A plain-English guide to legal secondary suites in Calgary
Egress, fire separation, sound, ventilation. What the City actually checks for, and the order we tackle it in.
Calgary's secondary suite rules were rewritten in 2018 and again in 2023. The current version is, by national standards, friendly. But the words in the bulletin are dense and the order of operations is unintuitive. This is the order we run the work in, after thirty-some legal suites.
Egress comes first. A bedroom window that meets 0.35 m² minimum opening with no dimension under 380 mm. If the existing window does not, we cut the foundation. There is no creative way around this.
Fire separation is next. A 45-minute assembly between the suite and the upstairs unit. We use Type X drywall on resilient channels and seal every penetration with rated firestop. The City inspector will check every can light.
Ventilation is third. Each suite needs its own HRV with a fresh-air rate calibrated to the suite's floor area. We pipe it independent of the upstairs system. This is where we see most retrofit suites fail inspection.
Sound is not code but it is the difference between a tenant who renews and one who does not. We use mineral-wool batts, double drywall, and acoustic sealant at every plate. The cost is trivial. The peace is not.
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