Adding a storm shelter

[QRTRHRS]

Although my home has a crawl space, there is an eight foot deep roughly 6x10x8 foot deep concrete block with poured floor shelter. to retreat to. I enlarged the double 2x4 T&G entry door to about 3x4 feet with a hasp on the outside that I put a clip on to prevent the hasp from locking. Inside are two sliding bolts.

Being the entry to the crawl space, there is a 2x8 "gang" plank to the crawl space. That gang plank offers some overhead protection. I have a sort of spiral staircase made from pallets to get to the bottom. We also have places to confine our pets if at all possible. The ceiling is just the joist/flooring to the home. We keep hard hats with chin straps handy.

On occasion, I vacuum the cobwebs to keep the spiders down to a dull roar.

I would agree that an inside shelter is the way to go but what we have is better than nothing. We do not get the severe weather in my area that often though a Cat 2 did happen about 2 miles away awhile back.

We are able to somewhat hear the tornado sirens, in bad weather we are pretty much relying the grace of God.

 

[lman]

I'll stick with my basement. If you can bury a storm shelter, why can't you have a basement?

 

[QRTRHRS]

I suppose that you could call it hard pan? My ground is what I would call clay/sandstone. I don't know if the builder/customer did not want to bring in an excavtor with a hammer on it? Having dug in fence posts with an electric jackhammer with three foot points as well as dug down the driveway area with a 580 Case, I can attest to the ground being hard.

 

[Oaktree]

I suppose that you could call it hard pan? My ground is what I would call clay/sandstone. I don't know if the builder/customer did not want to bring in an excavtor with a hammer on it? Having dug in fence posts with an electric jackhammer with three foot points as well as dug down the driveway area with a 580 Case, I can attest to the ground being hard.

Never really thought of that. Here the soil is rocky, but not hard, certainly not like you describe.
In parts of the country where it doesn't get cold enough so the frost line is very deep I'm sure it's a lot cheaper to just do a slab.

 

[QRTRHRS]

Anyway, those steel shelters that you bolt together intrigue me. I forget the company that sends me info on them but they offer a variety of sizes. My home's garage was closed off by the precious owner. We have thought about putting one in there bolted to the concrete slab.

 

[bdhsfz6]

It's not quite the same but this thread reminds me of the Cuban missile crisis of the 1960's. Many folks in the town where I grew up installed radiation proof underground bomb shelters. My mother wanted one but my father was more pragmatic. "You can't live in one forever. If there's a nuclear war, there won't be much left to come out to."

The same philosophy doesn't apply to tornadoes, since they are relatively short lived and fairly localized. The idea of having a safe place to go is the same though and the construction methods were much the same as being discussed here.

 

[QRTRHRS]

Duck and Cover

 

[3Ts]

When you are planning your storm shelter, keep in mind how you're going to get into it during a storm - ESPECIALLY if you have elderly people in your house that have limited mobility. We are in our 70's and have had mobility issues in the past. We have a large master walk-in closet we turned into a storm shelter.

 

[RSKY]

I have rejected ever plan I can come up with for a storm shelter. I have finally written down some criteria for what features it must have.

1) Easy to access. Won't do anybody any good if you can't get in it when a tornado is coming.
2) Seat 4 adults comfortable or 8 crammed in. We have grands staying with us all the time.
3) Sleep 2 comfortable or 4 in a pinch. Tornados sometimes strike after midnight.
4) Able to get out after storm. Slightly claustrophobic anyway, the idea of not getting out scares me.
5) Cheap. The big one.

All the plans I come up with usually fall apart when I get to #5.

RSKY

 

[3Ts]

Also consider putting in a wired internet port and power. That way, with cameras outside you can see what is going on and keep in touch with the rest of the world - until the storm takes out your internet router.

We use an inflatable bed in our storm shelter and keep it on a shelf in the shelter when not in use. Also have chairs to sit on. Standing gets old real quick. And keeping snacks and water have already been mentioned.

 

[gsganzer]

I dug my hole yesterday. Approximately 9.5'L x 7.5'W x 5' deep. I need to get a load of gravel delivered so I can line the bottom with gravel. The installation instructions called for a hole 52" deep, then backfill and compact with 6" of gravel for drainage, leaving a finished depth of 46". However, while digging in my highly expansive black clay soil, I found the clay ran to a depth of 60" with a more stable soil below. I'll probably have 5 yards of 1" utility stone delivered (I can use any left over elsewhere). I have some 1/2" minus in a small pile that I can mix with it to really lock it tight and still have good drainage below the shelter.

 

[gsganzer]

They delivered and set the storm shelter today. 15,000lbs! It took about 45 minutes, from the time he pulled in the drive, dropped the outriggers, hoisted the shelter, set it in the hole, lifted the outriggers and was gone.

I really like it. It's pretty roomy inside, roomier then you'd think. I'll probably build a bench to sit on or put a couple of fold up chairs in there.

I'll also put in a solar light. The sloped door side faces south and there's a hole for conduit on the right side. I'll fasten a solar panel on the slope and route it to an inside ammo can battery box that will house a 12v deer feeder battery, 12VDC light and hand switch that you can reach when you open the door.

 

[grsthegreat]

Man…theres just no way to get me into that thing. Im too claustrophobic.

you would think the door would open in incase debris block it.

 

[airbiscuit]

You could use some reflective paint inside. For some reason, I thought you could remove the hinges from the inside if you needed to. In any case,after the storm, first responders usually check for people needing help. Now, you have to start putting together your emergency supplies.

 

[gsganzer]

You could use some reflective paint inside. For some reason, I thought you could remove the hinges from the inside if you needed to. In any case,after the storm, first responders usually check for people needing help. Now, you have to start putting together your emergency supplies.

I thought you could remove the hinges too and make the door open inward, but that's not the case. The door locking mechanism is removable from the inside, so you can't get locked in. Sort of like the emergency escape for car trunks.

The photo makes it look small, but it's fairly large. I'm 5'- 11" and I can stand up with a few inches to spare and you could probably fit 5-7 people.

 

[airbiscuit]

I hope you never have to use it. I'll be happy for you if you do have to use it.

PS: I might include a small bottle of good bourbon, to have a shot after the storm passes .

 

[grsthegreat]

I thought you could remove the hinges too and make the door open inward, but that's not the case. The door locking mechanism is removable from the inside, so you can't get locked in. Sort of like the emergency escape for car trunks.

The photo makes it look small, but it's fairly large. I'm 5'- 11" and I can stand up with a few inches to spare and you could probably fit 5-7 people.

im thinking about debris covering door, so you cant push it out.

 

[airbiscuit]

That's what first responders are for, but you're still alive to rescue.

That said, I'm surprised they don't cut out the center of the outward swinging door and put in a smaller inward swinging door.

 

[MossRoad]

Man…theres just no way to get me into that thing. Im too claustrophobic.

you would think the door would open in incase debris block it.

 

[MossRoad]

im thinking about debris covering door, so you cant push it out.

Put a jack inside for just in case.