I have read Is it necessary to put a special egress window in a basement bedroom if there's already a window above ground. My situation is similar but different.
My basement has a furnace, a work bench, a ping pong table, a washer, and a dryer. That's it. There are no plans to create a bedroom down there, ever.
There are two small windows that let a bit of outdoor light in. Each one has a window well and a plastic well cover.
Water comes in through the bottom of the two windows in a heavy rain. We tried caulking, and that solved the problem initially, but after a couple months they started leaking again. Maybe because of the change of season (late summer giving way to fall and early winter).
I am thinking about perhaps blocking off those windows in some permanent way. Would that create a safety problem?
Best Answer
From a code perspective, I think you are OK so long as the square footage of the basement is less than 200 and there is adequate ventilation.
I personally believe there is a safety concern though, but minor and something you could mitigate with ensuring smoke detectors are plentiful and fire extinguishers are readily available, but this is something people should already have.
In your case, my suggestion would be to correct the water penetration which is either poor water sealing or poor drainage in the window well.