Friday, March 17, 2017

1st Thing on Our Check List..... Storm Shelter, CHECK



Bulldog Man and I decided, if we lived in Tornado Alley, a tornado shelter was mandatory.  Granted when we decided this, we were living in a rental home without a shelter.  Each time a major (F3, F4, &F5) tornado came through; we would grab our bug out bags, the dog, and evacuate the area. In other words, drive the opposite direction for safety.   

No more running!!!!

We purchased a home in the country; and the first thing we installed was a medium size (6X8) tornado shelter.  Inside this shelter, we will place emergency supplies, i.e. communications, lights, first aid, water, food, tools, and protection.  The shelter is registered with the Emergency Operations Center within our county; just in case our home and property are hit by a tornado, emergency personnel will come to our rescue within minutes of the storm.  

Tornado shelters are normally used a couple of times during tornado season.  In Oklahoma, tornado season generally runs from March 1st to July 1st ; with the month of May being the most prominent month.  Time spent in the shelter is usually just a few minutes.  

Our idea is to use part of the shelter (the area behind the stairs, and along that wall) as an area to store harvested vegetables and fruit (kind of like a root cellar).  Bulldog Man and I will do some more research before moving forward with the idea of using the shelter as a root cellar.  
   
Without further adieu, here’s the installation of our medium-sized tornado shelter.

Video #1   shows our contractor measuring, spray painting, digging, and leveling the location where we want our tornado shelter to be placed.





Video#2   tornado shelter arrives on a boom truck, is lifted into place, and once again leveled.


Video #3   lifting the top half of the shelter to remove particles of concrete and dust from edge, adding water proofing adhesive and finally adding nonskid strips to the stairs.  Then re-attach the roof, and secure the top with steel fastening straps.  


Video#4   re-attach the roof, level once more, and secure the top with steel fastening straps. 


Video#5   filling in soil, packing it around the shelter, and cleaning up.



Video#6   final product, now time to add our emergency supplies……and possibly food storage (root cellar style).



Any questions?






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14 comments

  1. That's identical to ours. We've used ours several times since having it installed. The peace of mind of having a shelter is priceless!

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    1. Hey Lady,

      You can say that again :-)
      We made sure to install it close to the house.
      Hugs,
      Sandy

      Delete
  2. jambaloney is impressed with your foresight and level of preparedness...he says good job! me, i just can't wait to see how much vegetables that thing can hold!

    we love you guys and you know it! can't wait to hear more about your house and land!

    your friend,
    kymber

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    Replies
    1. Kymber,

      When living in tornado alley one must always be prepared for anything. My plan is to use a portion for vegetable storage in boxes, and on shelves.
      Sending hugs and love to you both.
      Sandy

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  3. Very interesting! I've never seen this type of shelter . . . let alone it being installed. Yes, the peace of mind will be priceless. Don't blame you one bit for going to the expense of having this.

    And it will be fun to see just what veggies you can store in there. I'm sure through experimentation you'll learn a lot!

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    Replies
    1. Mama Pea,

      This type of shelter is very popular in Oklahoma. The price includes the installation, and a 10 year warranty from leaks, cracks, floating, and breakage. I'm thinking we'll paint it the color of the house, and put some sod around the sides with possibly flowers.

      Experimentation and research will be the way to go to figure out what veggies and fruit will survive underground in Oklahoma.
      Hugs,
      Sandy

      Delete
  4. LOVE IT!!!!!!!! So excited for you to have this. How much peace of mind will this give? Priceless! We have to have metal or fiberglass here for in-ground shelters, concrete gets too wet for us down this way. I was born in Oklahoma and both grandparents had shelters and so did a lot of other relatives. We moved away when I was young but there were many times we visited and had to take shelter. I love how you will store veggies, very smart. Stock it with the essentials and you'll never have to worry about an emergency again.

    Thanks so much for posting, I'm off to watch them all again. :-)

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    Replies
    1. 1st Man,

      Thanks! We love it as well, now we have a safe place to go instead of driving the opposite direction when a tornado is near. It's totally priceless!!! I think I would opt for the steel/metal over fiberglass. My motto is try to have several uses for items you make or purchase, and the shelter will be used for safety and food storage.

      Delete
  5. So glad you already have it and ready to use! Hope you never need it except for a root cellar. We feel better now and won't worry so much when we hear there are storms in your area.

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    1. Mike,

      We're glad we have it as well especially since the tornado season is upon us. They're many Tornado Shelter companies who have long waiting lists, we were surprised it only took one week from purchase to installation.

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  6. Very exciting to move and start getting things in order. Sounds like you've put good thought into prioritizing your project list. I hope you never need to use your new shelter!

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    1. Leigh,

      Yes, it's very exciting! We organized the move to make things less difficult. Had a local mover move all the heavy stuff. We haven't used the shelter yet for tornadoes.

      Delete
  7. Wow! I have never seen a tornado shelter like that before. I always think of a cellar door that opens into the ground on the side of a house. I course, I live in the PNW, so not in tornado country, although, we get frequent dust devils. Can it also be used as a nuclear bunker?

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    Replies
    1. Rose,

      It's common to have root cellars in the ground. As for this shelter,its strictly for tornadoes and food storage. You can't use this particular shelter for a nuclear bunker. Bunkers need are usually totally underground,and have special ventilation system.

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