How do you prepare for storms?

[huckridge]

Tornado activity this past weekend got me to wondering. Not everyone has a basement or storm cellar, so as we prepare and store food, how do we keep it safe from the storms. I wonder how many families lost all of their preps to the tornados last weekend. I know we can store items in several different locations but what are some other ideas? I look forward to hearing some of your ideas.

[Climber]

Funny you should ask this question. I'm in the first stages of building a "saferoom/storm shelter/safe storeroom." It will be fully self-contained.

Due to groundwater here, I an borrowing the idea from Hancock County, MS storm shelters. They have 4 or 5 of them spread out through the county. They are built above ground, with concrete filled block walls, with an earth berm built up on 3 sides. Has a reinforced ceiling and extra heavy duty low angle metal roof. It's not for long term, just during a storm. They will be emptied when the storm danger is over.

Mine is 12x16. I only have the slab and first layer of blocks with reinforcement steel in place. Only work on it in spare time and rain has cut that time way down. I have blocks and portland, sand and gravel purchased. Haven't got ceiling/roof materials yet. Do happen to have the soil for the berms.

Figure end of summer hopefully to be done.

Jimmy

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Even with a storm shelter I dont put all my preps in there because that would (A) leave no room for us and (B) be in danger from quakes

[WiseOwl]

I was wondering this the other night. Has anyone ever been in a twister or hurricane and seen what it does to buckets? I keep all of my stuff on one end of the house because I think that is the strongest end of the house.

Would buckets survive or would they be strewn 3 miles down the street?

[Matt In Oklahoma]

I was wondering this the other night. Has anyone ever been in a twister or hurricane and seen what it does to buckets? I keep all of my stuff on one end of the house because I think that is the strongest end of the house.
Would buckets survive or would they be strewn 3 miles down the street?

In a tornando the integrity of something can not be determined. i have witnessed animals and people set down without anything but minor injuries and yet seen an engine block that was feet from them ripped apart from impact. The last deal i worked things like furniture was sucked out of the house but the junk mail was still on the coffe table. Normally the middle of the house keeps integrity the best.

[huckridge]

Matt, you're right about that. I was in Lubbock, Tx in '69 when that tornado came thru and I saw one houses completely demolished except for a table with drinking glasses still sitting on it undisturbed. I had one come thru a neighbor hood I lived in and I lost 4 trees in the front yard but the newspaper was still undisturbed on the porch swing.

What am doing is stocking different areas on my farm with hopes that if anything like a tornado does hit, maybe it won't get everything. I was just hoping that ideas could be shared about what other folks are doing.

[huckridge]

Funny you should ask this question. I'm in the first stages of building a "saferoom/storm shelter/safe storeroom." It will be fully self-contained.

Due to groundwater here, I an borrowing the idea from Hancock County, MS storm shelters. They have 4 or 5 of them spread out through the county. They are built above ground, with concrete filled block walls, with an earth berm built up on 3 sides. Has a reinforced ceiling and extra heavy duty low angle metal roof. It's not for long term, just during a storm. They will be emptied when the storm danger is over.

Mine is 12x16. I only have the slab and first layer of blocks with reinforcement steel in place. Only work on it in spare time and rain has cut that time way down. I have blocks and portland, sand and gravel purchased. Haven't got ceiling/roof materials yet. Do happen to have the soil for the berms.

Figure end of summer hopefully to be done.

Jimmy

I'm in the process of trying to build something similar. Our water table is much lower and I'm going to try to bury the shelter at least 3/4 underground.

[Climber]

I'm in the process of trying to build something similar. Our water table is much lower and I'm going to try to bury the shelter at least 3/4 underground.

That's what I would love to do but even on top of a hill, it's just too wet.

Good luck on your shelter.

Jimmy

[All Talk]

I would berm on all four sides except of course for the doorway (unless you used one of those low-angled old storm cellar doors -- wonder why they called them that? -- andthen you could berm all around and build the door into the berm.)

I would put the door facing East or Northeast, as nearly all tornadoes come from the west or southwest (at least that's what I've always understood).

Your biggest concern is the roof carrying away. No overhangs or eaves. I would consider steel beams (wouldn't need to be too large), emplaced directly into the tops of the reinforced concrete walls, and then I'd bolt stell roofing to thos beams (unless there is a lightning hazard, might try to think of something else ilke very heavy duty fiberglass or something).

IMPORTANT: make sure it's not air tight. You could suffocate in short order. I'd put in some venting.

I'd use a simple lean-too roof (one slope, from low wall to high wall, and my gut says if you have no overhangs, make the high side toward the blast (i.e. door in the low wall).

[Lowdown3]

Wiseowl- most of the buckets out there now probably wouldn't survive a drop from 4 feet fully loaded. All depends on what part contacts first, age of bucket, etc.

We can't possibly prepare for everything, but yes good shelter is important. Good building design and materials for our dwellings is important also.

Eggs= multiple baskets.