Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Hurricane shelter

Gimme some simple, cost-effective ideas. No, Tom G....I'm thinkin' something a bit more than laying in a ditch.
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Scott's "Family Farm" thread included a slick storm shelter. Since we won't have a basement on our pond property to escape to, I'm fishin' for some other ideas.

theres hurricanes in IL?

something thats blatently missing on almost all CA homes, i'd vote for a root cellar type deal. dig out on the north side of yer structure, french drain the room, store yer goodies, have a place to ride out a.......uh.......hurricane.

Concrete slab, block walls, solid roof, with dirt heaped up around and over all but the (heavy steel, faced away from the woods) door side. 110 VAC wired in eventually to trickle charge battery lighting, radio. Doubles as a root cellar & powder magazine.

+1 Theo's idea. Have the door open inward so debris won't block you from opening the door IMO. That's the most cost effective way. Don't forget a vent for breathable air if it's pretty air tight.

Maybe buy a small overseas shipping container, mound dirt over sides/top and somehow change the doors?

I really liked Scott Kreibel's idea of just digging a hole and dropping in a pre-fab unit. I keep thinking about something like a precast concrete pipe or septic vault...along those lines, but I am unfamiliar with all of the options and how one might "seal it up, including a door".

Brettski:

The pre-fab unit would be the way to go if you could get the door figured out. But, you are experienced with concrete forms now, so a little bit of digging, some forms and you're off to the races! After all, what will you do after the garage apartment is done?

One thing to remember is that under ground could mean under water!

I once heard an idea about having the cheapest pool and pool company come out and build a pool. You have to figure out what your comfortable with as far as roof structure but, you will have runnning water, electricity via the light in the "deep" end and you have drainage for going "potty". I'll have to look the article back of for roof structure ideas.

That'd have to be one hellofa storm before I'd hide in the septic vault.

And you though my propane toilet was a stupid idea.

If it opens in, the hinges can be removed from the inside if necessary, say, in case the frame got warped somehow.

Oh, BTW, I predict Brettski will end up with something rivalling my Dad's description of Germany's Siegfried Line bunkers:

"The roofs were 36" steel I-beams set side-to-side, filled full of concrete."

I don't put much faith in the roof of that bus! I'm guessing .040" 5052 H-32 aluminum.

Brett,laying in the ditch is for tornadoes.And Id think twice about underground.Theres an awful lot of rainfall in a hurricane.Perhaps a shipping container that was anchored down.Or maybe a helecopter for a fast getaway.OR,maybe just get the deathstar to beam you out.

if that was aluminum, I bet it would be in a different type of junk yard

Brettski, check with a precast concrete business in your area, they may make something that is for suitable for a tornado shelter. The place my wife works at they make concrete septic tanks. Their tornado shelters are basically a concrete septic tank with a doorway cut into the side of it. Basically you set it into a hillside near the house. IIRC cost was about a $1000.00

That might depend on what the scrap market was when they buried it! I know that the Fed Ex/UPS/Cintas/Aramark etc. trucks are made from aluminum. Older ones are .125" below the rubrail, .100 above. Today they are .100" below, .080" above. Either .040", .030" aluminum or Kemlite roofs.