply to the openable portion of the window

• Unless located in a basement, the window shall have a maximum sill height of 1 000 mm (3’-3”) above the floor. However, in a basement it is recommended that the sill of the egress window be no higher than 1.5m above the floor or built-in furniture below the window.

• Where the window opens into a window well, a clearance of not less than 550 mm (2111/16”) shall be provided in front of the window.

Means of Escape Window

Where your approved building permit specifies that a ‘means of escape window’ is required the window shall,

• be openable from the inside without the use of tools

• provide an unobstructed open portion having a minimum 0.38 m² (4.1 ft²) with no dimension less than 460 mm (18”).

• Have a sill height that does not exceed 900 mm (2’-11”) above the floor or fixed steps (including when located in a basement)

• Where the window opens into a window well, a clearance of not less than 1 000 mm (3’3”) shall be provided in front of the window.

• The sill height is not more than 1 000 mm (3’-3”) above or below adjacent ground level

A common deficiency when installing a means of escape window is the height from the floor of the basement to the sill of the window (maximum 2’-11”). When the sill is higher than this, stairs or a similar sturdy ledge is required to be installed. Also pay special attention to the window well size required (Note: your window type can affect this as well).

Insulation

When adding a second unit to an existing house the exterior walls may already be insulated however sometimes it is desired to either replace or upgrade the existing insulation. When replacing existing insulation, the R value of the new insulation shall meet or exceed the R value of the existing insulation (i.e. R12 can be replaced with R12 or greater).

Some existing foundation walls are insulated with a blanket wrap type of insulation which would be fastened directly to the foundation wall and may be full height or only near to the top of the foundation wall depending on the age of the building. If there is existing blanket wrap insulation which is proposed to remain, and new framing installed in front with additional insulation and vapour barrier is proposed, the vapour barrier on the blanket wrap must be cut to avoid a double vapour barrier which could trap moisture in the wall assembly.

Insulation

When adding a second unit to an existing house the exterior walls may already be insulated however sometimes it is desired to either replace or upgrade the existing insulation. When replacing existing insulation, the R value of the new insulation shall meet or exceed the R value of the existing insulation (i.e. R12 can be replaced with R12 or greater).

Some existing foundation walls are insulated with a blanket wrap type of insulation which would be fastened directly to the foundation wall and may be full height or only near to the top of the foundation wall depending on the age of the building. If there is existing blanket wrap insulation which is proposed to remain, and new framing installed in front with additional insulation and vapour barrier is proposed, the vapour barrier on the blanket wrap must be cut to avoid a double vapour barrier which could trap moisture in the wall assembly.

The vapour barrier must extend into the rim space to the underside of the floor sheathing. It does not have to be taped or caulked into the rim. Typically, a staple in each corner is sufficient.

Any existing or proposed foamed plastic insulation, such as rigid insulation boards, or spray foam insulation, must be protected (covered) from adjacent space in the building. Suitable protection coverings include drywall, plywood, or insulation that meets the performance standard CAN/ULC-S124 (if protecting with insulation, review with building inspector prior to installation to ensure the product will be acceptable).

Ready for Success

Now that you have reviewed the common questions and deficiencies for building inspections when adding a secondary suite, you are now equiped with the right knowledge to know what you are in for and plan your legal basement project tactfully!

Modpro Egress Solutions are the Egress & Basement window experts serving Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, Oshawa, Brooklin, Courtice, Bowmanville, Peterborough, Cobourg and surrounding areas.