Storm shelter

[dragonlaurel]

This looks easy and could be built up against a hillside.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Do-It-Yourself/Earthbag-Building-Garden-Shed.aspx

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Green-Homes/1982-03-01/Earth-Sheltered-Home.aspx

Or bury a culvert pipe. Let us know what you come up with.

 

[~gd]

I started digging a storm/root cellar last fall. My plan was to pour a small slab and line the walls with cinder blocks. The dirt i dig out will be bermed up all four sides. This concrete box will be just big enough for me to lay down or sit yoga styled. This hole i started is under my house which, is up on blocks. I plan to cut a trap door in the guest bedroom, so i can dive in quickly. I guess i better get back to work on it. These storms arent getting any smaller.

If you do it like you said make sure that someone knows to look there. Until you have seen it it is impossible to picture what a twister will do. We had a man and wife when the storm came he tried to outrun it in his big old truck she went into the hidey hole. He got banged up bad and it was 4 days before he could tell people his wife was in the hole took 2 more days to find her and dig her out of the ruins of her house. Physically she was fine but her mind is going to take a lot of work to get her sane IF they can.

 

[i_am2bz]

Or bury a culvert pipe. Let us know what you come up with.

I've thought about doing this...it seems the simplest & cheapest solution, relatively speaking.

Anyone here ever done it?

 

[KevsFarm]

~gd makes a good point...If you can't get out of your darn storm shelter, thats a nightmare also....! With all the wreckage from a twister, you could very well be building yourself a tomb..!I'd want a very heavy wood door in my shelter with a chain saw ready to go inside with me...! Unless i'm covered up with steel, i can cut my way out...! I hope...

 

[curly_kate]

I am EXTREMELY claustrophobic, so that adds another wrinkle to this whole thing. The culvert pipe seems feasible, tho. As long as the end was open to the outside, I think I'd be able to manage. Some of the ideas my husband has come up with give me the willies just thinking about them! Thanks for all the suggestions!

Boogity - that was a doozy! 15 minutes of fury & then out.

 

[Farmfresh]

How about a little pre-fab number? Storm Shelters You could always use it in the off season as a nice little root cellar.

 

[sunsaver]

Yeah, i guess i'll probably put a side door on it, that opens inward, so i can open it and scream for help. They are calling for tonadoes here in the bayou state tomorrow/ today. I'm a big baby when it comes to storms.

 

[TanksHill]

I was just talking with my dh about that yesterday. I never understood why people had to run to their shelters. Now I get why you would not want it under your house. I think a separate root cellar/shelter is a great idea. Buried in a hillside somewhere.

g

 

[Denim Deb]

W/nothing around it that could land on it. (Hopefully)

 

[KevsFarm]

The NRC determined that a n_ke plant in southeastern kansas, wolf creek area is likely not to survive a direct tornado hit.The story was in this mornings msnbc news..Exactly why i would never live near one.