Bunkers are one of those subjects that stir up controversy in the prepping community. Some people like them and some don’t. That’s not even counting those who would like to have a bunker, but just can’t afford it. Personally, I’ve gone back and forth through the years, depending on the threats at hand.
Originally the concept of bunkers came out of a need to protect both people and material from artillery back in World War I. That need was quickly overshadowed by a greater threat… the airplane.
As the airplane came into prominence in the early days of World War II, bunkers became more prolific. The house I grew up in, just across the river from New York City, had such a bomb shelter that was added to the home during that time, as a protection against the potential of German bombers.
As World War II came to a close, the Cold War began, with the nuclear race continuing. The threat of thermonuclear war that hung over the world for over four decades led to the construction of numerous bunkers, mostly intended to be used as fallout shelters.
But with the end of the Cold War, did the need for those bunkers go away?
Why You Should Have a Bunker
When most preppers talk about bunkers today, it seems that they’re intending to use their bunkers to escape from social unrest. While there may be some validity to that viewpoint, my big concern is that attackers can just attach a hose from the tailpipe to smoke out or kill anyone who is hiding in there.
But social unrest isn’t the only danger we’re facing today, there are plenty of other dangers in the world. The risk of nuclear war hasn’t disappeared, especially with China building up their nuclear arsenal, Russia threatening to use nukes against anyone who gets in the way of their plans and countries like North Korea and Iran who are trying to become nuclear powers. Bunkers are also useful protection against tornadoes and some other natural disasters.
Of course, for any bunker to work at all, it has to be built right. As a community, preppers have moved away from using shipping containers for bunkers, having come to the realization that they aren’t strong enough to support the weight of the backfill.
One idea that has been floated to replace those shipping containers is precast concrete culverts; but finding culverts that allow enough space to stand up in is almost impossible, making that a difficult choice at best. There has to be a better answer.
There are companies who build prefab underground bunkers for those with the money to buy them. But those units run roughly $50,000 and up.
There’s a luxury underground bunker which has been for sale in Las Vegas, which is made to look like an entire house, with patio, when you’re in it. That one runs over a million dollars.
Then there are the luxury bunkers made in missile silos; but those are options for the wealthy, not for you and I.
Build an Underground House
One way to get around the whole bunker issue is to just build an underground house. Underground houses are typically built into a hillside and are made out of concrete or a combination of concrete and cinder block.
Related: 10 Cheap Bunkers You Can Make On Your Property
The front side of the house is exposed, but the roof and sides are covered by the hill, providing excellent insulation, as well as protection from attack.
With a little bit of work on the front side, making some concrete fighting positions, such a home could become a veritable fortress.
Cinder Block Bunker
Of course, that doesn’t mean that everyone who wants a bunker wants to live in an underground house. Still, we can learn from the construction techniques used to build them.
Concrete blocks or “cinder blocks” will support the weight of the backfill, making them a good building material to use.
The problem then becomes the roof, which can’t be made of cinder blocks.
I’ve spent a considerable amount of time in Mexico, where homes are made of cinder block and concrete. To pour the ceiling or second story floor, they build a temporary support system out of used 2”x 4”s.
This supports either plywood or corrugated tin, allowing the floor to be poured out of concrete, with standard remesh to strengthen it. Once the concrete is set, the 2”x 4”s supports and plywood are removed.
The German Defense of Normandy
Once the Germans overran France, they started preparing the northern beaches for an invasion, expecting the British to attack.
This preparation consisted of creating obstacles, along with a series of bunkers that overlooked the beach from the bluffs above.
Those bunkers were strongpoints for weapons systems, including both cannon and machine guns. The big battle problem for invading the Normandy beaches was dealing with those bunkers.
Related: 5 Survival Foods Made By Soldiers During WW2 On The Normandy Front
While I don’t expect anyone to build a series of bunkers, we can learn something from the German’s efforts. That is, a fighting bunker is much more effective for defending ourselves than just a bunker to hide in. Adding a concrete pillbox to the top of our bunkers can make them more or less invincible, without the use of explosives.
Use Underground Storage Tanks
Some of the best prefabricated underground bunkers are made in the shape of underground storage tanks.
There’s a reason for that; round structures are some of the strongest structures you can buy.
Compared to the boxy shape of a shipping container, a round tank may not make as efficient use of space, but it can withstand much more weight being piled on top of it.
It is possible to find used underground storage tanks at times; usually leftovers from some industrial operation. Careful cleaning would be required to remove any chemical residue in the tanks.
But once the tank is cleaned out, it is ready to be finished and turned into a living space. It is also possible to buy new tanks, even new plastic tanks that are designed to be buried underground.
Bury a Bus
Another construction option to consider is burying a bus or even burying a number of busses.
A man outside Toronto has build a bunker complex by burying 42 school busses, connecting them together and turning them into rooms for various different purposes.
The complex is buried 4 meters underground and intended for use as a fallout shelter.
People make fun of school busses but they are much stronger than we realize. The curved roof may take some of the room away inside, but at the same time it provides a lot of strength.
That curve, like the Roman arch, spreads the weight over the entire surface, reducing the load over any one portion of the roof, so that it can support the weight.
Use Terrain to Your Advantage
If you live in an area which is hilly, be sure to use the terrain to your advantage.
As I mentioned earlier, a bunker can be built into the side of a hill, like an underground home.
Related: How Much Does a Nuclear Bunker Cost?
Hilly terrain also allows you to do other things, like hiding your entrance and building a World War II Normandy style bunker for maximum protection.
But the best thing you can do with that terrain is make it difficult to approach your bunker; that can end up being the best protection of all.
Tunnel Far
One of the more foolish things I see done with underground bunkers is having an escape tunnel that’s only 50 feet from the main entrance.
All that does is make it so that attackers can reach you from either entrance, at the same time.
For an escape tunnel to be effective, it needs to be 100 or 200 feet long, better yet, make it even longer. That might sound like overkill, but the idea is to make it so that they can’t get to you.
Russia used to have a series of bunkers along their border with China. They may even still be there. The bunkers are topped with tank turrets, taking off of decommissioned tanks. That was the only part of the bunker exposed, with the rest of the position well hidden underground.
A tunnel led out from the main part of the bunker, under the hill the bunker was built into and coming out the other side to an underground parking garage large enough for an armored personnel carrier to sit in. Now that’s an escape tunnel!
How About a Surveillance System?
If you can’t build an above-ground pillbox to defend your bunker, than at least provide yourself with some sort of outside surveillance system that’s hidden away where attackers can’t find it. If you pop the hatch open to go outside, without knowing that it’s clear to come out, you could just be putting yourself in someone’s crosshairs.
It wouldn’t take much for a sniper to have their scope trained on that hatch, just waiting for a head to pop through it.
Granted, a surveillance system may not work well against a sniper that’s hidden 300 yards away; but it would catch anyone close by who is checking out your bunker. That’s enough to put the effort into the system and check the cameras on a regular basis.
Emergency Air
Regardless of how you build your bunker, keep in mind that you’ve got to have some sort of emergency air supply. That must include air or at least oxygen, some means of scrubbing the air, a snorkel for getting outside air, with a blower and a filter on that snorkel system.
There are two main concerns I want to mention here. First, the aforementioned problem with someone attaching a hose from a vehicle’s exhaust and killing everyone inside.
The second is the problem with contaminated air from a nuclear explosion, fire or chemical spill. In any of those cases, you won’t be able to count on outside air to keep you going.
That’s when you’re going to need some sort of emergency system, providing you with oxygen and some means of removing excess carbon dioxide and smoke from the air.
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Good article
But to little to late for this article.
Plus the cost to have that done today, is way past even my pay.
Yes something smaller, okay, but how small. I would need a 20x20x10. That might be as small as I would want to build, if I was going to build one.
I still think that, that would be to small. I look at all that I would want to place in there and now half of the bunker is full, so now I have a 10x10x10 room that I will stay in until it’s safe to come out.
Okay: Air, Sewer Water, Trash, Bathing, Mold, Heat.
That is just some of the things, I would have to contend with if I was to build a bunker with the money I have
Plus, really can’t call it a bunker anyway.
Maybe call it a structure under ground but not a bunker at all.
Bunker would cost, What a 100,00.00 or more for a real some what bunker.
To me nice to have, but not for this guy.
A cellar or a storm shelter is not considered a bunker…
It was fun to read, but way out of my cost…
Thank you…
red ant: One step at a time. We’re working on a water storage pit. 2 months ago, two pits were dug (backhoe), one for the water, 10X10x8, and an inground compost pit that can be converted to a methane digester. I’ve been collecting 2x4s at a few dollars each (used ones are usually free), and yesterday a pile of 4x4s for braces to put in a concrete ceiling (see the article). I have to attend a chop-and-stuff at the VA next week, so sheets of plywood and cement can wait. Plywood (heavy chipboard) is five bucks each, but if I take the stack, 3 each. 2x4s are 2 bucks each, 8 feet. We have a vein of pure sand next to the pits, and caliche that can be burned for lime. If the weather cooperates, of course. We’re having a dry winter; no rain, no burning. niio
Red
That’s nice. I wish I could build one just to put preps in for storage.
It would be good if you had family or friends to pitch in on the cost.
plus just sold and old farm house that I could have done that there but it was not be a good place, because it had a large hill side and leach water would fill up anything that I put in the ground. good leach water but could not control the flow after it rained storm..
But would be nice.
red ant: If you can’t go in, you go up. Cover with a few yards of dirt an you have a new home. See what they do for inground homes. niio
Hi nice read and info.. The bunker/storeage areas are of an interest to me. Can someone tell me about the methane trap?
I had mentally considered the roof exactly as mentioned. I am in forgiving area but are there legalities?
It wont take me long to build. But I am sure this ant will want to expand. I have a cement foundry near me. Will seek partly broken pieces.. Saving my steel to tie together.
The air scrubber I guess is my biggest concern.. I beleve cement keeps you cooler in summer and ready a small dehumidifier for winter/rainstorms. In a scenario which most everything is wiped out .. a livable situation.
I’m interested in your inground compost pit and how to convert it to a methane digester.
I’d like to know if you can recapture the methane for home use?
BearMeetsWereWolf: Wild and hairy, friend 🙂 I’m Papa Bear and Mom’s family were supposed to be shon people, shongilii were werewolves LOL. God knows the women act like it.
OK, this is based on Vietnamese methane digesters. The digester is a compost pit, a concrete, sealed basement. One inlet is a toilet with a stand pipe that reaches close to the bottom. Animal manure also goes in there, as does plant wastes, and any food wastes the animals won’t eat. These pits are made with concrete and sealed with a mix of clay-concrete. I have no clue how that holds up for them, but it works. Clay must never freeze or dry. The floor above is reinforced sealed concrete, and small livestock are housed there.
The outlet comes up from the bottom at about two feet or so, into a series of 3 ponds used to raise duckweed for livestock feed. At this point, the effluent is too rich to raise rice or vegetables. Duckweed thrives in the ponds (about 2 meters by 3-4). The gas line runs from near the ceiling, down to close to the bottom (or midway if you prefer) then out. The weight of the water helps keep it sealed. That goes to an acid-proof ‘balloon’ with a belt that helps regulate gas flow. From there, to a cast iron burner and gas lanterns.
When finished, our compost pit will be a meter by 2.5, by 2 deep. It and the water catchment basin (3 meters by 3 and 2 deep) will have a concrete cap, sealed, to look like and use as a patio. Until things change, gray water will go into the compost and drained as needed for irrigation. It has to have an opening for now to dump in yard wastes and manure. Because of redworms, it needs oxygen. Both pits face north on a steep slope. niio
After watching the Russian-Ukraine previous article comments de-evolve into snark and arguments, I am standing off from this thread.
How do you think you’ll do when real trouble comes to your doorstep, if deliberately inflammatory comments generate so much discord?
Hint, John is just a more subtle version of Ron at generating internet scat. They both get pleasure from discord.
As proverbs 22:10 says (and biblical commentary) Verse 10 – Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; Septuagint, ἔκβαλε ἐκ συνεδρίου λοιμόν, “Cast out of the company a pestilent fellow” Chase away the scorner (Proverbs 1:22), the man who has no respect for things human or Divine, and the disputes and ill feeling which he caused will be ended; for “where no wood is, the fire goeth out” (Proverbs 26:20). Yea, strife and reproach shall cease. The reproach and ignominy (קָלון, kalon) are those which the presence and words of the scorner bring with them; to have such a one in the company is a disgrace to all good men. Thus Ishmael and his mother were driven from Abraham’s dwelling (Genesis 21:9, etc.), and the apostle quotes (Galatians 4:30), “Cast out (ἔκβαλε) the bondwoman and her son.” Septuagint, “For when he sits in the company he dishonours all.” The next verse gives a happy contrast. Proverbs 22:10
The final blow is when bot’s selling how to make more profit from your webpage arrive, like last article.
Michael, good idea, to stand off this thread lest someone starts to cast dispersions on someone else to deliberately generate internet scat. We don’t want this thread to go off topic in the second comment like the other one did.
i am sure red and his twin account red ant…. willl come in trash everything here like a toddler with a loaded gun.
To late…
it’s all ready started with y’all, posting what you have said, here in this article.
Sleeping dog. get it…
Nope, biden’s favorite stool pigeon. We leave that to you and your brain, AKA biden. Me, I tend to be very upbeat and if I disagree with rich or someone, I’m honest and try to show, not hack and wheeze vitriol. But that’s your bag, to make folks like red ant, Kathy, and me look good.
I can hear Vince McMahon right now let’s get ready to rumble.
Michael as far as those bots they’re everywhere YouTube Facebook just any form of social media whatsoever they’re going to be on there. And from my understanding even if the web developer bands and blocks the IP all they got to do is Hop on a VPN and right back to business
Everyone is using fear and propaganda to sell their products… ignore the noise and think logically, you will be fine lol
Joanna: A voice of reason, thank you, I completely agree. niio
worry not about Russia and Ukraine with threats much closer… Marxist Trudeau in Canada and Autocrats in US directing Biden’s executive orders.
…. its all related and things will become impossible to buy…. This is the bibilcal war that Eziaskal spoke of
Paralysis by analysis has prevented me from going forward with any such project. Too rich for me. No way to really know what calamity will take me out, so I’ll just try to live independently until it finds me.
you be better of spending the fortune on food…. guns clothes and gear
lots of misunderstanding about Ark II that was built outside of Toronto using buried school buses >>> the buses were “concrete forms” – the bunker consisted of interlocking the shells of the buses together and then pouring a massive solid pour around & above ….
https://youtu.be/8cct-3LZqYI?t=22
The ark was alreadying failing on the show…. and its been shut down due to the fact its leaking and collasping….. The entire network of bus’s where rusting away and have been in a few stages of total failure from the momment he was aired on doomsday preppers. Again…… you have three choices when doing something…… doing the wrong thing…. doing the cheap thing or doing the right thing…..
I am sorry but unless your going to either do block or pour walls…. You would be just wasting your time. The other issue is why build a bunker ? … Root cellar sure and that might be the best use for longer food storage. However if you’re like we need it for…… living… Well that brings in a long list of things like Air filtertration…. water…. and everything else.
The other things you have to balance out is the water table in your land….. and people who fail to understand drainage and a proper site location. … or you just end up with a flooded bunker.
Nice article , I am considering throwing my “hate in the ring for how pistol Ar braces will become illegal by august.
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/06/10/2021-12176/factoring-criteria-for-firearms-with-attached-stabilizing-braces
when Dr Beach left Chicago in the late 70s to build in Canada – his timetable for Armageddon was like 5 years – Ark II hit 40 a few years ago – 8X the intended life cycle isn’t bad ….
John yeah the ATF is going to make millions felons again…. what a suprise
Reminds me of visiting family in Oklahoma when I was younger when the farms down from my cousin’s farm they had one of the buried homes basically only the from the home was accessible a lot of tornadoes ripping through there…… Which brings me to my point not all excrement hitting the fan situations are civil unrest or war sometimes it’s a hurricane tornado bad weather even a fire.
But then again if you’re going to be spending your time energy and money into a bunker of sorts might as well design one that’s for every scenario instead of just one or the other
I lived briefly in the Texas panhandle as a kid in the early 50’s. Even in town, there were several underground homes. They called them “Dugouts”. Some looked like gabled roofs resting on the ground. Some had flat tops a couple of feet higher than the ground with basement type windows around the perimeter. I don’t know if they were for temperature comfort or tornado protection, which would have been limited, given the styles I recall.
We have an old bunker that was here when we moved here. In addition to being a bunker, it could be used as a root cellar or a tornado shelter! So far we haven’t done anything to upgrade it. There’s issues of water getting into the structure. So many other priorities right now that the shelter has been put on the back burner.
Bunkers are OK I guess if you can afford and have time to build one. Bunkers have one very bad flaw and that is you are there for the duration of the siege. If you have only one month of water and that runs out, you have no choice but to come out.
Fox holes connected by trenches as was used in WWII and Vietnam, I think would be better for defense because they allow you mobility without being seen if they are setup correctly. I do not think you will have any grenades thrown at you lol, so as long as you are able to keep them villeins at a distance then you would be as safe as it gets. You also have options to run if you have too.
I am not going to pursue building any type of “bunker”, but the picture of the Cinder Block Bunker looked like it might be a good concept for a root cellar / storage area.
I would not bury any bus or shipping container underground and expect it to remain structurally sound for very long if at all, although the cylindrical underground storage tanks are designed for underground installation and use, if you want to spend the money to convert from liquid storage to dry storage it can be done but would have to include some viable form of access and ventilation.
I’m kinda the same way dz. A root cellar/ tornado shelter combo is a fine thing to have. I can afford to build a self contained second home, and, I have no desire to spend a long term hiding underground. People that haven’t researched survival shelters have no idea what goes into it..
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Bunker only good for a Tornado.
Everything else not so much.
Drones with proper cameras can see where they are.
Radiation can pass though them.
Hordes can wait you out. Or dig you out then burn you out (you need air ya know, and a LOT of it).
Eventually you have to come out.
And that is when you will be vulnerable.
If one does not do things right – you are correct. But if one does diligently the problems, this is not true .
There are individual circumstances that need to be addressed as to what you are doing. No one general analyzing covers all threats you wish to avoid. But everyone can be overcome. They just need to be addressed individually.
What is the best way to make someone vulnerable – tell them it can’t be done. That way you prevent them from
doing it!
Just a thought…
Are you going to sit and wait out them while your hungry or are you going to move on to something else?
Dig them out? You could, but what are you going to eat while you are digging it out?
You could find some heavy equipment to dig them out, but why waste the fuel to run it?
Burn you out? What purpose would that serve? You obviously want what they have inside, so why burn it up?
Drones? Who is going to be using drones after a SHTF event?
Radiation can get through. There’s more protection underground than above ground.
Are you gonna sit outside in the radiation waiting for them or trying to dig them out?
Some people need to think a little deeper…….
Frank, if you find the ventilation inlets then you might be able to use smoke and/or fumes (like ammonia or chlorine) to incapacitate the occupants and they are likely to either suffocate or exit their bunker. You can also use fuel like gasoline to do this, but the vapors may explode. You can even buy small flamethrowers for controlled burns and use them, but as mentioned, you’ll probably light the supplies you wanted on fire, or maybe even light off any fuel that is stored in the “bunker”.
Cave systems throughout the ozarks have been turned into homes, hotels, etc. Now that would be where I’d love to go. You still have the hunting and fishing, places for gardening, and access to small towns for civil services such as shopping.
The need for heating and cooling is not an issue as caves are a consistent temperature year round. Getting electricity or natural/propane gas into the structure is the biggest challenge I can think of.
I’m sure other areas of the country have these, too.
its one thing if you own the land sure…. but if you’re planning like the rest of sheep to “head to the woods” then no it would be a terrible idea. Caves…. offer you a little bit of shelter but they also can be a tactical nightmare, Granted i don’t think to many people are going to be worried about stealing your …. bucket of beans in a cave so you might have that going for you.
Guess i’ll just stick to the homestead and grow food.
Sorry for accidental thumbs down. Wouldn’t let me change it. Lots of the bigger cavern systems in Missouri have already been turned into commercial tourist sites, and therefore have plumbing, air flow flow, snack bars, etc. Any that are near a big city will likely become a highly contested refuge area if there are any major natural disasters. However, land is relatively cheap in southern Missouri, still, especially in the Ozarks,, and i have even seen “we have our own cave!” Advertised as a selling point in residential real estate postings. Most likely any property with a natural cave would also have a spring or two. If not, wells are quite common. And 5-60 acre lots are just as common. The 360 acre lot we looked at before settling on a smaller place was butted up against a national forest and had about 3 different natural springs on it. But it was set up for livestock raising and promised far too much active labor for our needs, considering we’re only home 2 days a week. Even so. It was super tempting at a price far less than a 3 bdr house in the bad part of town with no yard we WERE looking at in the city. I have a neighbor who is the local sheriff. He raises cattle on his acreage, and recently bought from his closest neighbor on the other side simply for the extra 30 acres, never mind the huge home on it. He bought the whole thing outright with no mortgage, simply by taking out a home improvement loan on his current property. Loans like this are typically limited to one third of the home’s equity, so you can tell it was super cheap. Just a plug for those who are looking to homestead but think they can’t afford it…
Sounds like Arkansas is going to become as popular as Idaho for Preppers and Survivalists. Around 1970 every pot head in Texas dreamed of buying land at 100.00 an acre up in the Ozarks to farm pot.
The article touts the German fortifications above the Normandy beaches as formidable bunkers, a better description, they were targets that didn’t survive half a day. Which reminds me of what a poor General Ike was, he was locked into Overlord from 1942 on, but by spring 1944 the Army Air Force was unchallenged in France with thousands of bombers and attack aircraft and very few targets. Ike could easily have ordered the carpet bombing of the 3 most likely landing sites for Overlord, completely wiping out the beach defenses and saving 200,000 Allied casualties. Instead that foolish pelon set the Air Force to bombing the French transportation infrastructure and killing thousands of Allied civilians. He must have wanted the glory of a great bloody victory. Armies should be run by committees of privates.
I think the Vietnam War gave us a great love for bunkers. Those bunker complexes were the work of generations of laborers fighting the Japanese, French, and Americans with shovels. One bunker counts for nothing, show me the armored door and I’ll dig the few feet down to the roof and collapse it.
Dang, I wish there was a way to stay safe when everything breaks down.
Well with Texas going blue again like they did in the 70s…. its not the ideal state i would consider home.
It’s up in the air for now, I’ve had to listen patiently to my liberal friends complain about so many right wingers moving here. The Texas Democratic Party is brain dead, there might be a Dem governor here by 2032. California Republicans alienated the Latino population there by playing a few too many race cards, the Latino population is by nature conservative and, except for extreme redistricting the Texas Republicans have avoided that mistake. Who knows? Land and housing here are the big issues if you want to relocate, my property has doubled in value in three years. Another Texas bugaboo is property tax. They freeze taxes at 65 which has saved me 5000.00 a year, but that idiots tax is making it harder and harder for the middle class to buy.
It’s been a slow day. I don’t see a bunker in my future, but I did start to wonder how big bunker-thinking is. Pretty big business of contractors and brokers out there. Learned of Vivos Xpoint. Huge 18 sq mile complex of bunkers for lease.
What would be really nice is a link to a text that would estimate the concrete and steel reinforcement required for various soil types and depths. If this was known, the people who say it was out of their price range would know how far out of range it is. One suggestion is if you only need a root cellar, one could be build above ground using aircrete. Aircrete has little structural strength, but is a great insulator and is cheep.
well its tough and based on your locaity but a rough est is 10 grand to pour a typical 2.5 car garage flood..
You want to be safe when shtf? Move to where there are few people and more importantly where no one wants to go or would want to go. That’s where I am. Paradise and I love it here.
Before building your own cement or cement-block structure in the ground, evaluate the water table in your area; flood zones, rainfall and any snow melt, and how long the ground could be frozen (if this applies in your area). Why?
Because frozen ground in much of Wisconsin pushes 1,000 to 2,000 lbs pressure (I am not saying it is psi, because I don’t recall that right now), but it definitely pushes a tremendous weight against basement structural walls when frozen, as if to try to collapse the walls “inward”.
Basement construction in wet winter states do different things to mediate winter frozen water in ground conditions. They build drains below foundation level outside of the basement walls, to drain away rain water from roofs, walls, etc. They also often put gravel just outside the basement wall up to about a foot from ground level, for the same reason, to drain off water from penetrating the basement walls that can seep through concrete and cause molds, mildews, and rot untreated wood (if used) Many will also use water barrier materials outside the basement wall (waterproof paints and tar-papers), and often add insulation to keep the basement warmer in winter from ground temperature. They may also include a covering over the exterior basement walls and ground to ensure no snow or rain seep affecting basement exterior walls don’t seep. Yes I said that, it has been discovered that putting a closed-cell styrofoam (Type of) insulation from a foundation outward (such as under a sidewalk next to a garage) insulates the ground and prevents what in winter-states is often called “frost-heave”, where slab foundations rise and fall (and crack and tilt) as do cement porches.
And I have seen buried “chamber” water-well rooms under homes (like in a breezeway construction) at a later time build over the well (with access). Something to think about if you intend to be “holed up” for a lengthy period of time. Also, though many basement walls are block walls, I suspect that many block centers were filled in with concrete when placed; and potentially also rebar was added to add rigidity to the height of basement walls while also strengthening the wall from bending inwards. My house, built before I was born, has piers (adjacent to inner block basement walls) from the basement floor to basement ceiling to help strengthen larger basement rooms, then the same piers get the steel or heavy-duty wood beams that the ceiling rests upon. I have read that where in the olden days a lightening rod (electrical ground) was planted in a yard–that now it has been approved in some areas to put a cross-hatch-lay of rebar in the basement cement floor for an electrical ground. and maybe that would be helpful for EMP concerns. I am aware that ground clay (not in my area) also swells with moisture added, so it can push against basement walls as if to collapse them inward. And this is also where flood zone issues become very real.
There was a time when I visited BuildingScience.Com and they offered free information on foundations and many subjects including mitigating moisture intrusion. Also INTERNACHI (online) had, some time ago, free articles about home potential-weakness matters. After that, you might want to check whomever supervises building codes in your area. to get info about the current safety-standards in your geographical area (as it pertains to ground conditions and prior to construction). If you live in Limestone-Land, like my area and house, a nearby golf course had to dynamite the limestone at roughly 2-feet below ground level, over and over and over again to back-hoe out the broken rock to build a drainage water-runoff pond. So there are a lot of things to consider before investing $$s in trying to put a shelter in the ground: flood zones, water-run off, how long winter ground-freeze lasts, frost level depths. In my area they advertise 36-inche frost depth (“in town”), but in rural country frost level can be another foot or more deeper, and especially when no insulative snow covers the ground and when severe winter-wind-chill freezes the ground deeper than in town, where houses block so much ground level wind. In my area on farms tornado shelter and food cellars were built above ground, but down to limestone (and probably some of that was removed), then covered over framing and farm dirt—like down a slope so that the top of the shelter was not visible as a hill, but instead as an extension of the hill, except at the entry way that was often hid by trees. When I discovered a huge one in an abandoned field, I didn’t even know it was there until I walked deeper into the field.
Thanks for posting. I like the idea of looking at basement plans in the area.
Im in Florida so frost is not a problem. The water table has very little fluctuation but manageable. Great info here people. I still have some questions in an above post.
Also I have thought much of multiple and more important “hidden” vents. So to some nay sayers, I know this one subject is doable.
Atlas Survival Shelters, the best I’ve seen.
here’s the link to Atlas Survival Shelters
https://www.atlassurvivalshelters.com/
Good company and i spoke to the owner a few times. Great product and you can’t go wrong with them.
My understanding is that underground rooms/structures almost always leak water, and the best option is poured concrete – extremely pricey.
KG: As far as I know, not well-built houses. Subterranean houses have been around for quite a while. Layers of plastic buries in sand and bentonite should work. I’ve seen house with dirt roots that didn’t leak. Well, not much 🙂 Germany has a law that every new building has to be covered in sod and maintained. As long as the rubberized cover over the roof has dirt to block it from the sun, it should last centuries. Remember, tires buried in landfilled decades ago turn up undamaged. niio
bunker for nuke attack cost 6 figures and if bombs hit within a few hundred miles there’s going to be nothing but debris, dead things and radiation. but for other reason some type epically tornado or hurricane areas.. as for the school bus bury he also poured a lot of concrete around. his theory that was not a target area but wind stream would bring fallout by that town. and last report the local fire and gov shut it down the 2nd time. not sure if the builders still around he was elderly when stories done
pic of the cinder block design for drainage around critical and fill the block and use rebar
The last part; EMERGENCY AIR; concern me a lots. Especially nowadays by WW3 & nuke war issues. How to deal with?
Oh well….claustrophobia. Darn