I would like to thank everyone who responded to my question about waterproofing plywood.Most of the responses i received to my question recommended that i not use plywood.Does anyone have any suggestions on how to build a small storm shelter at a modest price.I dont have a lot of money to spend on it but safety is my main concern so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

-- Michael T. Ford (tod_33@excite.com), August 26, 2001

Answers

most root cellars were the storm shelters also,, build one of those

-- stan (sopal@net-port.com), August 26, 2001.

A concrete septic tank with a door cut in it is a fairly cheap construction also.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), August 26, 2001.

Probably be a good idea to pump the septic tank before using.

-- Joe (CactusJoe001@AOL.com), August 26, 2001.

Hello Michael, We built ours with the field stone that is on our land. We slipped formed it just like Helen and Scott Nearing, Living The Good Life, did. Though the project was labor intensive, it was very economical costing us, just the concrete. Sincerely, Ernest

-- http://communities.msn.com/livingoffthelandintheozarks (espresso42@hotmail.com), August 27, 2001.

and make sure that you waterproof that sucker well. On the side of a hill where drainage passes the structure makes a lot of sense. I wonder if one of those ready built cargo structures would work; I saw that on an earlier thread, but don't remember who wrote it.

-- j.r. guerra (jrguerra@boultinghousesimpson.com), August 27, 2001.

We're having a new house built and the basement foundation will have a corner enclosed (6'x8' floor area) with a rough opening for a steel door. The basement contractor will also put a concrete cap on it. I'm thinking that 8 inches of rebar reinforced concrete below grade should offer excellent protection from storms, tornados, etc.

-- Steve in So. WI (alpine1@prodigy.net), August 28, 2001.

Try this link

http:\\http://www.fema.gov/mit/saferoom/

It's a start. There are some others. Post back if this isn't what you were after and I'll go plundering around...

J

-- j (jw_hsv@yahoo.com), August 29, 2001.

Try this link

http://www.fema.gov/mit/saferoom/

It's a start. There are some others. Post back if this isn't what you were after and I'll go plundering around...

J

-- j (jw_hsv@yahoo.com), August 29, 2001.

And try this one. Why build a shelter just to deal with a single threat?

http://members.aol.com/rafleet/shelter.htm

Remember - better living through blast protection !

J

-- j (jw_hsv@yahoo.com), August 29, 2001.

You might look into ferrocement. A few layers of chicken wire a little rebar and spray (someone is selling small sprayers for $220)or trowl on ferrocement (the right mix is very important). The shape is important in adding strength to a thin shell building. A square egg would not be very strong. Check out this site. http://www.ferrocement.net/archives/msg06679.html There is probably something on storm shelters there somewhere in archives or you could join their group and ask questions. Good luck and tell us what you end up using.

-- ed (edfrhes@aol.com), August 29, 2001.

ry this site, It might help. http://www.homestead.org/ferro.htm

-- ed (edfrhes@aol.com), August 30, 2001.

IF I DIDN`T HAVE A FAMILY I WOULDN`T BE AFRAID TO BURY AN OLD CHEST TYPE FREEZER TO WHERE THE DOOR IS ONLY 2-3 INCHES ABOVE GRADE ,AND HAVE THE DOOR OPENING TOWARDS THE EAST. I WOULD ALSO HAVE 2 VENTS IN THE LID AND MOST IMPORTANT BE PLACED AWAY FROM LARGE TREES . WE LIVE IN A NEW DOUBLE WIDE MOBILE HOME AND I DONT FEEL SAFE IN IT DURING BAD STORMS. IT`S NOT JUST TORNADOES THAT CONCERNS ME ALSO STRAIGHT LINE WINDS.IT`S MY PLAN THIS SPRINGTO BUILT A SMALL BLOCK CELLAR WITH A THICK REINFORCED CONCRETE CEILING THE LORD WILLING. THANKS GARY.

-- gary brightwell (gary4590@bellsouth.net), February 21, 2002.

THE EASYEST BEST AND SAFEST IS TO HAVE A HOLE DUG BY A BACKHOE THEN POP IN A CONCRETE WATER TANK SAY ABOUT 2000 GALLS FILL OVER WITH DIRT AND PUT STEEL DOOR IN TOP AND PRESTO TORNADO SHELTER COST APPROX $1000

-- ken higgins (kraken@dodo.com.au), April 21, 2002.