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Not really from Vienna |
My favorite nephew has moved to Lubbock and it appears he intends to stay there for the foreseeable future. I’m considering buying him and his newly minted bride a storm shelter. Do any of you folks have any experience with purchasing or building this type of thing, and would you be willing to make any suggestions? Thanks. | ||
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| Member |
Two home builders here mentions this and offers several options Prior to pouring a footer or foundation. We are in tornado Alley as well. Only 15% of the new home builders add a bunker, Safety, Situational Awareness and proficiency. Neck Ties, Hats and ammo brass, Never ,ever touch'em w/o asking first | |||
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I run trains! |
Popular option when I lived in SW Missouri was the underslab retrofit installed under the garage floor. Seemed to be a good option to get below grade. For some parts of Texas that would be tough given the bedrock, but around Lubbock it should be possible. Might take a look at those. Success always occurs in private, and failure in full view. Complacency sucks… | |||
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| Member |
If I lived in an area that was very prone to tornado activity I would definitely have one . I don't know very much about them but I would sure educate myself on what's best for the money | |||
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Legalize the Constitution |
Sounds like storm cellars have evolved considerably since I was a boy. I recall double wooden doors that swung open leading to a dark, shelf-lined (for canning jars), creepy place that made you hope that the tornado never materialized and the storm would blow over quickly. Our house in Wyoming has a basement. _______________________________________________________ despite them | |||
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Member |
Around here if you don’t have a basement, it seems a steel box mounted in The concrete garage floor is the alternative. ----------------------------------------- Roll Tide! Glock Certified Armorer NRA Certified Firearms Instructor | |||
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Optimistic Cynic |
How thick are these concrete slabs? It doesn't seem entirely impossible that a tornado could pick up the whole thing and send it flying. A typical garage floor would certainly give it plenty of area to work with. | |||
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| As Extraordinary as Everyone Else  |
One of my sisters lives near Austin and the house they bought has a concrete underground shelter with a slanted steel door. It’s basically a 1500 gallon septic tank with a hatch. They’ve used it twice since they moved in. The ground is mostly limestone so it probably took an excavator to dig through it. ------------------ Eddie Our Founding Fathers were men who understood that the right thing is not necessarily the written thing. -kkina | |||
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| Member |
Cast-in-Place or Prefabricated Reinforced Concrete, period! Any doors should be Dade County, FL Hurricane rated. FEMA.gov use to have some pretty good guidelines, but I haven't been on their site in some time. Don't forget "proper" ventilation and drainage too. This would be where I'd start anyway. ---------- “Nobody can ever take your integrity away from you. Only you can give up your integrity.” H. Norman Schwarzkopf | |||
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| Victim of Life's Circumstances  |
Southern Indiana here. Our plan is in the basement under the stairwell. ________________________ God spelled backwards is dog | |||
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| Member |
I'm 72 and grew up in Missouri. I remember those well. My great aunt and uncle had one on their property about 30 miles outside the city, and I saw others in those days. They weren't uncommon. My own shelter in the city is my full basement with 12-inch thick poured-concrete walls. I feel safe down there, though I have yet to actually use it for tornado sheltering. I usually watch the live weather reports when there is tornado activity. They have gotten very good at tracking the storms. Did not have to go down to the basement even with the recent tornado; it passed just two or three miles to the north of me and I watched the doings on radar. | |||
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Member |
Worth a watch. "Fixed fortifications are monuments to mans stupidity" - George S. Patton | |||
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| Like a party in your pants  |
Having lived in the Chicago area all my life I have never lived anyplace that did not have a basement. My house was built in 1936 and is triple brick construction, the basement is aged concrete that is VERY hard. The house was swiped by a twister in the early 70"s. That Twister took several huge trees including a very old Maple with a 4' diameter just 50' from the house. The wind damaged my chimney, that was it. In 74 years I don't ever remember heading for the basement for shelter, but its always comforting to know you have a place to go. I can't imagine living in a Tornado area and not having a place to take shelter. | |||
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| Member |
My situation in St. Louis is very similar, as I mentioned to TMats above. My brick house was built in about 1940, and those concrete walls in the basement are very solid and hard. Like you, I've never actually gone down there to dodge a tornado, but it's good to know I can. | |||
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Truth Seeker |
Maybe product of this company: https://www.usstormshelters.com/ I know when I used to drive a lot from Austin up and past Lampasses, I always saw a company that made similar tornado shelters. Pretty simple concrete enclosure with a steel foot you have buried in the ground. I am trying to find that company. What I linked looked like what they had on display, but not sure if that is them. NRA Benefactor Life Member | |||
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| Not really from Vienna |
^^^that’s what I’m looking for! | |||
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Drill Here, Drill Now |
I would recommend learning the soil type before purchasing that. I haven't personally excavated in Lubbock City limits, but over the years I have had oil and gas crews excavate from Midland all the way up into the panhandle. Some areas are infamous for their Caliche "soil" (ie Hardened carbonate deposit) which can reach strengths pretty close to concrete (e.g. up to 3000 psi compressive strength). On one project, I was called every 4-letter word known to man when I made a crew excavate in it with tracked excavators (i.e. Equipment that was over 100 hp). Progress was painstakingly slow even after switching over from buckets to jackhammers. Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity DISCLAIMER: These are the author's own personal views and do not represent the views of the author's employer. | |||
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| Not really from Vienna |
It appears the company that manufactures and sells these also handles delivery and installation, but you make a valid point. | |||
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| Member |
If you meander through Y.T., There are people burying shipping containers ( all or partially). But most of them are for safety during the actual event. If your house does get totaled you still have to find a place to live. Safety, Situational Awareness and proficiency. Neck Ties, Hats and ammo brass, Never ,ever touch'em w/o asking first | |||
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| Ammoholic |
Same is true of the shelters linked. The other side of it is that if your house gets destroyed and your shelter works you are still alive to find another place to live. | |||
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