Simply put YES! Reinforced concrete or steel with the proper certification.

Need proof, checkout this tornado map Link. Basically, if you are east of the Rockies and do not live in New England, then you should have some type of storm shelter.

Good idea. If possible, build it to double as a family safe.

Just for the record when I say bolted into the concrete I don’t mean like you would bolt your gun safe down. The reputable shelters and installers BOLT THEM / ATTACH THEM basically permanently to the garage. I mean a direct hit from an F5 is pretty much a “Kobiashi Maru” moment but anything short of that the reputable above ground ones will save your ass. And like was said can be used for other uses as long as you can squeeze in the necessary family members in an emergency.

I grew up with basements and not having one in the South where the weather is MUCH more active left a mark on me. I should have put a shelter in if just for my sanity.

Happy to have a nice basement again.

As an aside, have any of you here in the Midwest seen a bunch of new gymnasiums or auditoriums being constructed at area schools?

These are tornado shelters in disguise. The feds were granting money to have these erected and many schools took advantage of the opportunity.

My youngest is finishing up her last year of preschool in a building that is probably 8 years old. It too has two specific rooms within the structure constructed to FEMA standards. No more going into the hallway and putting a book over your head.

I would feel better if It was in the center of the house, not the garage. We had a fema approved shelter built in one of the closets In The guest bedroom in the middle of the house. It’s anchored to the foundation and has rebar on all side and on top.

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Originally posted by smschulz:
I wouldn't mind one ~ it would make a nice gun room.

Game day decision between letting the wife and kids in and taking guns out!!

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Is a storm shelter a good idea?

[Jake from State Farm impression} Well, people used to have bomb shelters in their houses, and a tornado is a much more likely occurrence than being bombed, and that area seems to see more than its share of tornadoes, so …

It can't hurt. But it really shouldn't be an above-ground structure that can blow down or collapse on top of you to delay or prevent rescue, nor should it be located under one if possible.

No basement here so I put a trap door in to access the crawl space. I dug that space a little deeper so we could sit up comfortably and shored up the floor joists with 4x4's around us. Added an outlet and lights, hoping the generator survives.

Most worried about trees and tree parts so yeah, extraction tools, fire extinguisher and, worst case, a loud whistle.

We used to only have a hall closet for protection, it fits one. So many horrible times over the years, the hidey hole helps our peace of mind immensely.

Several years ago after seeing news photos of a house hit by a tornado that took everything (no carpet, no tile, only 1 pipe sticking up on the slab) we put in an underground shelter in our garage. 3'W X 7'L X 5'deep, supposed to seat 8. You would park your car over it and it had a solid steel door that you slid open and entered at the rear underneath your car. Had a come-a-long attached where you could crank open the door if the your car had shifted on the door. GPS co-ordinates registered with the county emergency management so in case of a tornado, they would come looking for you. Company that built it was Flat Safe out of Oklahoma City. Back then FEMA paid half the cost.

Here in the Midwest it seemed every farm house had a potato/storm/bomb shelter. Good idea then. Good idea now.

quote:

Originally posted by Ripley:
No basement here so I put a trap door in to access the crawl space. I dug that space a little deeper so we could sit up comfortably and shored up the floor joists with 4x4's around us. Added an outlet and lights, hoping the generator survives.

Most worried about trees and tree parts so yeah, extraction tools, fire extinguisher and, worst case, a loud whistle.

We used to only have a hall closet for protection, it fits one. So many horrible times over the years, the hidey hole helps our peace of mind immensely.

Several years ago we built a home for a Mobil executive that was on the top of a small mountain. He bought the land because he wanted to put up a HAM radio but that’s another story.

The ground was all rock and we had to blast to put a crawl space in. We then installed a hatch in the master bedroom closet to gain access to the space below. About a year after we finished we had a dirachio storm come through with winds over 100 mph. They later told be they though the house would get blown away so I to the crawl space they went and prayed...When the storm was over they came up none the worst...

We built our home in 2006, and back then the cost of doing above ground shelter (as seen in these prior pics) was about 40-50% higher than in ground. We looked at putting the in ground deal in the carport, but opted not to. What if that night my wife pulled too far forward, or not far enough, etc? Instead, we installed it in the area below where the stairway closet wound be, and it worked out great. Sliding entry, holds 8 folks if needed, and no need to go outside to get to it if raining. Great peace of mind when the sirens start up here in MS....

Before you choose, do an internet photo search for of the 1974 Xenia OH. tornado. You will see an entire subdivision scrubbed off down to the slabs. The rest of the city was devastated as well. I was in the outskirts of that and saw wind driven golf ball sized hail go across a school parking lot that sounded like anti aircraft fire and left not a single piece of vehicle glass intact.
If I was to own a home again in tornado country, I would do a "family safe" type shelter.

1974??????
I have pictures from my buddies community from last Thursday that are devastating. He lives in Newnan.

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Originally posted by a1abdj:

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While these might be cheap, convenient and somewhat effective.

I would want more than that.

The reputable manufacturers have them certified. There are simply parts of our country where a buried shelter is not possible, and even if it is, may be difficult to access. These above ground units are as simple as "walking into a closet" and shutting the door behind you.

Hear me out...

Just build the whole damn house that sturdy.

Boom! Problem solved.

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Originally posted by 46and2:

quote:

Originally posted by a1abdj:

quote:

While these might be cheap, convenient and somewhat effective.

I would want more than that.

The reputable manufacturers have them certified. There are simply parts of our country where a buried shelter is not possible, and even if it is, may be difficult to access. These above ground units are as simple as "walking into a closet" and shutting the door behind you.

Hear me out...

Just build the whole damn house that sturdy.

Boom! Problem solved.

That’s called insulated concrete form construction (ICF) and is basically that.

I'm down. Just build me a bigass box like that, say 50ft cubed. I'll sort out the rest on the inside myself.

Now I just need tornado-proof windows.

quote:

Now I just need tornado-proof windows.

Cameras. Cheap 65 inch flatscreens.

Problem solved. Think outside of the ...... errrr I guess inside the box.

We built a strong room addition to our house here in hurricane country. (We have learned that shelter in place is wise for us). It doubles as a closet/store room during normal times. Based on an architect's design, the walls are 2"x6" studs with 5/8" threaded rod running from the double top plate to j blots set in the concrete foundation in each stud bay. Engineered trusses matching the existing house sit on top, and there is 3/4" plywood epoxied and screwed on the top and bottom cords of the trusses, with 2"x6" blocking between the trusses at each joint. There is a lot of steel holding the trusses down to the top plates and studs. The interior walls and ceiling are likewise epoxied and screwed to the studs and bottom chords, then covered with drywall. Since there are no windows, we ran A/C ducting and returns to the room as a defense against mildew. There is power and lights to the room and we have an emergency generator. There is a Browning vault door leading into the room from the main house, and a steel commercial door with three Katy Bars on the door leading outdoors. It is also a great place to store things of value. The only thing I might have done to make the design stronger would be to clad the walls with metal lath and portland cement, but I just didn't think it was necessary. A couple of chairs and air mattresses and snacks make it as comfortable as possible if we have to be in there for a while. We always unlock the vault door and leave it open when there are hurricane or severe thunderstorm warnings in our area. I think you could retrofit an existing room with much of the reinforcement that is in there. The rest of our house is retrofitted with ballistic windows on the 2nd floor, storm shutters, reinforcing steel, and the plywood roof sheathing is epoxied to the top chord of the trusses from the inside of the attic. All of this pretty much makes the house of one piece. We have been through 135 mph winds in two hurricanes and lesser winds of a number of lesser hurricanes and the place does not creak. I realize a big tornado could tear things up but I think we are safe from most hazards.

Have you ever thought what it would be like to live there when everything around you is gone. There are many areas of the the Gulf Coast that have one or two houses and nothing but slabs surrounding them. This is twenty years after the storm.